Entering the 19th century, connections within the global village tightened, and the international situation became one where pulling a single hair could move the entire body.
With the end of the American Civil War, the attention of the United Kingdom, France, Austria, and Spain was focused on Europe, and the pressure on the Tsarist Government greatly increased.
The London Government had already begun to plan interference in the Prusso-Russian War, attempting to force the Tsarist Government to concede through diplomatic means and to strike at Russian prestige.
One must admit that John Bull's diplomatic tactics were formidable; the Paris Government, which the Russians had just won over, began to waver again, and the French-Russian loan was withheld.
It couldn't all be blamed on the French; the performance of the Russian Army on the battlefield was deeply disappointing.
