The war began in October, 1853 between Russia and the Ottoman Empire, and by March, 1854 had involved France and England. When the Russian Black Sea Fleet completely devastated the Turkish navy at the Battle of Sinope in November, 1853, England felt threatened. The threat came in a large part from the fact that for the first time, exploding shells were used in a naval engagement. To add to this, in France, Napoleon III desired to revive the military might of the French which had been destroyed 39 years earlier at Waterloo.