The Franco—Prussian War raged between 1870 and 1871. The war was essentially fought between France and Germany, although Germany was unified under Prussian control. France eventually lost the war to Germany. The underlying cause of the conflict was Prussian statesman Otto Edward Leopold von Bismarck's desire to unify Germany under Prussian control and eliminate France's power over Germany. On the other side, Napoleon III, emperor of France from 1852 to 1870, wanted to regain national and international status lost as a result of various diplomatic setbacks, most notably those suffered at the hands of the Prussians during the Austro—Prussian War of 1866. Lastly, the military strength of Prussia, as was revealed in Austria, added to France's desire to dominate the European continent.

The war was precipitated by a series of feather-ruffling events that would eventually lead to Germany unifying itself under Prussian leadership to...