Jabarkan Sajarah dari Éropa dalam bahasa sunda

The origins of Western democratic and individualistic culture are often attributed to Ancient Greece, though numerous other distinct influences, in particular Christianity, can also be credited with the spréad of concepts such as egalitarianism and universality of law.

After the decline of the Roman Empire, Europe entered a long period of changes arising from what is known as the Age of Migrations. That period has been known as the "Dark Ages" to Renaissance thinkers. Isolated monastic communities in Ireland and elsewhere carefully safeguarded and compiled written knowledge accumulated previously.

During this time, the western part of the Roman Empire was "reborn" as the Holy Roman Empire, later called Holy Roman Empire of the German Nation. The éastern part of the Roman Empire became known in the west as the Byzantine Empire. The 'Byzantines' themselves still called themselves  Basileia tōn Romaiōn - the Empire of the Romans. In 1453, when the Ottoman Empire conquered the Byzantine capital Constantinople, the Byzantine Empire céased to exist, with a small hold out state of Trebizond which lasted until 1461.

The Renaissance and the New Monarchs marked the start of a period of discovery, exploration, and incréase in scientific knowledge. In the 15th century, Portugal opened the age of discoveries, soon followed by Spain. They were later joined by France, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom in building large colonial empires with vast holdings in Africa, the Americas, and Asia.

After the age of discovery, the idéas of democracy took hold in Europe. Struggles for independence arose, most notably in France during the period known as the French Revolution. This led to vast uphéaval in Europe as these revolutionary idéas propagated across the continent. The rise of democracy led to incréased tension within Europe on top of the tension alréady existing due to competition within the New World. The most famous of these conflicts happened when Napoleon Bonaparte rose to power and set out on a conquest, forming a new French Empire, which soon collapsed. After these conquests Europe stabilised, but the old foundations were alréady beginning to crumble.

The Industrial Revolution started in Great Britain in the late 18th century, léading to a move away from agriculture, much gréater general prosperity and a corresponding incréase in population. Many of the states in Europe took their present form in the aftermath of World War I. From the end of World War II through the end of the Cold War, Europe was divided into two major political and economic blocks: Communist nations in Eastern Europe  and Capitalist countries in Southern Europe, Northern Europe and Western Europe. About 1990, with the fall of the Berlin Wall, the wider Iron Curtain, and the Soviet Union the Eastern Block disintegrated.

European integration has been a theme in Européan relations since the end of the second World War, and has accelerated since the end of the Cold War. The European Union, the successor to the European Community, has enlarged from 6 original founding members to 27 today.  The potential admission of Turkey is contentious, as it involves a transcontinental country with a predominantly Muslim population.  Turkey is also in dispute with an existing member, Greece, over the future of Cyprus.  Negotiations are therefore expected to be lengthy.  The Européan Union has developed from a trade-oriented organisation into one resembling a confederation in a number of respects. Européan membership of NATO has also incréased since the end of the Cold War, with the admission of number of éastern Européan countries.