List of largest empires - wikipedia List of largest empires This is the latest accepted revision, reviewed on 9 April 2018. This is a list of the largest empires in world history, but the list is not and can not be definitive since the decision about which entities to consider as `` empires '' is difficult and fraught with controversy. An empire involves the extension of a state 's sovereignty over external territories and a variety of different ethnic groups. The term `` empire '' in this context ( not necessarily a state ruled by an emperor ) does not have a precise definition, but is generally applied to political entities that are considered to be especially large by the standards of their time and that have acquired a significant part of their territory by conquest. Contents 1 Measurement 2 Largest empires by land area 2.1 Empires at their greatest extent 3 See also 3.1 General 3.2 By era 3.3 By region 3.4 By size 4 Notes and references Measurement This section needs expansion. You can help by adding to it. ( March 2017 ) Both what constitutes an empire and the calculation of the land area of a particular empire are controversial subjects. Rein Taagepera has 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. Also, some empires have had large areas of land without having many people or a strong economic influence. Largest empires by land area For context, note that the total land area of the Earth is 148,940,000 km ( 57,500,000 sq mi ). This is a list of empires whose greatest extent exceeded 2 % of that area. Empires at their greatest extent This section 's factual accuracy is disputed. Relevant discussion may be found on Talk : List of largest empires. Please help to ensure that disputed statements are reliably sourced. ( December 2017 ) This list is incomplete ; you can help by expanding it. Empire Max. land area ( million km ) Max. land area ( million mi ) % of world land area Year British Empire 35.5 13.71 7001238400000000000 ♠ 23.84 % 000000001920 - 01 - 01 - 0000 1920 Mongol Empire 24.0 9.27 7001161100000000000 ♠ 16.11 % 000000001270 - 01 - 01 - 0000 1270 or 000000001309 - 01 - 01 - 0000 1309 Russian Empire 22.8 8.80 7001153100000000000 ♠ 15.31 % 000000001895 - 01 - 01 - 0000 1895 Qing dynasty 14.7 5.68 7000986990000099999 ♠ 9.87 % 000000001790 - 01 - 01 - 0000 1790 Spanish Empire 13.7 5.29 7000920000000099999 ♠ 9.20 % 000000001810 - 01 - 01 - 0000 1810 Second French colonial empire 11.5 4.44 7000772000000000000 ♠ 7.72 % 000000001920 - 01 - 01 - 0000 1920 Abbasid Caliphate 11.1 4.29 7000745000000000000 ♠ 7.45 % 000000000750 - 01 - 01 - 0000 750 Umayyad Caliphate 11.1 4.29 7000745000000000000 ♠ 7.45 % 000000000720 - 01 - 01 - 0000 720 Yuan dynasty 11.0 4.25 7000739000000000000 ♠ 7.39 % 000000001310 - 01 - 01 - 0000 1310 Xiongnu Empire 9.0 3.47 7000604000000000000 ♠ 6.04 % - 999999999824 - 01 - 01 - 0000 176 BC Brazilian Empire 8.337 3.22 7000560000000099999 ♠ 5.60 % 000000001889 - 01 - 01 - 0000 1889 Eastern Han dynasty 6.5 2.51 7000436000000000000 ♠ 4.36 % 000000000100 - 01 - 01 - 0000 100 Ming dynasty 6.5 2.51 7000436000000000000 ♠ 4.36 % 000000001450 - 01 - 01 - 0000 1450 Rashidun Caliphate 6.4 2.47 7000430000000000000 ♠ 4.30 % 000000000655 - 01 - 01 - 0000 655 Göktürk Khaganate 6.0 2.32 7000403000000000000 ♠ 4.03 % 000000000557 - 01 - 01 - 0000 557 Golden Horde Khanate 6.0 2.32 7000403000000000000 ♠ 4.03 % 000000001310 - 01 - 01 - 0000 1310 Western Han dynasty 6.0 2.32 7000403000000000000 ♠ 4.03 % - 999999999950 - 01 - 01 - 0000 50 BC Achaemenid Empire 5.5 2.12 7000369000000000000 ♠ 3.69 % - 999999999500 - 01 - 01 - 0000 500 BC Portuguese Empire 5.5 2.12 7000369000000000000 ♠ 3.69 % 000000001820 - 01 - 01 - 0000 1820 Tang dynasty 5.4 2.08 7000363000000000000 ♠ 3.63 % 000000000715 - 01 - 01 - 0000 715 Macedonian Empire 5.2 2.01 7000349000000000000 ♠ 3.49 % - 999999999677 - 01 - 01 - 0000 323 BC Ottoman Empire 5.2 2.01 7000349000000000000 ♠ 3.49 % 000000001683 - 01 - 01 - 0000 1683 Maurya Empire 5.0 1.93 7000336000000000000 ♠ 3.36 % - 999999999750 - 01 - 01 - 0000 250 BC Roman Empire 5.0 1.93 7000336000000000000 ♠ 3.36 % 000000000117 - 01 - 01 - 0000 117 Tibetan Empire 4.6 1.78 7000309000000000000 ♠ 3.09 % 000000000800 - 01 - 01 - 0000 800 Timurid Empire 4.4 1.70 7000295000000000000 ♠ 2.95 % 000000001405 - 01 - 01 - 0000 1405 Fatimid Caliphate 4.1 1.58 7000275000000000000 ♠ 2.75 % 000000000969 - 01 - 01 - 0000 969 Eastern Turkic Khaganate 4.0 1.54 7000269000000000000 ♠ 2.69 % 000000000624 - 01 - 01 - 0000 624 Hephthalite Empire 4.0 1.54 7000269000000000000 ♠ 2.69 % 000000000470 - 01 - 01 - 0000 470 Hunnic Empire 4.0 1.54 7000269000000000000 ♠ 2.69 % 000000000441 - 01 - 01 - 0000 441 Mughal Empire 4.0 1.54 7000269000000000000 ♠ 2.69 % 000000001690 - 01 - 01 - 0000 1690 Great Seljuq Empire 3.9 1.51 7000262000000000000 ♠ 2.62 % 000000001080 - 01 - 01 - 0000 1080 Seleucid Empire 3.9 1.51 7000262000000000000 ♠ 2.62 % - 999999999699 - 01 - 01 - 0000 301 BC Italian Empire 3.798 1.47 7000255000000099999 ♠ 2.55 % 000000001938 - 01 - 01 - 0000 1938 Ilkhanate 3.75 1.45 7000252000000000000 ♠ 2.52 % 000000001310 - 01 - 01 - 0000 1310 Khwarazmian Empire 3.6 1.39 7000242000000000000 ♠ 2.42 % 000000001218 - 01 - 01 - 0000 1218 Chagatai Khanate 3.5 1.35 7000235000000000000 ♠ 2.35 % 000000001310 - 01 - 01 - 0000 1310 or 000000001350 - 01 - 01 - 0000 1350 Gupta Empire 3.5 1.35 7000235000000000000 ♠ 2.35 % 000000000400 - 01 - 01 - 0000 400 Sasanian Empire 3.5 1.35 7000235000000000000 ♠ 2.35 % 000000000550 - 01 - 01 - 0000 550 Western Turkic Khaganate 3.5 1.35 7000235000000000000 ♠ 2.35 % 000000000630 - 01 - 01 - 0000 630 First French colonial empire 3.4 1.31 7000227990000099999 ♠ 2.28 % 000000001670 - 01 - 01 - 0000 1670 Ghaznavid Empire 3.4 1.31 7000227990000099999 ♠ 2.28 % 000000001029 - 01 - 01 - 0000 1029 Delhi Sultanate ( Tughlaq dynasty ) 3.2 1.24 7000215000000000000 ♠ 2.15 % 000000001312 - 01 - 01 - 0000 1312 German colonial empire 3.199 1.24 7000215000000000000 ♠ 2.15 % 000000001912 - 01 - 01 - 0000 1912 Song dynasty 3.1 1.20 7000208000000000000 ♠ 2.08 % 000000000980 - 01 - 01 - 0000 980 Uyghur Khaganate 3.1 1.20 7000208000000000000 ♠ 2.08 % 000000000800 - 01 - 01 - 0000 800 Western Jin dynasty 3.1 1.20 7000208000000000000 ♠ 2.08 % 000000000280 - 01 - 01 - 0000 280 Khazar Khanate 3.0 1.16 7000200999999999999 ♠ 2.01 % 000000000850 - 01 - 01 - 0000 850 Sui dynasty 3.0 1.16 7000200999999999999 ♠ 2.01 % 000000000589 - 01 - 01 - 0000 589 See also General List of empires List of former transcontinental countries List of former sovereign states Colonial empire The empire on which the sun never sets By era List of Copper Age states List of Bronze Age states List of Iron Age states List of Classical Age states List of states during Late Antiquity List of states during the Middle Ages List of medieval great powers By region American empire Former European empires African empires List of largest empires that existed in India By size List of political and geographic subdivisions by total area List of sovereign states and dependencies by area Notes and references Jump up ^ Taagepera, Rein ( 1979 ). `` Size and Duration of Empires : Growth - Decline Curves, 600 B.C. to 600 A.D. ''. Social Science History. 3 ( 3 / 4 ) : 117. doi : 10.2307 / 1170959. JSTOR 1170959. Jump up ^ `` The World Factbook ''. Central Intelligence Agency. Retrieved March 27, 2017. ^ Jump up to : Rein Taagepera ( September 1997 ). `` Expansion and Contraction Patterns of Large Polities : Context for Russia ''. International Studies Quarterly. 41 ( 3 ) : 492 -- 502. doi : 10.1111 / 0020 - 8833.00053. JSTOR 2600793. ^ Jump up to : Turchin, Peter ; Adams, Jonathan M. ; Hall, Thomas D. ( December 2006 ). `` East - West Orientation of Historical Empires ''. Journal of world - systems research. 12 ( 2 ) : 222 -- 223. ISSN 1076 - 156X. Retrieved 25 August 2016. ^ Jump up to : Taagepera, Rein ( 1979 ). `` Size and Duration of Empires : Growth - Decline Curves, 600 B.C. to 600 A.D. ''. Social Science History. 3 ( 3 / 4 ) : 121 -- 122, 124 -- 125, 127 -- 129, 132 -- 133. doi : 10.2307 / 1170959. JSTOR 1170959. ^ Jump up to : `` Área Territorial Brasileira ''. www.ibge.gov.br ( in Portuguese ). Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics. Retrieved 16 October 2016. A primeira estimativa oficial para a extensão superficial do território brasileiro data de 1889. O valor de 8.337. 218 km 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 km was obtained from measurements and calculations made on drafts of the Map of the Empire of Brazil, published in 1883. ) ^ Jump up to : Harrison, Mark ( 2000 ). The Economics of World War II : Six Great Powers in International Comparison. Cambridge University Press. p. 3. ISBN 9780521785037. Retrieved 2 October 2016. Jump up ^ `` Encyclopædia Britannica : Germany from 1871 to 1918 ''. Retrieved 29 September 2016. At its birth Germany occupied an area of 208,825 square miles ( 540,854 square km ) and had a population of more than 41 million, which was to grow to 67 million by 1914. ^ Jump up to : `` Statistische Angaben zu den deutschen Kolonien ''. www.dhm.de ( in German ). Deutsches Historisches Museum. Retrieved 29 September 2016. Sofern nicht anders vermerkt, beziehen sich alle Angaben auf das Jahr 1912. ( Except where otherwise noted, all figures relate to the year 1912. ) German South - West Africa : 835 100 km2 Kamerun : 495 000 km2 Togoland : 87 200 German East Africa : 995 000 German New Guinea : 240 000 Marshall Islands : 400 Kiautschou : 515 Caroline Islands, Palau, and Mariana Islands : 2 376 German Samoa : 2 570 Empires Ancient Akkadian Egyptian Assyrian Babylonian Carthaginian Chinese Qin Han Jin Northern Wei Tang Hellenistic Macedonian Seleucid Hittite Indian Nanda Maurya Satavahana Shunga Gupta Harsha Iranian Elamite Median Achaemenid Parthian Sasanian Kushan Mongol Xianbei Xiongnu Roman Western Eastern Teotihuacan Post-classical Arab Rashidun Umayyad Abbasid Fatimid Córdoba Aragonese Angevin Aztec Benin Bornu Bruneian Bulgarian First Second Byzantine Nicaea Trebizond Carolingian Chinese Sui Tang Song Yuan Ethiopian Zagwe Solomonic Georgian Hunnic Inca Indian Chola Gurjara - Pratihara Pala Eastern Ganga dynasty Delhi Vijayanagara Iranian Samanid Kanem Khmer Latin Majapahit Malaccan Mali Mongol Yuan Golden Horde Chagatai Khanate Ilkhanate Moroccan Idrisid Almoravid Almohad Marinid North Sea Oyo Roman Serbian Somali Ajuran Ifatite Adalite Mogadishan Warsangali Songhai Srivijaya Tibetan Turko - Persian Ghaznavid Great Seljuk Khwarezmian Timurid Vietnamese Ly Tran Le Wagadou Modern Ashanti Austrian Austro - Hungarian Brazilian Central African Chinese Ming Qing China Manchukuo Ethiopian French First Second German First / Old Reich Second Reich Third Reich Haitian First Second Indian Maratha Sikh Mughal British Raj Iranian Safavid Afsharid Japanese Johor Korean Mexican First Second Moroccan Saadi Alaouite Russian USSR Somali Gobroon Majeerteen Hobyo Dervish Swedish Tongan Turkish Ottoman Karaman Ramazan Vietnamese Tay Son Nguyen Vietnam Colonial American Belgian British English Danish Dutch French German Italian Japanese Omani Norwegian Portuguese Spanish Swedish Lists Empires largest ancient great powers medieval great powers modern great powers Lists of countries by political rankings Freedom Political Freedom in the World Democracy Ranking Press Freedom House Reporters Without Borders Economic Fraser Institute The Heritage Foundation / The Wall Street Journal Trade Corruption Bribes Corruption barometer Corruption perceptions Competitiveness Composite Index of National Capability History Empire size First human settlement Flag adoption date Formation date Geopolitical changes Rights Rule of Law Index Privacy Property rights Democracy Index Democracy - Dictatorship Index Gender Gap Index LGBT rights Other Discrimination and violence against minorities List of countries by Fragile States Index Government transparency Ease of Doing Business Index Environmental Performance Index Fragile States Index Good Country Index Globalization Index Global Peace Index Global Terrorism Index Global Liveability Ranking Prosperity Index Incarceration rate Political terror scale Global Slavery Index OECD Better Life Index Satisfaction with Life Index List of international rankings List of top international rankings by country Lists by country Retrieved from `` https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=List_of_largest_empires&oldid=835530392 '' Categories : Empires Former empires Lists by area Lists of countries by geography Lists of superlatives Hidden categories : CS1 Portuguese - language sources ( pt ) CS1 German - language sources ( de ) Use dmy dates from March 2017 Articles to be expanded from March 2017 All articles to be expanded Articles using small message boxes Accuracy disputes from December 2017 All accuracy disputes Incomplete lists from December 2017 Talk Contents About Wikipedia تۆرکجه Башҡортса Bosanski Čeština Español فارسی 한국어 Հայերեն हिन्दी Hrvatski Bahasa Indonesia Italiano עברית Magyar Bahasa Melayu 日本 語 پنجابی Polski Português Română Русский Srpskohrvatski / српскохрватски Svenska தமிழ் Татарча / tatarça ไทย Türkçe Українська اردو Tiếng Việt Yorùbá 中文 24 more Edit links This page was last edited on 9 April 2018, at 07 : 10. 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Question: who took over the most land in history
Answer: British Empire