The French courted Muhammad 'Ali of Egypt, the Suez canal is built adding to French ambitions in Asia. France plays The Turkish Sultan off against Muhammad 'Ali of Egypt. Egypt grants France many special rights. The canal becomes very profitable for both France and Egypt. (The British infiltration and subjugation of Egypt and the Sudan does not occur as is our timeline).
Bismark pushes for a war with Denmark (1864). The Danes bloody the Prussian nose.
More about Denmark
Despite this setback Bismark promotes a plan of Prussian dominance of the Germans, and blaming Austria for the defeat against the Danes directs a brilliant war against them (1866). In an attempt to bring all of the formally independent German states under the rule of the Prussian Kaiser, Bismark provokes a war with France lead by Napoleon III (1870-71).
This war grinds to a halt as neither side can make meaningful advances against defenses guarded by artillery and mitrailleuse (machine guns).
The Berlin Conference: This major political meeting is held (some ten years in advance) as a result to the horror to the grinding wars of German unification. (These are not the short simple affairs as in our timeline because of the successful deployment of rapid fire weapons by the Danes and the material and psychological toll inflicted on Prussian forces during their war with the Danes.) Despite their overwhelming victory over the Austrians, when the Prussians encounter the rapid fire of the French mitrailleuse, the Prussian advances were check in part by memory of the affect the Espingol used by the Danes had on their lines four years earlier.
