During the central Middle Ages, territories expanded greatly. In previous centuries, small territorial units were much more widespread, making control easier. However, with the advent of larger territorial units over time, challenges for rulers began to emerge. This focused primarily on the conflict between central power and the regions, as seen in France and England, which posed a substantial threat to the stability of government. Leaders therefore understood that they had to take measures to combat this situation. Most importantly, they understood that they had to create a common national identity in order to unite the mass of people who were now on their territory. As Bernard Guenée argues, the stability of the state was strengthened during the medieval period when its inhabitants were conscious of a common identity that they wanted to maintain; control was based on the people's love for the country. The main means by which this was achieved included the creation of a shared national history, a shared religious identity and common enemies, as well as the use of language. But inciting patriotism was not the only means by which leaders faced the challenges posed by larger territorial units; they also took active steps towards the centralization of power. Methods used to achieve this included the creation of representative bodies such as parliament, capitals and the law. It is these measures taken by leaders that have made it possible to address the challenges of larger territorial units. Because of the large and varied populations under the jurisdiction of these much larger territorial units, such as Britain and France, leaders needed to unite the population with a sense of shared national identity in order to cons... middle of paper......widely recognized as the protector of the nation and the monarchy. This position had been directly reinforced by the sovereigns of the time, such as Louis VI, who declared him protector of the crown in 1120, and raised the oriflamme of Saint-Denis in 1124, which was the sacred banner of kings to the head of his army. When this combined with the increasingly nationalist traditions surrounding the Saint, notably from the monks of the Abbey of Saint-Denis in Paris, this ingrained the idea of ​​the Saint in the minds of the entire population, thereby strengthening national pride and sentiment, which helped bring the previously divided population under the ruler's control. Along the same lines, during the period in question, rulers often attempted to resolve problems of controlling larger territorial units by uniting their people against a common enemy..