In OTL, Napoleon III, despite his expansionist and imperialist ambitions, had a fairly pro-British foreign British policies. However, in this timeline, he followed more in the footsteps of his imperial predecessor, Napoleon I. Although he does not start any major wars with the British Empire during his reign, he focuses more on forming alliances with Russia and Austria-Hungary. Therefore, Britain eventually strengthens ties with the German Empire, which it shares royal blood with. This causes the alliances of World War I to turn out differently, and the centuries-old rivalry between England and France is able to continue into the 20th centuries.