The ten largest empires in human history, ranked by peak land area — from the British Empire's 35.5 million km² to the Xiongnu Empire's 9 million km².
Quick answer: 1. British Empire, 2. Mongol Empire, 3. Russian Empire, 4. Qing Dynasty, 5. Spanish Empire, 6. Second French Colonial Empire, 7. Abbasid Caliphate, 8. Umayyad Caliphate, 9. Yuan Dynasty, 10. Xiongnu Empire.
Empires have risen and fallen across every continent, some growing to control vast portions of the Earth's land surface. The largest empires in history represent the peak of territorial expansion achieved through military conquest, colonization, and political consolidation. This list ranks the ten largest empires by their estimated peak land area, drawing on the research of political scientist Rein Taagepera, whose systematic studies of imperial territories from 1978 to 1997 established the most widely cited dataset for historical empire sizes. The British Empire at its 1920 peak covered nearly a quarter of the world's land area, while the Mongol Empire remains the largest contiguous land empire ever assembled.
The largest empire in history, the British Empire reached its peak territorial extent around 1920, controlling approximately 35.5 million square kilometres — roughly 24% of the Earth's total land surface. At its height, the empire spanned every continent and ocean, famously described as 'the empire on which the sun never sets.'
The largest contiguous land empire in history, the Mongol Empire reached its greatest extent around 1270 or 1309, covering approximately 24 million square kilometres. Founded by Genghis Khan in 1206, the empire stretched from Eastern Europe to the Sea of Japan, connecting East and West through the Pax Mongolica.
The Russian Empire reached its peak territorial extent in 1895, covering approximately 22.8 million square kilometres across Eastern Europe, Central Asia, and the Far East. It was the third-largest empire in history and the largest contiguous empire in Eurasia after the Mongol Empire.
The Qing Dynasty, the last imperial dynasty of China, reached its greatest territorial extent around 1790, covering approximately 14.7 million square kilometres. Under the Qianlong Emperor, the Qing Empire controlled China proper, Manchuria, Mongolia, Tibet, and Xinjiang, making it the largest empire ever ruled from China.
One of the first global empires, the Spanish Empire reached its peak territorial extent around 1810, covering approximately 13.7 million square kilometres. At its height, it controlled vast territories in the Americas, Europe, Africa, and Asia, famously becoming the first empire described as 'the empire on which the sun never sets.'
The French colonial empire reached its peak around 1938, covering approximately 13 million square kilometres. At its height, French territories spanned Africa, Southeast Asia, the Caribbean, and the Pacific, making France the second-largest colonial power after Britain.
The Abbasid Caliphate, which succeeded the Umayyads, reached its peak territorial extent around 750 CE, covering approximately 11.1 million square kilometres from North Africa to Central Asia. The Abbasid period is considered the Golden Age of Islam, with Baghdad as its cultural and scientific capital.
The Umayyad Caliphate reached its greatest territorial extent around 720 CE, covering approximately 11 million square kilometres. At its peak, it was the largest empire in the world at the time, stretching from the Iberian Peninsula in the west to the Indus River in the east.
The Yuan Dynasty, established by Kublai Khan after the Mongol conquest of China, reached its peak territorial extent around 1310, covering approximately 11 million square kilometres. It was the first foreign dynasty to rule all of China and controlled a vast territory including China, Mongolia, and parts of Siberia.
The Xiongnu Empire, a confederation of nomadic tribes from the Mongolian steppe, reached its peak territorial extent around 176 BCE, covering approximately 9 million square kilometres. It was the dominant power in East Asia before the rise of the Mongol Empire and a persistent rival of the Han Dynasty.
| # | Name | Peak Year | % of World Land | Contiguous? | Duration |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | British Empire | c. 1920 | ~24% | No | c. 400 years |
| 2 | Mongol Empire | c. 1270–1309 | ~16% | Yes | c. 162 years |
| 3 | Russian Empire | 1895 | ~15% | Yes | c. 196 years |
| 4 | Qing Dynasty | c. 1790 | ~10% | Yes | c. 276 years |
| 5 | Spanish Empire | c. 1810 | ~9% | No | c. 350 years |
| 6 | Second French Colonial Empire | c. 1938 | ~9% | No | c. 300 years |
| 7 | Abbasid Caliphate | 750 | ~7% | Yes | c. 508 years |
| 8 | Umayyad Caliphate | c. 720 | ~7% | Yes | c. 89 years |
| 9 | Yuan Dynasty | c. 1310 | ~7% | Yes | c. 97 years |
| 10 | Xiongnu Empire | c. 176 BCE | ~6% | Yes | c. 300 years |
Empires are ranked by their estimated peak land area in millions of square kilometres, based on the research of Rein Taagepera (published in Social Science Research, 1978–1997) and subsequent scholarly estimates. Land area is defined as the dry land territory over which an empire had undisputed military and taxation prerogatives at the time of its greatest territorial extent. Figures represent scholarly consensus ranges; where multiple estimates exist, the mid-range figure is used. Only empires with a reasonably well-documented territorial extent are included. Rank 1 is the largest by land area.
The British Empire was the largest empire in history by land area, covering approximately 35.5 million square kilometres at its peak around 1920 — roughly 24% of the Earth's total land surface.
The Mongol Empire was the largest contiguous land empire in history, covering approximately 24 million square kilometres at its peak. Unlike the British Empire's overseas colonies, the Mongol Empire was a single, unbroken landmass stretching from Eastern Europe to the Sea of Japan.
Empire size is most commonly measured by land area at peak territorial extent, using the dry land area over which the empire had undisputed military and taxation prerogatives. The most widely cited dataset comes from political scientist Rein Taagepera's research published between 1978 and 1997.
The Roman Empire at its peak covered approximately 5 million square kilometres, and the Achaemenid Persian Empire covered about 5.5 million square kilometres — both well below the 9 million square kilometre threshold for the top 10. Even the largest ancient empires were significantly smaller than the modern colonial empires.