This story shows up a lot in sites like Reddit:
In the late 1700's, a letter appeared in the major London newspaper complaining that England was being forced to take deported French prisoners. The British were furious and wanted it stopped. The French became upset - because the uproar implied that England was too good for French prisoners. Both governments became involved, and they were on the brink of war before it all unraveled as a hoax. The original letter, it was learned years later, had been written by Benjamin Franklin - who was spending 6 months in England as an ambassador - and was simply bored. Just stirring up trouble and sitting back and watching.
I got curious if it really happened and dug around. I didn't find any sources, but I'd like to confirm if it was true or not.