1453- The city of Constantinople fell to the Turks after being sieged for several months. This event and the rapid spread of the Turkish people throughout the east, allowed the Turks to exert considerable pressure on the western kingdoms.

1450- 1485 - The War of the Roses was a civil war that broke out between English ducal houses. The house of Lancaster, whose symbol was a red rose, and the house of York, adopting the white rose. In the 1450's many aristocratic families were pitted against one another. Later, in …

1377- After determining that a decline in papal authority was due, at least in part, to an Avignon Papacy , Pope Gregory XI returned the seat of papal power to Rome. Unfortunately, in 1378 Gregory died, resulting in a new struggle for papal power. Many Roman cardinals feared that the powerful …

1305- 1377 - Continuing his bid to quell papal power, Philip IV pressured French cardinals to elect a French pope in the wake of the death of Bonifice VIII. Clement~V, 1305- 1314 was elected and moved the seat of the Papacy to Avignon, southern France, citing political turmoil in Rome …

1337- 1461

- Growing tensions between the King of England, Edward III, and Philip VI of France resulted in a Hundred Years' War. Edward III was duke of Gascony, which meant he must swear allegiance as a vassal of the King of France, however, tensions between the two and political disagreements …

1100

The trading fairs of Champagne were the largest marketplaces in western Europe. Champagne hosted fairs annually as part of a French program to increase trade. Merchants were promised protection from harm and reduced taxes, while the state enjoyed increased commercial activity.