Final answer:
The troubadours of Southern France were exterminated by the Catholic Church during the Albigensian Crusade, not by the Vikings, Normans, or the Black Death. The answer is option C.
Step-by-step explanation:
The troubadours of Southern France, known for their poetry and song, faced significant persecution and many were killed during the Albigensian Crusade, which was a campaign initiated by the Catholic Church to eliminate Catharism in the Languedoc region. This campaign began in 1209 and was a part of the broader power struggle between the Church and various political and social groups of the time.
It was not the Vikings, Normans, or the Black Death which led to their extermination, but the concerted efforts of the Church to suppress heresy. The impact of the Black Death was more of a widespread societal change, leading to peasant revolts and challenges to feudalism and the Church's authority, paving the way for the Protestant Reformation.