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When the Romans left in the 5th, England was left on its own to govern for itself for the next 500 years (till the 10th) leading to "regionalism" whereby different regions had its own local leader. At times, there were kings but the rule wasn't as centralized as that of the Romans, & that kingship changed hands throughout that next 500 years unlike Roman rule whereby Rome's emperor was the supreme ruler of England. But by 1066, a new power came to the southern shores of England & they were the Normans from northern France led by "William the Conqueror." The Norman invasion then changed England forever up to the way it is now, with "centralized" rule as the mainstay once again.
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Western Europe
!["Hastings Castle" [1066]](http://thumbs.worldisround.com/pphotos/1/132/83_t.jpg)
![Remains of Hastings Castle [1066]:](http://www6.worldisround.com/photos/1/132/84.jpg)
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