The major event that marked the end of the Middle Ages in Europe is the fall of Constantinople in 1453. This event symbolized the decline of feudalism and the rise of centralized national states, as well as the end of the Christian Byzantine Empire. It resulted in the expansion of Ottoman power and significantly altered trade routes, prompting Europeans to seek new pathways to Asia and eventually leading to the Age of Exploration. The fall of Constantinople also spurred the Renaissance further into Western Europe, enhancing the intake of classical knowledge and ideas that reshaped art, science, and philosophy in subsequent centuries.