Maximilian and Juarez

In an ill-starred undertaking, Napoleon III attempted to install Archduke Maximilian of Austria as the Emperor of Mexico.

The move pitted liberals against conservatives and the New World against the Old-and ended with Maximilian's execution, the insanity of his wife, Charlotte, and the emergence of the United States as a world power.

"It is also essential reading to understand the history of the United States today."-Antonia Fraser.