ABSTRACT

After the fall of Sevastopol the German states – principally Austria and Prussia, but also Saxony and Bavaria – wanted to end a war which threatened to involve them. The Turkish government was satisfied no further benefit could accrue from continuing, while Walewski was among the majority in France calling for an early settlement. Russia was exhausted and most accepted only further defeats awaited, but the regime was too proud to treat for terms. Neutral Austria had the freedom to lead the peace process, and did not lack pressing reasons of her own for acting. Despite Louis Napoleon’s public rejection of peace Walewski allowed Borqueney to open secret discussions with Buol in early September. While the basis of any settlement remained the ‘Four Points’, Buol had to secure terms acceptable to both sides. He considered that if he issued an ultimatum to Russia he could then moderate western demands. However, his position as ‘honest broker’ was compromised by the addition of blatantly Austrian aims: the return of the strategic Russian-held sector of Bessarabia to the Principalities, and the complete exclusion of Russia from the navigable waters of the Danube and its tributaries in order to reduce Russian influence in the Balkans and ensure the Danube remained an artery of German trade.