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IOTL, Napoleon III seriously considered having France intervene on the side of the Confederacy in the American Civil War. However, one of the main reasons he didn't was because the British didn't want to.

My question is: why did he need Britain's "green light" to intervene? It's unlikely he'd be risking war, as most people in Britain didn't really care who won (IIRC). Even if Britain cared, he shouldn't have if they did; the two nations did have a rivalry, so there's no reason to care what your rival thinks. He also wouldn't need British support to carry out operations in support of the Confederates. Furthermore, if France intervened for the Confederates, they would be able to further their cause in Mexico. So why didn't Nappy III and France intervene on their own?
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