I don't have any specific examples to cite, but I would wager until the Crimean war it would have been the French Revolution in a lot of cases, or the Napoleonic wars. The Napoleonic Wars are actually a misnomer, since so many countries fought against France during the time period, and the many instances of propaganda that vilified Napoleon, he would either be referred to with reverence or hatred(still seen today). (They are a misnomer because Austria, Prussia, Russia, France & Great Britain were all expanding empires that all watched each other closely and often came to blows, Napoleon only being the aggressor in 1807/8 against Spain & Portugal, and 1812 against Russia).

After the Crimean War broke out, I suspect that would be the major event discussed, also the wars that followed such as the Austro-Prussian and Franco-Prussian wars, before eventual German Unification.