The Saber and Scroll Journal Volume 1, Issue 1, April 2015 | Page 43

reparation of those grievances, like it had been done several times already?
But this time, we could not appear on these distant coasts and leave with a
treaty, nor could we just occupy a port and receive the necessary
indemnities. This time our arrival should signal the start of a revolution. . .
This revolution, which [conservative Mexican] immigrants full of
confidence thought would be certain and easy, was supposed to overthrow
the republic and result in the foundation of a throne with our support. 19
When the British and Spanish realized Napoleon III had plans beyond a demand for
reparations, they recalled their troops. The French stayed on, and sent more troops.
While
the
French and their allies
were busy conquering
Mexico,
in
1864,
Mexican exiles in France
and Napoleon III invited
Maximilian
von
Hapsburg, the brother of
the Emperor of Austria,
to come and be emperor
of Mexico, which his
troops already occupied. 20
The Austrian prince was Figure 1. The Mexican Delegation Offering the Mexican
to secure a new power Imperial Crown to Maximilian of Hapsburg. Painting by
base, a Latin power base Cesare dell’Acqua, 1863.
that a Hapsburg could
still accomplish. Anglo-America would have a Franco-Latin counterbalance— and
that from a Germanic monarch in the Western Hemisphere. But the growth in the
global relations that could have been fostered fell away as their French protectors
turned away in the face of American hostility.
When a delegation of exiled Mexican conservatives came to Austria to
offer the Hapsburg prince a crown as their emperor, they augmented the offer with a
certain promise. The French emperor promised additional troops, on top of the few
Austrian and Belgian troops already contracted to the cause. Also adding impetus
was a flimsy plebiscite that only polled those conservative Mexicans most likely to
agree; it stated Maximilian was to rule the will of the Mexican people. This finally
convinced the young prince and his consort, Charlotte, to board a ship for the
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