itude of Napoleon in the Polish question
prevented any revival of the alliance of Tilsit, the goodwill of Russia was
assured for France in the coming struggle with Austria in Italy. Already
the isolation of Austria had been conspicuous in the congress of Paris,
where Cavour, the Sardinian plenipotentiary, laid bare before assembled
Europe the scandal of her rule in Italy. It was emphasized during the
campaign of 1859, when Sardinia, in alliance with France, laid the
foundations of united Italy. The threat of Prussian intervention, which
determined the provisions of the armistice of Villafranca, was due, not to
love of Austria, but to fear of the undue aggrandizement of France. The
campaign of 1859, and the diplomatic events that led up to it, are dealt
with elsewhere (see ITALY, ITALIAN WARS, NAPOLEON III., CAVOUR). The
results to Austria were two-fold. Externally, she lost all her Italian
possessions except Venice; internally, her failure led to the necessity of
conciliating public opinion by constitutional concessions.

The proclamation on the 26th of February 1861 of the new constitution for
the whole monarchy, elaborated by Anton von Schmerling, though far from
satisfying the national aspirations of the races within the empire, at
least gave Austria a temporary popularity in Germany; the liberalism of the
Habsburg monarchy was favourably contrasted with the "reactionary" policy
of Prussia, where Bismarck was defying the majority of the diet in his
determination to build up the military power of Prussia. The meeting of the
princes summoned to Frankfort by the emperor Francis Joseph, in 1863,
revealed the ascendancy of Austria among the smaller states of the
Confederation; but it revealed also the impossibility of any consolidation
of the Confederation without the co-operation of Prussia, which stood
outside. Bismarck had long since decided that the matter could only be
settled by the exclusion of Austria altogether, and that the means to this
end were not discussion, but "Blood and Iron." The issue was forced by the
developments of the tangled Schleswig-Holstein Question (_q.v._), which led
to the definitive breach between the two great German powers, to the
campaign of 1866, and the collapse of Austria on the field of Koniggratz
(July 3. See SEVEN WEEKS' WAR).

(W. A. P.; A. HL.)

[Sidenote: Establishment of the dual monarchy.]

The war of 1866 began a new era in the history of the Austrian empire. By
the treaty