Although it was Russia that was punished by the Paris Treaty, in the long run it was Austria that lost the most from the Crimean War despite having barely taken part in it.:433 Having abandoned its alliance with Russia, Austria was diplomatically isolated following the war,:433 which contributed to its disastrous defeats in the 1859 Franco-Austrian War that resulted in the cession of Lombardy to the Kingdom of Sardinia, and later in the loss of the Habsburg rule of Tuscany and Modena, which meant the end of Austrian influence in Italy. Furthermore, Russia did not do anything to assist its former ally, Austria, in the 1866 Austro-Prussian War:433 with its loss of Venetia and more important than that, its influence in most German-speaking lands. The status of Austria as a great power, with the unifications of Germany and Italy was now severely questioned. It had to compromise with Hungary, the two countries shared the Danubian Empire and Austria slowly became a little more than a German satellite. With France now hostile to Germany, allied with Russia, and Russia competing with the newly renamed Austro-Hungarian Empire for an increased role in the Balkans at the expense of the Ottoman Empire, the foundations were in place for creating the diplomatic alliances that would lead to World War I.

Who lost the most due to the Crimean War?