European culture came into being in the Middle Ages. In c. 800, Europe stood for the Western Carolingian Roman Catholic civilization as opposed to the Eastern Byzantine civilization. In the centuries leading towards the year 1300, Roman Catholic Christianity became the prevailing religion and ideology on the continent. The social and economic structures were harmonized. By contrast, the commercial communication contributed to the individual areas and regions bringing out the best in themselves and each other. This resulted in a number of more or less sovereign kingdoms and principalities which again contributed to ethnic diversity and cultural and economic dynamism. Denmark was one of these kingdoms. In c. 1200, Denmark stood out as one of the sovereign kingdoms.

It was on that basis that Europe at the end of the Middle Ages was described as a politically regionalized and fragmented continent though united by the Roman Catholic church - as opposed to the Muslim politically centralized Ottoman Empire. The modern notion of Denmark and Europe is rooted in this mindset.