In the German original the term “Haupt- und Staatsaktionen” (“principal and spectacular actions”) is used, which has several meanings. In the 17th and the first half of the 18th century, it denoted plays performed by German touring companies. The plays, which were rather formless, presented tragic historical events in a bombastic and at the same time coarse and farcical way.

Secondly, this term can denote major political events. It was used in this sense by a trend in German historical science known as “objective historiography”. Leopold Ranke was one of its chief representatives. He regarded “Haupt- und Staatsaktionen” as the main subject-matter to be set forth. Objective historiography, which was primarily interested in the political and diplomatic history of nations, proclaimed the pre-eminence of foreign politics over domestic politics and disregarded the social relations of men and their active role in history.