Develop an argument that evaluates the extent to which levels of centralization in China and in European states differed in this period. Respond to the prompt with a historically defensible thesis or claim that establishes a line of reasoning.
Describe a broader historical context relevant to the prompt.
Provide at least two specific examples of evidence relevant to the topic of the prompt.

In the period from circa 1200 to circa 1450, governments responded to a variety of internal and external factors in order to develop administrative institutions and centralize power.