In 1847, he spent a summer in Glina where he befriended Josip Jelačić, and then also moved to the Vienna Augustineum where his friend Josip Juraj Strossmayer had been one of the people in charge. During his studies, he took an interest in politics and became a follower of the Illyrian movement. He also wrote poems and articles for the literary magazine Zora dalmatinska. He took part in the Prague Slavic Congress of 1848 and later that year joined Josip Jelačić's campaign against Hungary. He worked as his correspondent, contacting the leaders of the Czech national movement and later became his envoy in Paris. In France, he published articles in the Journal des débats and La Tribune des Peuples informing the French public about Jelačić's campaign, advocating the idea of a broad federalist restructuring of the Habsburg monarchy.
