Maximilian Affair

The Maximilian Affair was a diplomatic crisis of 1864-1867 resulting from the violation of the Monroe Doctrine by French Emperor Napoleon III, who placed Austrian Archduke Maximilian on the throne of Mexico. Because the United States was in the midst of the Civil War, it could not respond militarily, however the United States refused to recognize the new government and demanded the removal of the French armies which propped it up. In 1866 French troops were removed after the United States positioned military forces along the Rio Grande. Ultimately, the crisis was resolved when Benito Juarez deposed and executed Maximilian in 1867.