What happened in 1840, a short history lesson:
From wiki (
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oriental_Crisis_of_1840)
On the verge of total collapse and defeat to Muhammad Ali, an alliance of European powers comprising the
United Kingdom, the
Austrian Empire, the
Kingdom of Prussia and the
Russian Empire intervened on behalf of the young
Sultan Abdülmecid I.
So in summary, Muhammad Ali was close to forging his own personal empire at the expense of the Ottomans, when the latter were bailed out by a coallition of european powers lead by Great Britain. There was howewer one european country that supported the Egyptians: France.
The crisis in Egypt also coincided with a flare-up of tensions on the Franco-German border. It is possible that the French were looking for a casus-belli to reoccupy the Rhineland and restore the border from the revolutionary and napoleonic age. In the end, the French were diplomatically isolated and could not do anything.
What is however extremely bizzare in this episode is the support that Russia gave to its traditional enemy, the Ottoman Empire. This gave me an ideea for an AH scenario:
What should have happened:
French diplomats convince the Russians that it's time to dismantle the Ottoman Empire, like the Russians allways wanted. Russia will get the Balkans including Constantinople and will annex these terittories or set up puppet states. Muhammad Ali will get all the middle-east plus the titles of Sultan and Caliph and whatewer else he wants. He will have to give political and economic concessions to Russia and especially to France. The French will obtain economic privileges in Egypt and maybe annex some more land in North-Africa. But more important, they will secure from their newfound allies support for expansion in the Rhineland. Austria may or may not be brought into the plan, depending on how much sympathy the Austrians feel for Prussia and other west-german states. They will of course be promised Bosnia and other lands in the western Balkans. Britain will be humiliated and diplomatically isolated, and France will regain it's prestige in Europe.
So what went wrong? How did the French screw up diplomatically? Why did the Rssians pass-up on the opportuinty to destroy their rivals and seize Constantinople, like they allways wanted?
I'm curious about your thoughts on the matter.