played a crucial role in averting war between Britain and the U.S. during the Civil War, primarily through his intervention in the Trent Affair in late 1861, where he softened Britain's aggressive demands for the release of captured Confederate diplomats, giving President Lincoln a diplomatic "face-saving" way out and preventing potential British entry into the war. Despite being gravely ill, Albert recognized the danger in the harsh British draft note and amended it to offer a peaceful resolution, allowing the U.S. to release the envoys and de-escalate tensions, dying just weeks later.