The largest empire by area. The "longest" states and empires in history

It is in history that answers to many questions of our time can be found. Do you know about the largest empire that ever existed on the planet? TravelAsk will tell about two world giants of the past.

The largest empire by area

The British Empire is the largest state that has ever existed in the history of mankind. Of course, here we are talking not only about the continent, but also colonies on all inhabited continents. Just think: that was even less than a hundred years ago. AT different time the area of ​​Britain was different, but the maximum is 42.75 million square meters. km (of which 8.1 million sq. km are territories in Antarctica). This is two and a half times more than today's territory of Russia. This is 22% sushi. The heyday of the British Empire came in 1918.

The total population of Britain at its peak was about 480 million people (about one-fourth of humanity). That is why English is so widespread. This is a direct legacy of the British Empire.

How the state was born

The British Empire grew over a long period of about 200 years. The 20th century was the culmination of its growth: at that time, the state possessed various territories on all continents. For this, it is called the empire, "over which the sun never sets."

And it all started in the 18th century quite peacefully: with trade and diplomacy, occasionally with colonial conquests.

The empire contributed to the spread of British technology, trade, of English language and its form of government around the world. Of course, the basis of power was Navy which was used everywhere. He ensured freedom of navigation, fought slavery and piracy (slavery was abolished in Britain at the beginning of the 19th century). This made the world a safer place. It turns out that instead of seeking power over vast inland territories for the sake of possessing resources, the empire relied on trade and control over strategically important points. It was this strategy that made the British Empire the most powerful.

The British Empire was very diverse, including territories on all continents, which created a great diversity of cultures. The state included a very heterogeneous population, thanks to which it was able to manage different regions either directly or through local rulers, these are excellent skills for government. Just think: British power extended to India, Egypt, Canada, New Zealand and many other countries.

When the decolonization of the United Kingdom began, the British tried to introduce parliamentary democracy and the rule of law in the former colonies, but this was far from successful everywhere. British influence on former territories noticeable today: most of the colonies decided that the Commonwealth of Nations replaces the Empire in psychological terms. Members of the Commonwealth are all former dominions and colonies of the state. Today it includes 17 countries, including the Bahamas and others. That is, they in fact recognize the monarch of Great Britain as their monarch, but on the spot his power is represented by the governor general. But it is worth saying that the title of the monarch does not imply any political power over the Commonwealth Realms.

Mongol Empire

The second largest (but not powerful) is the Mongol Empire. It was formed as a result of the conquests of Genghis Khan. Its area is 38 million square meters. km: this is slightly less than the area of ​​​​Britain (and if you consider that Britain owned 8 million square kilometers in Antarctica, then the figure looks even more impressive). The territory of the state stretched from the Danube to Sea of ​​Japan and from Novgorod to Cambodia. This is the largest continental state in the history of mankind.

The state did not last long: from 1206 to 1368. But this empire had a lot to do with modern world: it is believed that 8% of the world's population are descendants of Genghis Khan. And this is quite likely: only the eldest son of Temujin had 40 sons.

During its heyday, the Mongol Empire included vast territories of Central Asia, Southern Siberia, Eastern Europe, the Middle East, China and Tibet. It was the largest land empire in the world.

Its rise is amazing: a group of Mongol tribes, not exceeding a million in number, managed to conquer the empires that were in literally hundreds of times larger. How did they achieve this? Thoughtful tactics of action, high mobility, the use of technical and other achievements of the captured peoples, as well as proper organization rear and supplies.

But here, of course, there could be no talk of any diplomacy. The Mongols completely cut out the cities that did not want to obey them. More than one city was swept off the face of the earth. Moreover, Temujin and his descendants destroyed the great and ancient states: the state of Khorezmshahs, the Chinese Empire, the Baghdad Caliphate, Volga Bulgaria. Modern historians say that up to 50% of the total population died in the occupied territories. Thus, the population of Chinese dynasties was 120 million people, after the invasion of the Mongols, it decreased to 60 million.

The consequences of the invasions of the great khan

The commander Temujin united all the Mongol tribes by 1206 and was proclaimed the great khan over all the tribes, receiving the title "Genghis Khan". He captured northern China, devastated Central Asia, conquered all of Central Asia and Iran, ruining the entire region.

The descendants of Genghis Khan ruled an empire that captured most of Eurasia, including almost the entire Middle East, parts of Eastern Europe, China and Rus'. Despite all the power, the real threat to the dominance of the Mongol Empire was the enmity between its rulers. The empire split into four khanates. The largest fragments of Great Mongolia were the Yuan Empire, the Ulus of Jochi (Golden Horde), the state of the Khulaguids and the Chagatai ulus. They, in turn, also collapsed or were subdued. In the last quarter of the 14th century, the Mongol Empire ceased to exist.

However, despite such a short reign, the Mongol Empire influenced the unification of many regions. So, for example, the eastern and western parts of Russia and the western regions of China remain united to this day, although in different forms of government. Rus' also gained strength: Moscow during Tatar-Mongol yoke was granted the status of a tax collector for the Mongols. That is, Russian residents collected tribute and taxes for the Mongols, while the Mongols themselves rarely visited Russian lands. In the end, the Russian people received military power, which allowed Ivan III to overthrow the Mongols under the rule of the Moscow principality.

Created by a union of Turkic tribes and headed by rulers from the noble family of Ashins, this state was one of the largest in the history of medieval Asia. During the period of greatest expansion (at the end of the 6th century), the Khaganate controlled the territory of Mongolia, China, Altai, Central Asia, East Turkestan, the North Caucasus and Kazakhstan. In addition, such Chinese states as Northern Zhou and Northern Qi, Sasanian Iran, and since 576 - Crimea depended on the Turkic empire.

Created in the thirteenth century as a result of the aggressive policy of Genghis Khan, and then his successors. It became the largest in world history, occupying the territory from Novgorod to South-East Asia and from the Danube to the Sea of ​​Japan. The area of ​​the state was approximately 38 million km2. During the heyday of the Mongol Empire, it included vast areas of Central Asia, Eastern Europe, Southern Siberia, the Middle East, Tibet and China.

The first and oldest unified state of China, Qin, laid a solid foundation for the subsequent Han empire. It became one of the most powerful state formations ancient world. For more than four centuries of its existence, the Han Empire represented an important era in the development of East Asia. To this day, the inhabitants of the Celestial Empire call themselves Han Chinese - an ethnic self-name that comes from an empire that has sunk into oblivion.

During the era of the Chinese state of Ming, a standing army was created and a navy was built. The total number of soldiers in the empire reached a million. The Ming Dynasty was last rulers belonging to ethnic Chinese. After their fall, the Manchu Qing dynasty came to power in the empire.

The state was formed on the territory of modern Iran and Iraq after the deposition of the Arshakids - representatives of the Parthian dynasty. Power in the empire passed to the Sassanid Persians. Their empire existed from the 3rd to the 7th century. It reached its peak during the reign of Khosrov I Anushirvan, and during the reign of Khosrov II Parviz, the borders of the state expanded significantly. At that time, the Sassanid Empire included the lands of present-day Iran, Azerbaijan, Iraq, Afghanistan, Armenia, the eastern part of present-day Turkey, parts of present-day India, Pakistan, and Syria. In addition, the Sasanian state partially captured the Caucasus, the Arabian Peninsula, Central Asia, Egypt, the lands of modern Israel, Jordan, expanding its borders, though not for long, almost to the limits of the ancient power of the Achaemenids. In the middle of the seventh century, the Sasanian Empire was overrun and absorbed by the strong Arab Caliphate.

The monarchical state proclaimed on January 3, 1868 and lasted until May 3, 1947. After the restoration of imperial rule in 1868, the new government of Japan began to modernize the country under the slogan "Rich country - strong army." As a result of imperial policy, by 1942 Japan became the largest maritime power on the planet. However, after the end of World War II, this empire ceased to exist.

After Portugal and Spain, France in the 15th-17th centuries. was the third European state engaged in the colonization of overseas territories. The French were equally interested in the development of tropical and temperate latitudes. For example, after exploring the mouth of the St. Lawrence River in 1535, Jacques Cartier founded the colony of New France, which once occupied central part territories of the North American continent. In the 18th century, that is, in their heyday, the French colonies occupied an area of ​​9 million km2.

As a result of Napoleon's occupation of Portugal, the royal family went to Brazil - the most important and largest among the Portuguese colonies. Since that time, the country began to be ruled by the Braganza dynasty. After Napoleon's troops left Portugal, Brazil became independent from the mother country, although it continued to remain under the rule of royal family. Thus began the history of an empire that lasted more than seventy years and occupied a significant part of South America.

It was the largest continental monarchy. So, in 1914 Russian empire occupied a huge area (about 22 million km2). It was the third largest power that ever existed and stretched from Baltic Sea in the west to Pacific Ocean in the east, from the Arctic Ocean to the Black Sea in the south. The head of the empire, the tsar, had unlimited absolute power until 1905.

Its possessions were in Asia, Europe and Africa. The Turkish army has long been considered almost invincible. The power in the state belonged to the sultans, who owned innumerable treasures. The Ottoman dynasty ruled for more than six centuries: from 1299 to 1922, when the monarchy was overthrown. The area of ​​the Ottoman state at the time of its highest prosperity reached 5,200,000 km2.

At the time of the highest prosperity of the Roman Empire, its dominion extended over vast territories - their total area was about 2.51 million square kilometers. However, in the list of the largest empires in history, the Roman one occupies only the nineteenth place.

What do you think, which one is the first one?

Mongolian

Russian

Spanish

british

Qing Empire

Turkic Khaganate

Japanese empire

Arab Caliphate

Macedonian Empire

Now we will find out the correct answer ...-

Millennia of human existence passed under the sign of wars and expansions. Great states arose, grew and collapsed, which changed (and some continue to change) the face of the modern world.
An empire is the most powerful type of state, where various countries and peoples are united under the rule of a single monarch (emperor). Let's take a look at the ten biggest empires that have ever appeared on the world stage. Oddly enough, but in our list you will not find either the Roman, or the Ottoman, or even the empire of Alexander the Great - history has seen more.

10. Arab Caliphate

Population: -

State area: - 6.7

Capital: 630-656 Medina / 656 - 661 Mecca / 661 - 754 Damascus / 754 - 762 Al-Kufa / 762 - 836 Baghdad / 836 - 892 Samarra / 892 - 1258 Baghdad

Beginning of domination: 632 g

Fall of the empire: 1258

The existence of this empire marked the so-called. The "golden era of Islam" - the period from the 7th to the 13th century AD. e. The caliphate was founded immediately after the death of the founder of the Muslim faith, Muhammad, in 632, and the Medina community founded by the prophet became its core. Centuries of Arab conquests increased the area of ​​the empire to 13 million square meters. km, covering territories in all three parts of the Old World. By the middle of the 13th century, the Caliphate, torn apart by internal conflicts, was so weakened that it was easily captured first by the Mongols and then by the Ottomans, the founders of another great Persian empire.

9. Japanese Empire

Population: 97,770,000

State area: 7.4 million km2

Capital: Tokyo

Beginning of reign: 1868

Fall of an empire: 1947

Japan is the only empire on the modern political map. Now this status is rather formal, but 70 years ago it was Tokyo that was the main center of imperialism in Asia. Japan - an ally of the Third Reich and fascist Italy - then tried to establish control over the western coast of the Pacific Ocean, sharing a vast front with the Americans. At this time, the peak of the territorial scope of the empire came, which controlled almost the entire maritime space and 7.4 million square meters. km of land from Sakhalin to New Guinea.

8. Portuguese Empire

Population: 50 million (480 BC) / 35 million (330 BC)

State area: - 10.4 million km2

Capital: Coimbra, Lisbon

Fall of the Empire: October 5, 1910
Since the 16th century, the Portuguese have been looking for ways to break through the Spanish isolation in the Iberian Peninsula. In 1497, they opened a sea route to India, which marked the beginning of the growth of the Portuguese colonial empire. Three years earlier, the Tordesillas Treaty was concluded between the “sworn neighbors”, which actually divided the world known at that time between the two countries, on unfavorable last conditions for the Portuguese. But this did not stop them from collecting more than 10 million square meters. km of land, most of which was occupied by Brazil. The handover of Macau to the Chinese in 1999 ended Portugal's colonial history.

7. Turkic Khaganate

Area - 13 million km2

one of the largest ancient states in the history of mankind in Asia, created by a tribal union of the Turks (Turkuts) headed by rulers from the Ashina clan. During the period of greatest expansion (the end of the 6th century), it controlled the territories of China (Manchuria), Mongolia, Altai, East Turkestan, West Turkestan (Central Asia), Kazakhstan and the North Caucasus. In addition, tributaries of the Kaganate were Sasanian Iran, the Chinese states of Northern Zhou, Northern Qi since 576 and from the same year the Turkic Kaganate is tearing away from Byzantium North Caucasus and Crimea.

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6. French Empire

Population: -

State area: 13.5 million square meters km

Capital: Paris

Beginning of reign: 1546

Fall of an empire: 1940

France became the third European power (after Spain and Portugal) to become interested in overseas territories. Since 1546 - the time of foundation New France(now Quebec, Canada) - originates the formation of Francophonie in the world. Having lost the American opposition to the Anglo-Saxons, and also inspired by the conquests of Napoleon, the French occupied almost all of West Africa. In the middle of the twentieth century, the area of ​​the empire reached 13.5 million square meters. km, more than 110 million people lived in it. By 1962, most of the French colonies had become independent states.
Chinese Empire

5. Chinese Empire (Qing Empire)

Population: 383,100,000

State area: 14.7 million km2

Capital: Mukden (1636–1644), Beijing (1644–1912)

Beginning of reign: 1616

Fall of the empire: 1912

The most ancient empire of Asia, the cradle of oriental culture. The first Chinese dynasties ruled from the 2nd millennium BC. e., but a single empire was created only in 221 BC. e. During the reign of Qing - the last monarchical dynasty of the Middle Kingdom - the empire occupied a record area of ​​14.7 million square meters. km. This is 1.5 times more than that of the modern Chinese state, mainly due to Mongolia, now independent. In 1911, the Xinhai Revolution broke out, putting an end to the monarchy in China, turning the empire into a republic.

4. Spanish Empire

Population: 60 million

State area: 20,000,000 km2

Capital: Toledo (1492-1561) / Madrid (1561-1601) / Valladolid (1601-1606) / Madrid (1606-1898)

Fall of the empire: 1898

The period of Spain's world domination began with the voyages of Columbus, who opened up new horizons for Catholic missionary work and territorial expansion. In the 16th century, almost the entire Western Hemisphere was "at the feet" of the Spanish king with his "invincible armada". It was at this time that Spain was called “the country where the sun never sets”, because its possessions covered the seventh part of the land (about 20 million sq. Km) and almost half of the sea routes in all corners of the planet. The greatest empires of the Incas and Aztecs fell to the conquistadors, and in their place a predominantly Hispanic Latin America was formed.

3. Russian Empire

Population: 60 million

Population: 181.5 million (1916)

State area: 23,700,000 km2

Capital: St. Petersburg, Moscow

Fall of the empire: 1917

The largest continental monarchy in human history. Its roots reach the times of the Moscow principality, then the kingdom. In 1721, Peter I proclaimed the imperial status of Russia, which owned vast territories from Finland to Chukotka. At the end of the 19th century, the state reached its geographical peak: 24.5 million square meters. km, about 130 million inhabitants, over 100 ethnic groups and nationalities. At one time, Russian possessions were the lands of Alaska (until it was sold by the Americans in 1867), as well as part of California.

2. Mongol Empire

Population: more than 110,000,000 people (1279)

State area: 38,000,000 km2 (1279)

Capital: Karakorum, Khanbalik

Beginning of reign: 1206

Fall of the empire: 1368

The greatest empire of all times and peoples, whose meaning of existence was one - war. The great Mongolian state was formed in 1206 under the leadership of Genghis Khan, having grown over several decades to 38 million square meters. km, from the Baltic Sea to Vietnam, and at the same time killing every tenth inhabitant of the Earth. By the end of the 13th century, its uluses covered a quarter of the land and a third of the world's population, which then numbered almost half a billion people. The ethno-political framework of modern Eurasia was formed on the fragments of the empire.

1. British Empire

Population: 458,000,000 (approximately 24% of the world's population in 1922)

State area: 42.75 km2 (1922)

Capital London

Beginning of reign: 1497

Empire Fall: 1949 (1997)

The British Empire is the largest ever existing state in the history of mankind with colonies on all inhabited continents.
For 400 years of its formation, it has withstood the competition for world domination with other "colonial titans": France, Holland, Spain, Portugal. During its heyday, London controlled a quarter of the world's land (over 34 million square kilometers) on all inhabited continents, as well as vast expanses of the ocean. Formally, it still exists in the form of the Commonwealth, while countries such as Canada and Australia actually remain subject to the British crown.
The international status of the English language is the main legacy of Pax Britannica. and

Over the past 3 thousand years, the Old World has seen the rise and fall of powerful empires, and their history, past glory could not but affect the culture of the countries and peoples that today occupy the spaces where they dominated. The ruins of large cities, majestic palaces and temples, left after the collapse of the great civilizations - Persia, and the Mediterranean - eloquently testify to the wealth, splendor and power of the great empires. The remains of fortresses and roads, palaces and canals, codes of laws carved on rocks and written down on paper, and praises of victors tell how they achieved military power, with the help of which they subjugated more and more new territories and retained control and management over vast colonies. The ancient empires are significantly separated from each other in time of existence, differ in size and cultural traditions, but they all have some common features.

What is an empire

Which of the ancient states can be called empires? Of course, not only the title of the ruler and the official, declared name of the country can serve as the basis for such a division. But still, let's try to look deeper into the essence of things and understand how they differ from other states. And it doesn't matter who is in power: the emperor, the senate, popular assembly or religious leader. The main thing that distinguishes an empire is its supranational character. A republic, a despotism, a kingdom become an empire only when they go beyond the state formation of a single people or tribe and unite many cultures, peoples at different stages of development.

Map of the Old World in the 1st century. BC.

It is no coincidence that their era began in the countries of the Old World at about the same time, and it is no coincidence that this time is usually called the era of axial civilizations.

It begins at the turn of the II and I millennia BC. e. and covers the period before the start of the Great Migration of Nations, which put an end to the greatest of. Of course, this provision is rather conditional. The first empires arose earlier than this designated period of time, and some of them survived its end.

It suffices to give just two examples. Egypt of the era of the New Kingdom, i.e., the second half of the 2nd millennium BC. e., rightfully can open a long list greatest empires antiquities. It was during this period that the country of the pharaohs crossed the boundaries of its national civilization. In this era, Nubia, the legendary "country of Punt" in the south, the flourishing cities of the palaces of the Levant, were conquered, the nomadic tribes of the Libyan desert were conquered and pacified. All these areas were not only forced to recognize, but were included in the economic system, the administrative structure of the country of the pharaohs, experienced cultural influences on its part. The later rulers of Nubia and even Ethiopia traced their genealogies to the god-like rulers of the Nile.

Byzantine Empire - direct successor ancient rome, which continued officially, and the people were called Romans, i.e. Romans, retained the attributes of the empire and the multinational character until its death in the middle of the 15th century. And the Ottoman Empire, which took its place, for all its dissimilarity to Rome and Byzantium, inherited and kept many of their traditions and, first of all, remained faithful to the imperial idea for many more centuries.

But still, we will focus on the era when they were just emerging, gaining strength and were at the zenith of their strength.

During this period, that is, in the I millennium BC. e., powerful empires stretched in a wide strip along the geographical latitude from the Strait of Gibraltar in the west to the shores of the Yellow Sea in the east. The strip along which the power of empires spread was limited from the north and south by natural barriers: deserts, forests, seas and mountains.

But not only these barriers caused their formation along this axis. It is here that the Old World: Cretan-Mycenaean, Egyptian, Sumerian, Indian, Chinese. They paved the way for future empires: they created a city network, built the first roads and paved the first sea routes that linked cities together. created and improved writing, the administrative apparatus, the army. They discovered new ways to accumulate wealth and improved old ones. It was in this zone that all the achievements of mankind were concentrated, which were necessary for the emergence of a full-fledged state, their successful growth and development.

In this series of predecessors and heirs, there are the Phoenician colonies of the Mediterranean, on the foundation of which the Roman Empire, the powers of the Assyrians, Babylonians, Medes and Persians of the Middle East, the Buddhist empires of the Indo-Aryans of the Ganges valley and the Kushans, the empires of China arose.

The New World later, but also went this way from the "classical" urban civilizations of Teotihuacan to the Aztec empire and from the ancient flourishing cultures of the Andean highlands.

Having rallied around themselves many tribes and peoples, they not only successfully applied all the achievements of past centuries, but also created many new things, which distinguishes them from early civilizations. Of course, the great empires of antiquity were very different from each other in terms of traditions, forms of expression of their imperial spirit, and destinies. But there is something that allows you to put them side by side. It was this "something" that gave us the right to call them all in one word - empires. What is this?

Firstly, as already mentioned, all empires are supranational formations. And for the effective management of vast spaces with different cultural traditions, religions and way of life, appropriate institutions and means are needed. With all the variety of approaches to solving the problem of governance, they were all based on the same principles: a rigid hierarchy, the inviolability of the central government, and, of course, an uninterrupted connection between the center and the periphery.

Secondly, it must effectively protect its long frontiers from external enemies, and moreover, in order to confirm its exclusive right to rule over many peoples, it must constantly grow. That is why, in all empires, war and warfare received exceptional development and occupied a significant place in Everyday life and ideology. As it turned out, militarization became and weak point almost all empires: the change of rulers, rebellions and the falling away of provinces rarely took place without the participation of the military, both in Rome, in the extreme west of the civilized world of the Old World, and in China, in its extreme east.

And thirdly, neither effective governance nor military power is capable of ensuring the stability of any empire without ideological support. It could be a new religion, a real or legendary historical tradition, or, finally, a certain unification of culture that allows you to oppose yourself, your belonging to a civilized empire, to the surrounding barbarians. But the latter soon also became.

Map of the Roman Empire