Religion

Religion was very important during medieval times. People should become Catholic and they had no say in what religion you believed in. The church hierachy is very strict : Pope at the top, then Cardinal, following by Archbishop, then Bishop and Parish Priests. The people were forced to believe that if they don't taxes they were sent to hell after dying. But if they paid, they will go to purgatory and stay there until freed of sins, with protection against hell. The pope had a power to start war in any times, owned one third of the land in Europe, really wealthy, and sometimes stand against the king.