The second process is the transition from patriarchal religious family law to a secular family law system that provides for gender equality in the family. Several States where family law was based on patriarchal religious codes have introduced equality for women in the family by revoking religious laws and regulating family affairs under secular codes. In many European countries, family law was based on religious, primarily Christian, laws, and all marriages were thus placed under religious jurisdiction. At the end of the nineteenth century, all matters relating to family were placed under the secular jurisdiction of the State, thereby removing the religious hegemony in this area.