The continent of Europe is a vast land, and during Medieval Times, was home to over 22 different countries and officialised territories. Today, Europe is home to 51 different countries, and most historians believe more countries were formed as negativity grew, and more and more empires collapsed to different factors and under a variety of circumstances. The continent is considered to be the most beautiful in the world, housing mountain ranges, forests, great cliffs as well as tropical wonderlands, and all of these places were indeed around in the Middle Ages, and were in their prime. It was this that allowed so many empires to thrive, because majority of the successful empires such as the Romans, Byzantinians and the Britans survived due to their isolation, as well as the labour involved in navigating the environment. Strongholds were often built on or near mountains, cliff faces and sometimes were found on top of flowing rivers. All of these factors were incorporated into making the perfect kingdom. For example, the Britons were considered to be one of the most successful kingdoms, due to their isolation and how easy they were to defend. But, contrary to common belief, huge scale battles were often rare, due to the many different countries and their allies. Battles involving large parties were often unsuccessful or would continue to escalate unless a treaty was formed. The most successful attacks were often the smallest, and were between minor influences such as the Portuguese or the Irish, whereas the more major battles significantly damaged the economical system of the continent as a whole.