ABSTRACT
As in the French, it was only in the late eighteenth century that the modern-day definitions of the term 'diplomatic' as relating to the practice of foreign relations as the object of specific skills—a 'science' even—became established in the other European languages as well, despite isolated evidence dating from the first half of the century. At the same time, a new noun was coined: 'diplomacy'. If one were to adhere to conceptual history, the 'practices of diplomacy in the early modern world', would have meant something very different to the people of that era. The chapter investigates the practices of foreign relations to historicize key terms such as 'state' and 'international relations' appropriately. It serves as a challenge to replace modern conceptions of statehood and relations between states with concepts that are more in keeping with the contemporary political culture.
