One interpretation is that Revelation 11: 1-11 prophesied this.
That for 3 and half days (which can mean 3 and a half years, which can mean 1260 days, which can mean 1260 years) the 2 witnesses were dead. So this might mean that for 1260 years the Word and Holy Spirit were kept (separated) from the people. Perhaps this 1260 years started around the time Christianity fused with Roman Culture (~325 AD) and ended about 1260 years with the start of the reformation at about 1585 AD).
What Happened In the 16th century which was about 1260 years after ~325AD
In Renaissance Europe, the arrival of mechanical movable type printing introduced the era of
mass communication, which permanently altered the structure of society. The relatively unrestricted circulation of information and (revolutionary) ideas transcended borders, captured the masses in the
Reformation and threatened the power of political and religious authorities.
Renaissance Period (1300 -1600 AD)
Reformation Period (1517 - 1648 AD)
Revelation foretells about the 1st and 2nd Beast and about the beast that killed the 2 witnesses.
Could the 1st Beast have been the Roman (and then Byzantine) Empire
Could the 2nd Beast have been the middle ages Roman Catholic Church?