ance; there were meetings of the emperor and of Napoleon at Salzburg
in 1868, and the next year at Paris; the death of Maximilian in Mexico cast
a shadow over the friendship, but did not destroy it. The opposition of the
Hungarians and financial difficulties probably prevented a warlike policy.
In 1870 there were discussions preparatory to a formal alliance with France
against the North German Confederation, but nothing was signed.[7] The war
of 1870 put an end to all ideas of this kind; the German successes were so
rapid that Austria was not exposed to the temptation of intervening, a
temptation that could hardly have been resisted had the result been
doubtful or the struggle prolonged. The absorption of South Germany in the
German empire took away the chief cause for friction; and from that time
warm friendship, based on the maintenance of the established order, has
existed between the two empires. Austria gave up all hope of regaining her
position in Germany; Germany disclaimed all intention of acquiring the
German provinces of Austria. Beust's retirement in 1871 put the finishing
touch on the new relations. His successor, Count Andrassy, a Hungarian,
established a good understanding with Bismarck; and in 1872 the visit of
the emperor Francis Joseph, accompanied by his minister, to Berlin, was the
final sign of the reconciliation with his uncle. The tsar was also present
on that occasion, and for the next six years the close friendship between
the three empires removed all danger of war. Three years later the full
reconciliation with Italy followed, when Francis Joseph consented to visit
Victor Emmanuel in Venice.

[Sidenote: The Eastern question.]

The outbreak of disturbance in the Balkans ended this period of calm. The
insurrection in Bosnia and Herzegovina immediately affected Austria;
refugees in large numbers crossed the frontier and had to be maintained by
the government. The political problem presented was a very difficult one.
The sympathy of the Slav inhabitants of the empire made it impossible for
the government of Vienna to regard with indifference the sufferings of
Christians in Turkey. Active support was impossible, because the
Hungarians, among whom the events of 1848 had obliterated the remembrance
of the earlier days of Turkish conquest, were full of sympathy for the
Turks. It was a cardinal principle of Austrian policy that she could not
allow the erection of new Slav states on her southern frontier.