Classical antiquity and medieval origins in
Christianity Prior to the
Roman conquest, a large part of Western Europe had adopted the newly developed
La Tène culture. As the Roman domain expanded, a cultural and linguistic division appeared between the mainly
Greek-speaking eastern provinces, which had formed the highly urbanised
Hellenistic civilisation, and the western territories, which in contrast largely adopted the
Latin language. This cultural and linguistic division was eventually reinforced by the later political east–west division of the
Roman Empire. The
Western Roman Empire and the
Eastern Roman Empire controlled the two divergent regions between the 3rd and the 5th centuries. The division between these two was enhanced during
late antiquity and the
Middle Ages by a number of events. The
Western Roman Empire collapsed, starting the
Early Middle Ages. By contrast, the Eastern Roman Empire, mostly known as the Greek or
Byzantine Empire, survived and even thrived for another 1000 years. The rise of the
Carolingian Empire in the west, and in particular the
Great Schism between
Eastern Orthodoxy and
Roman Catholicism, enhanced the cultural and religious distinctiveness between Eastern and Western Europe. After the
conquest of the Byzantine Empire, center of the Eastern Orthodox Church, by the
Muslim Ottoman Empire in the 15th century, and the gradual fragmentation of the
Holy Roman Empire (which had replaced the
Carolingian Empire), the division between Roman Catholic and
Protestant became more important in Europe than that with Eastern Orthodoxy. In
East Asia, Western Europe was historically known as in China and in Japan, which literally translates as the "
Far West". The term Far West became synonymous with Western Europe in China during the
Ming dynasty. The Italian Jesuit priest
Matteo Ricci was one of the first writers in China to use the Far West as an Asian counterpart to the European concept of the
Far East. In Ricci's writings, Ricci referred to himself as "Matteo of the Far West". The term was still in use in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.
Religion Christianity is the largest religion in Western Europe. According to a 2018 study by the
Pew Research Center, 71.0% of Western Europeans identified as Christians. In 1054, the
East–West Schism divided Christianity into
Western Christianity and
Eastern Christianity. This split Europe in two, with Western Europe primarily under the
Catholic Church, and much of
Eastern Europe under the
Eastern Orthodox Church. Ever since the
Reformation in the 16th century,
Protestantism has also been a major denomination in Europe, mostly in the West.
Cold War ; neutral countries (shaded grey) considered informally Western-oriented but not formally aligned to the West During the four
decades of the
Cold War, the definition of East and West was simplified by the existence of the
Eastern Bloc. A number of historians and social scientists view the Cold War definition of Western and Eastern Europe as outdated or relegating. During the final stages of
World War II, the future of Europe was decided between the
Allies in the 1945
Yalta Conference, between the
British Prime Minister,
Winston Churchill, the
U.S. President,
Franklin D. Roosevelt, and the
Premier of the Soviet Union,
Joseph Stalin. Post-war Europe was divided into two major spheres: the
Western Bloc, influenced by the
United States, and the
Eastern Bloc, influenced by the
Soviet Union. With the onset of the Cold War, Europe was divided by the
Iron Curtain. This term had been used during
World War II by German
Propaganda Minister Joseph Goebbels and, later, Count
Lutz Schwerin von Krosigk in the last days of the war; however, its use was hugely popularised by Winston Churchill, who used it in his famous "Sinews of Peace" address on 5 March 1946 at
Westminster College in
Fulton, Missouri: Although some countries were officially
neutral, they were classified according to the nature of their political and economic systems. This division largely defines the popular perception and understanding of Western Europe and its borders with
Eastern Europe on the east side. On the western side is the Atlantic ocean. The world changed dramatically with the fall of the
Iron Curtain in 1989.
West Germany peacefully absorbed
East Germany, in the
German reunification.
Comecon and the
Warsaw Pact were dissolved, and in 1991, the
Soviet Union ceased to exist. Several countries which had been part of the Soviet Union regained full independence.
Western European Union (1995–2011) In 1948 the
Treaty of Brussels was signed between
Belgium,
France,
Luxembourg, the
Netherlands and the
United Kingdom. It was further revisited in 1954 at the
Paris Conference, when the
Western European Union was established. It was declared defunct in 2011 after the
Treaty of Lisbon, and the Treaty of Brussels was terminated. When the Western European Union was dissolved, it had 10 member countries. Additionally, it had 6 associate member countries, 7 associate partner countries and 5 observer countries. ==Modern divisions==