Western Europe Writing Prompt

Topography of Western Europe

Western Europe isn’t very large; in area, its about 428,000 square miles.  (Remember, Europe overall is the 2nd smallest continent.  It is really a peninsula of a supercontinent called Eurasia.  It is often nicknamed the "peninsula of peninsulas.")

But this area or region is broken up into many smaller areas.  Several parts of Europe consist of large islands.  These include Great Britain, Ireland and Iceland in the north and Crete to the south.  Some pieces of land are peninsulas, joined to the mainland by a comparatively narrow neck of land.  These include Scandinavia, Iberia, Italy, and the Balkan.  Even the mainland is broken up, crisscrossed by high mountain ranges such as The Alps.

Based on what you know about people and geography, how do you think the broken-up  nature of Western Europe might have affected the way cultures developed here.  Write one clear paragraph (5 sentence minimum) explaining your answer.