Wei had beun to grow haughty, and Hong has him murdered as well.

He recalls Shih to the capital, but Shih's immense popularity with the Taiping troops arouses Hong's suspicion.

As the Taiping leaders grow increasingly suspicious of one another, the Taiping cause begins to collapse.

Hung now ignores his ablest followers and entrusts affairs of state to his incompetent elder brothers.

He withdraws from all government matters for long periods, spending his time with his harem or in religious speculation.

The Porte manipulates an election of delegates to special assemblies charged with discussing unification of the principlaities in 1857; the few voters casting ballots elect representatives opposing union.

An international crisis follows, and French emperor Napoleon III, with Russian and British support, finally pressures the Ottomans to nullify the results and hold new, untainted elections, which return a huge majority of delegates in favor of unification.

These delegates immediately call for autonomy, a constitutional government, and a foreign prince to rule the unified principalities.

The British assume control of Baluchistan in 1857, ...

...making Afghanistan a completely landlocked country.

Pretorius becomes the first president of the South African Republic (the Transvaal) in 1857, and promulgates a constitution assuring central government.

Mazzini's isolation is complete when it becomes known that in June and July 1857 he had supported an expedition to the southern mainland to incite insurrection, known as the Sapri expedition, in which the Neapolitan republican and socialist Carlo Pisacane and some three hundred companions lost their lives.

Mazzini manages to escape the police, but is condemned to death by default.

The democrats are divided and unable to carry on the revolutionary struggle; nothing is to be expected from the restored governments.

From this moment on, Mazzini is more of a spectator than a protagonist of the Italian Risorgimento, whose reins are now strongly in the hands of the Savoyard monarch Victor Emmanuel II and his skilled prime minister Cavour.

The latter defines Mazzini as "Chief of the assassins".

Pius IX, now under the influence of the reactionary Giacomo Cardinal Antonelli, refuses to grant any reforms in Rome.

Liberal Catholicism cannot remain viable without reforms in the Papal States.

Austria carries out stern repressive measures in Lombardy-Venetia.

Reaction becomes pervasive in Naples and...