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The French army advanced into the Rhineland and captured the German city of Saarbucken. The army of Napoleon III was ill-prepared for war as many of its best troops were fighting in the colonies, such as Algeria and Vietnam. Alarmed at the French invasion, the southern German states eventually put their armies under the command of the Prussian Army.<ref> Clark, C. (2006). ''Iron Kingdom: The Rise and Downfall of Prussia, 1600–1947'', p. 345.</ref> Suddenly, France was faced with a united Germany, under the leadership of Prussia. The German forces, under the command of Field Marshal Helmut Von Moltke, gradually pushed the French army back into eastern France. Gradually, a large section of the French army became encircled in the city of Metz. The French public was alarmed at this and demanded the lifting of the siege. A large French army was assembled and advanced to break the German siege at Metz. The French as they advanced towards Metz were lured into a trap at Sedan by the Prussian and German forces. The French army suffered a catastrophic defeat at Sedan and this battle decided the war in Prussia's favor. France had lost most of its army and was defenseless before the German army.<ref> Wawro, G. (2003). ''The Franco-Prussian War: The German Conquest of France in 1870–1871''. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, p. 167.</ref> During the battle Napoleon III was captured by Prussian forces. The war continued and the French refused to surrender. Napoleon III abdicated and he was replaced by a government of National Defense, who carried on the war. The Germans advanced to Paris and besieged the city, where the Prussian Kaiser was crowned the monarch of a united Germany in Versailles. The Government of National Defense, after increasingly heavy French losses during the siege of Paris, accepted the inevitable and agreed to a Peace Treaty with the newly created German Empire.<ref>Wawro, p. 345.</ref>  [[File:512px-BismarckundNapoleonIII.jpg|thumbnail|Napoleon III and Bismarck after Napoleon was captured at the Battle of Sedan 1870]]