There was a new France and a new Paris; new boulevards were made, gardens and walks and drives laid out, and a renewed and magnificent city extended from the Bois de Vincennes on one side to the Bois de Boulogne on the other.

With the building of public works there was occupation for all, resulting in the repose for which France had longed.
The Empress Eugenie was beautiful and gracious, and her court at Versailles, Fontainebleau, and the Tuileries compared well in splendor with the traditions of the past.
The emperor's ambitions began to take on a larger form.

Under the auspices of the government, M.Lesseps commenced a transisthmian canal, which would open communication between the Mediterranean Sea and the Red Sea.

Then, in 1862, a less peaceful scheme developed.

An expedition was planned to Mexico, against which country France had a small grievance.
The United States was at this time fighting for its life in a civil war of gigantic proportions.