List_of_largest_empires
Several empires in human history have been contenders for the largest of all time, depending on definition and mode of measurement. Possible ways of measuring size include area, population, economy, and power. Of these, area is the most commonly used because it has a fairly precise definition and can be feasibly measured with some degree of accuracy.[1] Estonian political scientist Rein Taagepera, who published a series of academic articles about the territorial extents of historical empires between 1978 and 1997,[2][3][4][5] defined an empire as "any relatively large sovereign political entity whose components are not sovereign" and its size as the area over which the empire has some undisputed military and taxation prerogatives.[6] The list is not exhaustive owing to a lack of available data for several empires; for this reason and because of the inherent uncertainty in the estimates, no rankings are given.
For context, the land area of the Earth, excluding the continent of Antarctica, is 134,740,000 km2 (52,023,000 sq mi).[7]
Empires at their greatest extent
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Empire size in this list is defined as the dry land area it controlled at the time, which may differ considerably from the area it claimed. For example: in the year 1800, European powers collectively claimed approximately 20% of the Earth's land surface that they did not effectively control.[8] Where estimates vary, entries are sorted by the lowest estimate. Where more than one entry has the same area, they are listed alphabetically.
More information Empire, Maximum land area ...
| Empire | Maximum land area | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Million km2 | Million sq mi | % of world | Year | |
| British Empire[lower-alpha 1] | 35.5[9] | 13.71 | 26.35% | 1920[9] |
| Mongol Empire[lower-alpha 2] | 24.0[9][10] | 9.27 | 17.81% | 1270[10] or 1309[9] |
| Russian Empire[lower-alpha 3] | 22.8[9][10] | 8.80 | 16.92% | 1895[9][10] |
| Qing dynasty[lower-alpha 4] | 14.7[9][10] | 5.68 | 10.91% | 1790[9][10] |
| Spanish Empire | 13.7[9] | 5.29 | 10.17% | 1810[9] |
| Second French colonial empire | 11.5[9] | 4.44 | 8.53% | 1920[9] |
| Abbasid Caliphate | 11.1[9] | 4.29 | 8.24% | 750[9] |
| Umayyad Caliphate | 11.1[9] | 4.29 | 8.24% | 720[9] |
| Yuan dynasty | 11.0[9] | 4.25 | 8.16% | 1310[9] |
| Xiongnu Empire | 9.0[10][11] | 3.47 | 6.68% | 176 BC[10][11] |
| Empire of Brazil[lower-alpha 5] | 8.337[12] | 3.22 | 6.19% | 1889[12] |
| Empire of Japan | 7.4[13]–8.51 | 2.86–3.285[14] | 5.49%–6.32% | 1942[13][14] |
| Eastern Han dynasty | 6.5[11] | 2.51 | 4.82% | 100[11] |
| Ming dynasty | 6.5[9][10] | 2.51 | 4.82% | 1450[9][10] |
| Rashidun Caliphate | 6.4[9] | 2.47 | 4.75% | 655[9] |
| First Turkic Khaganate | 6.0[10][11] | 2.32 | 4.45% | 557[10][11] |
| Golden Horde Khanate | 6.0[9][10] | 2.32 | 4.45% | 1310[9][10] |
| Western Han dynasty | 6.0[10][11] | 2.32 | 4.45% | 50 BC[10][11] |
| Achaemenid Empire | 5.5[10][11] | 2.12 | 4.08% | 500 BC[10][11] |
| Second Portuguese Empire[lower-alpha 5] | 5.5[9] | 2.12 | 4.08% | 1820[9] |
| Tang dynasty | 5.4[9][10] | 2.08 | 4.01% | 715[9][10] |
| Macedonian Empire | 5.2[10][11] | 2.01 | 3.86% | 323 BC[10][11] |
| Ottoman Empire | 5.2[9][10] | 2.01 | 3.86% | 1683[9][10] |
| Northern Yuan dynasty | 5.0[9] | 1.93 | 3.71% | 1368[9] |
| Roman Empire | 5.0[10][11] | 1.93 | 3.71% | 117[10][11] |
| Xin dynasty | 4.7[11] | 1.81 | 3.49% | 10[11] |
| Tibetan Empire | 4.6[9][10] | 1.78 | 3.41% | 800[9][10] |
| Xianbei state | 4.5[15] | 1.74 | 3.34% | 200[15] |
| First Mexican Empire | 4.429[16] | 1.71 | 3.29% | 1821[16] |
| Timurid Empire | 4.4[9][10] | 1.70 | 3.27% | 1405[9][10] |
| Fatimid Caliphate | 4.1[9][10] | 1.58 | 3.04% | 969[9][10] |
| Eastern Turkic Khaganate | 4.0[11] | 1.54 | 2.97% | 624[11] |
| Hunnic Empire | 4.0[10][11] | 1.54 | 2.97% | 441[10][11] |
| Mughal Empire | 4.0[9][10] | 1.54 | 2.97% | 1690[9][10] |
| Great Seljuq Empire | 3.9[9][10] | 1.51 | 2.89% | 1080[9][10] |
| Seleucid Empire | 3.9[10][11] | 1.51 | 2.89% | 301 BC[10][11] |
| Italian Empire | 3.825[17] | 1.48 | 2.84% | 1941[17] |
| Ilkhanate | 3.75[9][10] | 1.45 | 2.78% | 1310[9][10] |
| Dzungar Khanate | 3.6[15] | 1.39 | 2.67% | 1650[15] |
| Chagatai Khanate | 3.5[9][10] | 1.35 | 2.60% | 1310[9] or 1350[9][10] |
| Sasanian Empire | 3.5[10][11] | 1.35 | 2.60% | 550[10][11] |
| Western Turkic Khaganate | 3.5[11] | 1.35 | 2.60% | 630[11] |
| Western Xiongnu | 3.5[11] | 1.35 | 2.60% | 20[11] |
| First French colonial empire | 3.4[9] | 1.31 | 2.52% | 1670[9] |
| Ghaznavid Empire | 3.4[9][10] | 1.31 | 2.52% | 1029[9][10] |
| Maurya Empire | 3.4[11]–5.0[10] | 1.31–1.93 | 2.52%–3.71% | 261 BC[11] or 250 BC[10] |
| Delhi Sultanate | 3.2[9][10] | 1.24 | 2.37% | 1312[9][10] |
| German colonial empire | 3.147 | 1.215[18] | 2.34% | 1911[18] |
| Northern Song dynasty | 3.1[9][10] | 1.20 | 2.30% | 980[9][10] |
| Uyghur Khaganate | 3.1[9][10] | 1.20 | 2.30% | 800[9][10] |
| Western Jin dynasty | 3.1[11] | 1.20 | 2.30% | 280[11] |
| Danish Empire | 3.0[19] | 1.16 | 2.23% | 1700[19] |
| Sui dynasty | 3.0[11] | 1.16 | 2.23% | 589[11] |
| Safavid empire | 2.9[15] | 1.12 | 2.15% | 1630[15] |
| Samanid Empire | 2.85[9][10] | 1.10 | 2.12% | 928[9][10] |
| Eastern Jin dynasty | 2.8[11] | 1.08 | 2.08% | 347[11] |
| Median Empire[lower-alpha 6] | 2.8[10][11] | 1.08 | 2.08% | 585 BC[10][11] |
| Parthian Empire | 2.8[10][11] | 1.08 | 2.08% | 1[10][11] |
| Rouran Khaganate | 2.8[10][11] | 1.08 | 2.08% | 405[10][11] |
| Byzantine Empire | 2.7[10]–2.8[11] | 1.04–1.08 | 2.00%–2.08% | 555[10] or 450[11] |
| Indo-Scythian Kingdom | 2.6[11] | 1.00 | 1.93% | 20[11] |
| Liao dynasty | 2.6[9][10] | 1.00 | 1.93% | 947[9][10] |
| Greco-Bactrian Kingdom | 2.5[11] | 0.97 | 1.86% | 184 BC[11] |
| Later Zhao | 2.5[11] | 0.97 | 1.86% | 329[11] |
| Maratha Confederacy | 2.5[10] | 0.97 | 1.86% | 1760[10] |
| Belgian colonial empire | 2.366[17]–2.47 | 0.91–0.95[21] | 1.76%–1.83% | 1941[17] or 1939[21] |
| Jin dynasty (1115–1234) | 2.3[9][10] | 0.89 | 1.71% | 1126[9][10] |
| Khwarazmian Empire | 2.3[10]–3.6[9] | 0.89–1.39 | 1.71%–2.67% | 1210[10] or 1218[9] |
| Qin dynasty | 2.3[11] | 0.89 | 1.71% | 220 BC[11] |
| Dutch Empire | 2.1[15] | 0.81 | 1.56% | 1938[15] |
| First French Empire | 2.1[9] | 0.81 | 1.56% | 1813[9] |
| Kievan Rus' | 2.1[9][10] | 0.81 | 1.56% | 1000[9][10] |
| Mamluk Sultanate | 2.1[9][10] | 0.81 | 1.56% | 1300[9] or 1400[10] |
| Southern Song dynasty | 2.1[9] | 0.81 | 1.56% | 1127[9] |
| Third Portuguese Empire | 2.1[9] | 0.81 | 1.56% | 1900[9] |
| Almohad Caliphate | 2.0[10]–2.3[9] | 0.77–0.89 | 1.48%–1.71% | 1200[10] or 1150[9] |
| Cao Wei | 2.0[11] | 0.77 | 1.48% | 263[11] |
| Former Qin | 2.0[11] | 0.77 | 1.48% | 376[11] |
| Former Zhao | 2.0[11] | 0.77 | 1.48% | 316[11] |
| Ghurid dynasty | 2.0[15] | 0.77 | 1.48% | 1200[15] |
| Inca Empire | 2.0[9][10] | 0.77 | 1.48% | 1527[9][10] |
| Kushan Empire | 2.0[10]–2.5[11] | 0.77–0.97 | 1.48%–1.86% | 200[10][11] |
| Liu Song dynasty | 2.0[11] | 0.77 | 1.48% | 450[11] |
| Northern Wei | 2.0[11] | 0.77 | 1.48% | 450[11] |
| Western Roman Empire | 2.0[11] | 0.77 | 1.48% | 395[11] |
| Ayyubid dynasty | 1.7[9]–2.0[10] | 0.66–0.77 | 1.26%–1.48% | 1200[9] or 1190[10] |
| Gupta Empire | 1.7[11]–3.5[10] | 0.66–1.35 | 1.26%–2.60% | 440[11] or 400[10] |
| Hephthalite Empire | 1.7[22]–4.0[11] | 0.66–1.54 | 1.26%–2.97% | 500[22] or 470[11] |
| Buyid dynasty | 1.6[9][10] | 0.62 | 1.19% | 980[9][10] |
| Eastern Wu | 1.5[11] | 0.58 | 1.11% | 221[11] |
| Northern Qi | 1.5[11] | 0.58 | 1.11% | 557[11] |
| Northern Xiongnu | 1.5[11] | 0.58 | 1.11% | 60[11] |
| Northern Zhou | 1.5[11] | 0.58 | 1.11% | 577[11] |
| Neo-Assyrian Empire | 1.4[10][23] | 0.54 | 1.04% | 670 BC[10][23] |
| Eastern Maurya Kingdom | 1.3[11] | 0.50 | 0.96% | 210 BC[11] |
| Liang dynasty | 1.3[10][11] | 0.50 | 0.96% | 502,[11] 549,[11] or 579[10] |
| Qajar Empire | 1.29 | 0.50[24] | 0.96% | 1873[24] |
| Kingdom of Aksum | 1.25[10] | 0.48 | 0.93% | 350[10] |
| Shang dynasty | 1.25[10][23] | 0.48 | 0.93% | 1122 BC[10][23] |
| Francia | 1.2[9][10] | 0.46 | 0.89% | 814[9][10] |
| Srivijaya | 1.2[10] | 0.46 | 0.89% | 1200[10] |
| Indo-Greek Kingdom | 1.1[11] | 0.42 | 0.82% | 150 BC[11] |
| Mali Empire | 1.1[9][10] | 0.42 | 0.82% | 1380[9][10] |
| Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth | 1.1[9][10] | 0.42 | 0.82% | 1480[10] or 1650[9] |
| Almoravid dynasty | 1.0[10] | 0.39 | 0.74% | 1120[10] |
| Pushyabhuti dynasty | 1.0[9][10] | 0.39 | 0.74% | 625[9] or 648[9][10] |
| Gurjara-Pratihara dynasty | 1.0[9] | 0.39 | 0.74% | 860[9] |
| Holy Roman Empire | 1.0[9] | 0.39 | 0.74% | 1050[9] |
| Khazar Khanate | 1.0[9]–3.0[10] | 0.39–1.16 | 0.74%–2.23% | 900[9] or 850[10] |
| Khmer Empire | 1.0[9][10] | 0.39 | 0.74% | 1290[9][10] |
| New Kingdom of Egypt | 1.0[10][23] | 0.39 | 0.74% | 1450 BC[23] or 1300 BC[10] |
| Ptolemaic Kingdom | 1.0[11] | 0.39 | 0.74% | 301 BC[11] |
| Qara Khitai | 1.0[9]–1.5[10] | 0.39–0.58 | 0.74%–1.11% | 1130[9] or 1210[10] |
| Scythia | 1.0[22] | 0.39 | 0.74% | 400 BC[22] |
| Shu Han | 1.0[11] | 0.39 | 0.74% | 221[11] |
| Tahirid dynasty | 1.0[9] | 0.39 | 0.74% | 800[9] |
| Western Xia | 1.0[10] | 0.39 | 0.74% | 1100[10] |
| Swedish Empire | 0.99[25] | 0.38 | 0.73% | 1700[25] |
| Nazi Germany | 0.824[17] | 0.32 | 0.61% | 1941[17] |
| Akkadian Empire | 0.8[23] | 0.31 | 0.59% | 2250 BC[23] |
| Avar Khaganate | 0.8[11] | 0.31 | 0.59% | 600[11] |
| Chu | 0.8[11] | 0.31 | 0.59% | 300 BC[11] |
| Huns | 0.8[11] | 0.31 | 0.59% | 287[11] |
| Songhai Empire | 0.8[9] | 0.31 | 0.59% | 1550[9] |
| Hyksos | 0.65[23] | 0.25 | 0.48% | 1650 BC[23] |
| Twenty-sixth Dynasty of Egypt | 0.65[23] | 0.25 | 0.48% | 550 BC[23] |
| Rozvi Empire | 0.624[26] | 0.24 | 0.46% | 1700[26] |
| Austro-Hungarian Empire | 0.62 | 0.24[27] | 0.46% | 1905[27] |
| Caliphate of Córdoba | 0.6[9] | 0.23 | 0.45% | 1000[9] |
| First Portuguese Empire | 0.6[9] | 0.23 | 0.45% | 1580[9] |
| Visigothic Kingdom | 0.6[11] | 0.23 | 0.45% | 580[11] |
| Zhou dynasty | 0.55[28] | 0.21 | 0.41% | 1100 BC[28] |
| Sikh Empire | 0.52 | 0.20[29] | 0.39% | 1839[29] |
| Emirate of Córdoba | 0.5[9] | 0.19 | 0.37% | 756[9] |
| Kosala | 0.5[11] | 0.19 | 0.37% | 543 BC[11] |
| Lydia | 0.5[23] | 0.19 | 0.37% | 585 BC[23] |
| Magadha | 0.5[11] | 0.19 | 0.37% | 510 BC[11] |
| Middle Kingdom of Egypt | 0.5[23] | 0.19 | 0.37% | 1850 BC[23] |
| Neo-Babylonian Empire | 0.5[23] | 0.19 | 0.37% | 562 BC[23] |
| Satavahana dynasty | 0.5[11] | 0.19 | 0.37% | 150[11] |
| Twenty-fifth Dynasty of Egypt | 0.5[23] | 0.19 | 0.37% | 715 BC[23] |
| Western Satraps | 0.5[11] | 0.19 | 0.37% | 100[11] |
| New Hittite Kingdom | 0.45[23] | 0.17 | 0.33% | 1250 BC – 1220 BC[23] |
| Xia dynasty | 0.45[23] | 0.17 | 0.33% | 1800 BC[23] |
| Bulgarian Empire | 0.4[30][need quotation to verify] | 0.15 | 0.30% | 850[30][need quotation to verify] |
| Kingdom of France (Middle Ages) | 0.4[9] | 0.15 | 0.30% | 1250[9] |
| Middle Assyrian Empire | 0.4[23] | 0.15 | 0.30% | 1080 BC[23] |
| Old Kingdom of Egypt | 0.4[23] | 0.15 | 0.30% | 2400 BC[23] |
| Sokoto Caliphate | 0.4[31] | 0.15 | 0.30% | 1804[31] |
| Latin Empire | 0.35[11] | 0.14 | 0.26% | 1204[11] |
| Ancient Carthage | 0.3[11] | 0.12 | 0.22% | 220 BC[11] |
| Indus Valley civilisation[lower-alpha 7] | 0.3[28] | 0.12 | 0.22% | 1800 BC[28] |
| Mitanni | 0.3[23] | 0.12 | 0.22% | 1450 BC – 1375 BC[23] |
| Ashanti Empire | 0.25[32] | 0.10 | 0.19% | 1820[32] |
| First Babylonian Empire | 0.25[23] | 0.10 | 0.19% | 1690 BC[23] |
| Aztec Empire | 0.22[9] | 0.08 | 0.16% | 1520[9] |
| Zulu Empire | 0.21 | 0.08[33] | 0.16% | 1822[33] |
| Elamite Empire | 0.2[23] | 0.08 | 0.15% | 1160 BC[23] |
| Phrygia | 0.2[23] | 0.08 | 0.15% | 750 BC[23] |
| Second Dynasty of Isin | 0.2[23] | 0.08 | 0.15% | 1130 BC[23] |
| Urartu | 0.2[23] | 0.08 | 0.15% | 800 BC[23] |
| Eastern Zhou | 0.15[23] | 0.06 | 0.11% | 770 BC[23] |
| Middle Hittite Kingdom | 0.15[23] | 0.06 | 0.11% | 1450 BC[23] |
| Old Assyrian Empire | 0.15[23] | 0.06 | 0.11% | 1730 BC[23] |
| Old Hittite Empire | 0.15[23] | 0.06 | 0.11% | 1530 BC[23] |
| Oyo Empire | 0.15[34] | 0.06 | 0.11% | 1680[34] |
| Bornu Empire | 0.13 | 0.05[35] | 0.10% | 1892[35] |
| Larsa | 0.1[23] | 0.04 | 0.07% | 1750 BC – 1700 BC[23] |
| Neo-Sumerian Empire | 0.1[23] | 0.04 | 0.07% | 2000 BC[23] |
| Tarascan empire | 0.075[36] | 0.03 | 0.06% | 1450[36] |
| Lagash | 0.05[28] | 0.02 | 0.04% | 2400 BC[28] |
| Sumer | 0.05[23] | 0.02 | 0.04% | 2400 BC[23] |
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Timeline of largest empires to date
The earliest empire which can with certainty be stated to have been larger than all previous empires was that of Upper and Lower Egypt, which covered ten times the area of the previous largest civilisation around the year 3000 BC.[37]
More information Empire, Land area (million km2) ...
| Empire | Land area (million km2) |
Year |
|---|---|---|
| Upper and Lower Egypt | 0.1[23] | 3000 BC[23] |
| Old Kingdom of Egypt | 0.25[23] | 2850 BC[23] |
| 0.4[23] | 2400 BC[23] | |
| Akkadian Empire | 0.65[23] | 2300 BC[23] |
| 0.8[23] | 2250 BC[23] | |
| New Kingdom of Egypt | 1.0[23] | 1450 BC[23] |
| Shang dynasty | 1.25[23] | 1122 BC[23] |
| Neo-Assyrian Empire | 1.4[23] | 670 BC[23] |
| Median Empire[lower-alpha 1] | 2.8[11] | 585 BC[11] |
| Achaemenid Empire | 3.6[11] | 539 BC[11] |
| 5.5[11] | 500 BC[11] | |
| Xiongnu Empire | 9.0[11] | 176 BC[11] |
| Umayyad Caliphate | 11.1[9] | 720[9] |
| Mongol Empire | 13.5[9] | 1227[9] |
| 24.0[9] | 1309[9] | |
| British Empire | 24.5[9] | 1880[9] |
| 35.5[9] | 1920[9] | |
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Timeline of largest empires at the time
More information Empire, Land area during timeas largest empire (million km2) ...
| Empire | Land area during time as largest empire (million km2)[28] |
Approximate period[28] |
|---|---|---|
| Upper Egypt | 0.1 | 3000 BC |
| Old Kingdom of Egypt | 0.25–0.4 | 2800 BC – 2400 BC |
| Akkadian Empire | 0.2–0.6 | 2300 BC – 2200 BC |
| Indus Valley Civilisation[lower-alpha 1] | 0.15 | 2100 BC |
| Middle Kingdom of Egypt | 0.2–0.5 | 2000 BC – 1800 BC |
| Xia dynasty | 0.4 | 1700 BC |
| Hyksos | 0.65 | 1600 BC |
| New Kingdom of Egypt | 0.65–1.0 | 1500 BC – 1300 BC |
| Shang dynasty | 0.9–1.1 | 1250 BC – 1150 BC |
| New Kingdom of Egypt | 0.5–0.6 | 1100 BC – 1050 BC |
| Zhou dynasty | 0.35–0.45 | 1000 BC – 900 BC |
| Neo-Assyrian Empire | 0.4–1.4 | 850 BC – 650 BC |
| Median Empire[lower-alpha 2] | 3.0 | 600 BC |
| Achaemenid Empire | 2.5–5.5 | 550 BC – 350 BC |
| Macedonian Empire | 5.2 | 323 BC |
| Seleucid Empire | 4.0 | 300 BC |
| Maurya Empire | 3.5 | 250 BC |
| Han dynasty | 2.5 | 200 BC |
| Xiongnu Empire | 5.7 | 150 BC |
| Han dynasty | 4.2–6.5 | 100 BC – 200 AD |
| Roman Empire | 4.4 | 250–350 |
| Sasanian Empire | 3.5 | 400 |
| Hunnic Empire | 4.0 | 450 |
| Sasanian Empire | 3.5 | 500 |
| Göktürk Khaganate | 3.0–5.2 | 550–600 |
| Rashidun Caliphate | 5.2 | 650 |
| Umayyad Caliphate | 9.0–11.0 | 700–750 |
| Abbasid Caliphate | 8.3–11.0 | 750–800 |
| Tibet | 2.5–4.7 | 850–950 |
| Song dynasty | 3.0 | 1000 |
| Seljuk Empire | 3.0–4.0 | 1050–1100 |
| Tibet | 2.5 | 1150 |
| Jin dynasty (1115–1234) | 2.3 | 1200 |
| Mongol Empire | 18.0–24.0 | 1250–1300 |
| Yuan dynasty | 11.0 | 1350 |
| Timurid Empire | 4.0 | 1400 |
| Ming dynasty | 4.7–6.5 | 1450–1500 |
| Ottoman Empire | 4.3 | 1550 |
| Tsardom of Russia | 6.0–12.0 | 1600–1700 |
| Russian Empire | 14.0–17.0 | 1750–1800 |
| British Empire | 23.0–34.0 | 1850–1925 |
| Soviet Union | 22.5 | 1950–1975 |
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Because of the trend of increasing world population over time, absolute population figures are for some purposes less relevant for comparison between different empires than their respective shares of the world population at the time.[38] For the majority of the time since roughly 400 BC, the two most populous empires' combined share of the world population has been 30–40%. Most of the time, the most populous empire has been located in China.[39]
More information Empire, Empire populationas percentage of world population ...
| Empire | Empire population as percentage of world population[40] |
Year[40] |
|---|---|---|
| Qing dynasty | 37 | 1800 |
| Northern Song dynasty | 33 | 1100 |
| Western Han dynasty | 32 | 1 |
| Mongol Empire | 31 | 1290 |
| Roman Empire | 30 | 150 |
| Jin dynasty (266–420) | 28 | 280 |
| Ming dynasty | 28 | 1600 |
| Qin dynasty | 24 | 220 BC |
| Mughal Empire | 24 | 1700 |
| Tang dynasty | 23 | 900 |
| Delhi Sultanate | 23 | 1350 |
| British Empire | 23 | 1938 |
| Empire of Japan | 20 | 1943 |
| Maurya Empire | 19 | 250 BC |
| Former Qin | 19 | 376 |
| Northern Zhou | 16 | 580 |
| Macedonian Empire | 15 | 323 BC |
| Empire of Harsha | 15 | 647 |
| Gupta Empire | 13 | 450 |
| Northern Wei | 13 | 500 |
| Umayyad Caliphate | 13 | 750 |
| Achaemenid Empire | 12 | 450 BC |
| Former Yan | 12 | 366 |
| Jin dynasty (1115–1234) | 12 | 1200 |
| Nazi Germany | 12 | 1943 |
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- Taagepera, Rein (1978). "Size and duration of empires: Systematics of size" (PDF). Social Science Research. 7 (2): 111. doi:10.1016/0049-089X(78)90007-8. ISSN 0049-089X. Archived (PDF) from the original on 7 July 2020. Retrieved 7 July 2020.
- Taagepera, Rein (1978). "Size and duration of empires: Systematics of size" (PDF). Social Science Research. 7 (2): 108–127. doi:10.1016/0049-089X(78)90007-8. ISSN 0049-089X. Archived (PDF) from the original on 7 July 2020. Retrieved 7 July 2020.
- Taagepera, Rein (1978). "Size and Duration of Empires: Growth-Decline Curves, 3000 to 600 B.C." (PDF). Social Science Research. 7 (2): 180–196. doi:10.1016/0049-089x(78)90010-8. ISSN 0049-089X. Archived (PDF) from the original on 7 July 2020. Retrieved 7 July 2020.
- Taagepera, Rein (1979). "Size and Duration of Empires: Growth-Decline Curves, 600 B.C. to 600 A.D.". Social Science History. 3 (3/4): 115–138. doi:10.2307/1170959. JSTOR 1170959.
- Taagepera, Rein (September 1997). "Expansion and Contraction Patterns of Large Polities: Context for Russia" (PDF). International Studies Quarterly. 41 (3): 475–504. doi:10.1111/0020-8833.00053. JSTOR 2600793. Archived (PDF) from the original on 7 July 2020. Retrieved 7 July 2020.
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- "World", The World Factbook, Central Intelligence Agency, 18 July 2022, archived from the original on 20 June 2022, retrieved 24 July 2022,
land: 148.94 million sq km [...] Antarctica 14,200,000 sq km
- Magdoff, Harry (1979). Imperialism: From the Colonial Age to the Present. NYU Press. p. 29. ISBN 978-0-85345-498-4. Archived from the original on 19 July 2020. Retrieved 19 July 2020.
[I]n 1800 Europe and its possessions, including former colonies, claimed title to about 55 percent of the earth's land surface: Europe, North and South America, most of India, and small sections along the coast of Africa. But much of this was merely claimed; effective control existed over a little less than 35 percent, most of which consisted of Europe itself. By 1878—that is, before the next major wave of European acquisitions began—an additional 6,500,000 square miles (16,800,000 square kilometers) were claimed; during this period, control was consolidated over the new claims and over all the territory claimed in 1800. Hence, from 1800 until 1878, actual European rule (including former colonies in North and South America), increased from 35 to 67 percent of the earth's land surface.
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A primeira estimativa oficial para a extensão superficial do território brasileiro data de 1889. O valor de 8.337.218 km2 foi obtido a partir de medições e cálculos efetuados sobre as folhas básicas da Carta do Império do Brasil, publicada em 1883. [The first official estimate of the surface area of the Brazilian territory dates from 1889. A value of 8,337,218 km2 was obtained from measurements and calculations made on drafts of the Map of the Empire of Brazil, published in 1883.]
- Conrad, Sebastian (2014). "The Dialectics of Remembrance: Memories of Empire in Cold War Japan" (PDF). Comparative Studies in Society and History. 56 (1): 8. doi:10.1017/S0010417513000601. ISSN 0010-4175. JSTOR 43908281. S2CID 146284542. Archived (PDF) from the original on 8 July 2020. Retrieved 7 July 2020.
In 1942, at the moment of its greatest extension, the empire encompassed territories spanning over 7,400,000 square kilometers.
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by 1942, this 'Empire' covered about 3,285,000 square miles
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When it was founded in 1821, the Mexican Empire extended over 4,429,000 km2 (not including the 445,683 km2 temporarily added by the short-lived union of the Central American provinces).
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Area English Sq. m. [...] German Empire: 208,780 Area (estimated) sq. m. [...] Total dependencies: 1,006,412
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Around 1700, the Danish Empire covered around 3 million square kilometers
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In size it is about 500,000 square miles
- Sundberg, Ulf (2018). Swedish defensive fortress warfare in the Great Northern War 1702–1710 (PDF). Åbo: Åbo Akademis förlag. p. 26. ISBN 978-951-765-897-3. OCLC 1113941754. Archived from the original (PDF) on 3 July 2020.
In 1700, the Swedish Empire covered a land area of 990,000 square kilometers and had 2,500,000 inhabitants.
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Zimbabwe continued to grow, reaching the height of its power in 1700, under the rule of the Rozwi people. When the first Europeans arrived on the African coast, they heard tales of a great stone city, the capital of a vast empire. The tales were true, for the Rozwi controlled 240,000 square miles (624,000 sq km)
- Briliant, Oscar; and, others (1911). "Austria-Hungary" . In Chisholm, Hugh (ed.). Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 03 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. pp. 2–39.
It occupies about the sixteenth part of the total area of Europe, with an area (1905) of 239,977 sq. m.
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By 1839, the year of his death, the Sikh kingdom extended from Tibet and Kashmir to Sind and from the Khyber Pass to the Himalayas in the east. It spanned 600 miles from east to west and 350 miles from north to south, comprising an area of just over 200,000 square miles.
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Islam spread quickly in Hausaland, which, after the jihad of 1804, was incorporated into the Sokoto Caliphate, a vast empire of 400,000 square kilometres.
- Iliffe, John (25 August 1995). Africans: The History of a Continent. Cambridge University Press. p. 143. ISBN 978-0-521-48422-0.
At its peak around 1820 the empire embraced over 250,000 square kilometres [...]
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By 1822 he had made himself master over 80,000 square miles
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By 1680, the Oyo Empire (in Nigeria) may have exceeded 150,000 square kilometers, though not by much.
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It has an area of perhaps 50,000 square miles.
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By A.D. 1450, the Tarascan Uacúsecha were leaders of an empire that spanned 75,000 square kilometers of west Mexico
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