History
Largest Empires by Area
The twenty largest empires in history ranked by peak territorial extent in millions of square kilometers.
historyempiresterritorygeographyconquest
20 of 20 rows
Name↕ | Peak Area (million km²)↕ | Peak Year↕ | Founder↕ | Capital↕ | Primary Continent↕ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| British Empire | 35.5 | 1920 | Elizabeth I (colonial era) | London | Global |
| Mongol Empire | 24 | 1270 | Genghis Khan | Karakorum | Asia |
| Russian Empire | 22.8 | 1895 | Ivan III (consolidation) / Peter I (empire) | Saint Petersburg | Europe / Asia |
| Spanish Empire | 13.7 | 1810 | Ferdinand & Isabella | Madrid | Global |
| Qing Dynasty | 14.7 | 1790 | Nurhaci / Huang Taiji | Beijing | Asia |
| French Colonial Empire | 11.5 | 1920 | Various (colonial expansion) | Paris | Global |
| Abbasid Caliphate | 11.1 | 750 | Abu al-Abbas al-Saffah | Baghdad | Asia / Africa |
| Umayyad Caliphate | 11.1 | 720 | Muawiya I | Damascus | Asia / Africa / Europe |
| Yuan Dynasty | 11 | 1310 | Kublai Khan | Khanbaliq (Beijing) | Asia |
| Portuguese Empire | 10.4 | 1815 | Henry the Navigator (exploration era) | Lisbon | Global |
| Ottoman Empire | 5.2 | 1683 | Osman I | Constantinople (Istanbul) | Europe / Asia / Africa |
| Roman Empire | 5 | 117 | Augustus (as empire) | Rome | Europe / Africa / Asia |
| Achaemenid Persian Empire | 5.5 | 480 BCE | Cyrus the Great | Persepolis | Asia / Africa |
| Han Dynasty | 6.5 | 100 BCE | Liu Bang (Emperor Gaozu) | Chang'an | Asia |
| Mughal Empire | 4 | 1690 | Babur | Agra / Delhi | Asia |
| Byzantine Empire | 3.5 | 555 | Constantine I (founding) / Justinian I (peak) | Constantinople | Europe / Asia |
| Maurya Empire | 5 | 250 BCE | Chandragupta Maurya | Pataliputra | Asia |
| Tang Dynasty | 5.4 | 715 | Li Yuan (Emperor Gaozu) | Chang'an | Asia |
| Macedonian Empire | 5.2 | 323 BCE | Alexander the Great | Babylon (at peak) / Pella | Europe / Asia / Africa |
| Japanese Empire | 7.4 | 1942 | Emperor Meiji (modern expansion) | Tokyo | Asia / Pacific |
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