The Middle Ages, constituted by the Early, High and Late periods, took place from approximately 500 CE to 1450 CE in Europe. The Middle Ages, also known as the medieval period, was characterized by a breakdown of overarching centralized government and the development of regional kingdoms and monarchies. However, in the transition from the Early Middle Ages to the Late Middle Ages, save for notable exceptions, feudalism dominated the political landscape of Western Europe until the Late Middle Ages. At the expense of the feudal lords, slowly, regional monarchies gained enough power to create centralized governments in relatively smaller areas, as compared to the entirety of Western Europe. Additionally, Roman Catholic popes found themselves
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With the fall of the Roman Empire in 476 CE, Germanic peoples established multiple kingdoms as successors for imperial power. One notable Germanic tribe, the Franks, had their realm of influence increased dramatically with the advent of the Carolingian dynasty, founded by Charles Martel. The Carolingian empire, known as such with the crowning of Charlemagne as emperor, was the exception in a period of general disunity. However, following the death of Charlemagne and his son Louis the Pious, the Carolingian empire collapsed due to internal conflicts as well as external invasion. As it was before the Carolingian dynasty, Western Europe once again fell into a state of decentralization. However, rather than allowing for barbarians, manors, under the rule of lords, developed. Individual manors were ruled by individual rulers, who were granted the land for manors with a fief, which was entrusted to them by kings. This system was known as feudalism, which worked, simply, through mutual obligations. Feudalism contributed to the overall decentralization of Western Europe as the manors remained relatively isolated from each other. Later, with the development of highly centralized monarchies during the High and Late, these states remained regional, with none extending to the range as the Carolingian empire did once before. For example, England controlled its kingdom on Britain, while France would control its own kingdom, bordering the Holy Roman Empire and the collection of states in the Iberian peninsula. Aside from the Carolingian empire, the region of Western Europe remained decentralized all throughout the Middle
With the fall of the Roman Empire in 476 CE, Germanic peoples established multiple kingdoms as successors for imperial power. One notable Germanic tribe, the Franks, had their realm of influence increased dramatically with the advent of the Carolingian dynasty, founded by Charles Martel. The Carolingian empire, known as such with the crowning of Charlemagne as emperor, was the exception in a period of general disunity. However, following the death of Charlemagne and his son Louis the Pious, the Carolingian empire collapsed due to internal conflicts as well as external invasion. As it was before the Carolingian dynasty, Western Europe once again fell into a state of decentralization. However, rather than allowing for barbarians, manors, under the rule of lords, developed. Individual manors were ruled by individual rulers, who were granted the land for manors with a fief, which was entrusted to them by kings. This system was known as feudalism, which worked, simply, through mutual obligations. Feudalism contributed to the overall decentralization of Western Europe as the manors remained relatively isolated from each other. Later, with the development of highly centralized monarchies during the High and Late, these states remained regional, with none extending to the range as the Carolingian empire did once before. For example, England controlled its kingdom on Britain, while France would control its own kingdom, bordering the Holy Roman Empire and the collection of states in the Iberian peninsula. Aside from the Carolingian empire, the region of Western Europe remained decentralized all throughout the Middle