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How Did The Catholic Church Influence Western Europe During The Middle Ages

173 Words1 Pages
After the fall of the Roman Empire in 476 CE, western Europe broke into small warring kingdoms. Since it was the official church of the Roman Empire, most people in Western Europe were Christians, and it owned a great deal of wealth and land, the Catholic Church became the most important unifying and stabilizing force in western Europe during the Middle Ages. The power vacuum left by the Roman Empire was filled by the Catholic Church. Over the course of the early Middle Ages, the Catholic Church became more influential and powerful, to the point where the Church and the beliefs of its clergy [people who had high positions in the Church like priests and bishops] controlled secular [non-religious] life and secular government. By the 11th
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