Soon after, Napoleon III suggested Karl, who was the brother in law of Philip. Napoleon's recommendation weighed heavily with Romanian politicians of the time, since Romania was strongly influenced by French culture. Napoleon was a strong supporter of Romanian independence, hoping to consolidate French influence on the Black Sea. Another factor was Karl's blood relation to the ruling Prussian family. Ion Brătianu was the Romanian politician sent to negotiate with Karl and his family the possibility of installing him on the Romanian throne.