The Roman Empire

10 Most Powerful Empires In History

Empire by meaning is obviously a single monarch in an invaded area and the empire was trend during the ancient times. The emperors ruled by the empires listed below were so powerful that they were capable of even fighting World Wars and big clashes.

Here is the list of 10 most powerful empires in history who were known for their strength to conquer or defeat any opponent:

10. Han Dynasty (206 BCE- 220 AD)

han dynasty

Founded by Liu Bang after the Gaozu emperor, the Han Dynasty was mainly present in Southern China, North Vietnam and Korea. Confucianism was at the center stage at its establishment. During this era, paper and porcelain were invented. Han Dynasty succeeded the Qin Dynasty, and it lasted longer than any other Chinese empire. It was a literate society and Buddhism came to China from India during this era. It was similar to Roman empire in terms of population, but ranked behind in power and strength. As China was divided into three spheres, the twilight era came easily in 220 AD.

9. The Second French Colonial Empire (1830)

The Second French Colonial Empire

The Second Colonial empire started with the conquest of Algiers in 1830, established the colonies in North America, Caribbean and India, spreading the French civilization, language and Catholic religion. It had got enough manpower to supply in World Wars. At its peak, it had 11.5 million square kilometers of land area. Napoleon III was the key figure in the empire. During the 19th and 20th centuries, the French colonial empire was the second largest behind the British Empire. The colonies was established in America, Africa, Asia, Antarctica, and Oceania in Seven locations.

8. Qing Empire (1644-1912)

Qing Empire

The dynasty was founded by Jurchen Aisin Gioro in 16th century and lasted almost three centuries. It spread for an area of 14.7 million square kilometer in China during 1790. It was China’s last dynasty and was also called as “Manchu Dynasty”. “The Manchu banner system troops” were held responsible to guard the empire against local rebellions. The emperor ruled from the capital, Beijing, the Forbidden City. The Quin dynasty banned foreign trade because the Manchu rulers did not want the “Han” in coastal areas to grow stronger through trade with foreigners.

7. The Caliphate Empire (630 CE – 900 CE)

The Caliphate Empire

Founded by the Muslim Prophet Muhammad, it is also referred as “The Arab Empire”. Caliphate Empire was soul responsible for spreading and originating “Islam” religion. They conquered Southwest Asia, North Africa and Spain. The first four caliphs, Viz Abu Bakr, Vmar I, Uthman and Ali ruled the Caliphate Empire remembered as golden age of Islam.  The most influential was “the Vmayyad Caliphate” – the 2nd of four Islamic caliphates established after the death of Muhammad.

6. The Spanish Empire (1492-1975)

The Spanish Empire

It was the largest empire in the world in the 18th century. The territory comprised from America, Asia, Oceania, Africa, Philippines. The striking part of the empire was its varied juridical configuration and administration in consonance with the regional cultural and social systems. It had 13.70 million square kilometer of land area, and had about 12% of the world’s population. Further, Spanish is currently one of the most spoken languages in the world. However, they defended Europe against Ottoman Empire. In terms of legacy, the Spanish language and Roman Catholic Church were bought into America by the Spanish.

5. The Ottoman Empire (1333-1922)

The Ottoman Empire

The Turkish tribal leader Osman established the empire from whom the name Ottoman was derived. He fought in the name of Islam but still stands to be debatable. In 15th and 16th Century, the Ottoman Empire entered a period of expansion. In the course of time, the empire captured Persia, Egypt, Belgrade, Parts of Hungary, and gained control of Mesopotamia, Persian Gulf, Somalia and Horn of Africa. Ottoman Empire was a major part of European politician domain, during the expansion period of 1453-1566. The decline of the empire started in 1908 and defeated in 1922. The Ottoman period spanned more than 600 years in three continents.

4. The Roman Empire (27 BC- 395 AD)

The Roman Empire

It was the Roman Empire which helped Christianity from a minority cult to one the world’s greatest religion. The empire spread through Europe, Middle-East and North America. It was called “the empire without end”, which reached its largest expanse under Trajan with an area of 5 million sq.km and 55 million inhabitants (one-sixth of world’s population then). Rome, Alexandria and Antioch were the principle cities of the Empire. On the dark side, this empire had largest slave societies, physical exploitation, torture and summary execution. King Caligula was majorly involved in brutal executions. The Roman architecture still heard to be standing since last 2000 years, which proves to be genuinely powerful and advanced. It was so powerful that they influenced the world in terms of Literature, Religion, Education, Sculpture and Arts.

3. The Russian Empire (1721-1971)

The Russian Empire

The Russian Empire was governed by Emperor Peter-I between 1721 and 1725 and by Emperor Nicholas II between 1894 and 1917. In mid 1866, it stretched from Europe, Asia and North America in three different Continents with land area of 22.8 million Square kilometer. The empire collapsed mainly due to Russian civil war which was against Bolshevik rule. Though the empire was established by Peter-I, it was “Catherine the Great” who established the internal reforms, modernization, tactful expansion of its territory.

2. The Mongol Empire (1206-1368)

Mongol Empire

The Mongol Empire was the world’s largest contiguous land empire. It was founded in 1206 C.E by Temujin, who had the title of “Genghis Khan”. It covered about 12 million square miles, covering from Easter Europe to Sea of Japan, and from Siberia to Iranian Plateau. Mongol Empire was created through unification of nomadic tribes in Mongolia. Genghis Khan led his people to some of the bloodiest wars in human history. The empire was a result of discipline, ruthless military skill, brilliant maneuver and best economic organization. Genghis khan invaded Jin Empire of Jhurchen, Wester Xia in Northern China, Khuwarezmid Empire, Central Asia, Eastern Persia, Southern Russia and the Caucasus. The Empire disintegrated in 1368 as it was too huge to be maintained culturally.

1. The British Empire (1583-1945)

The British Empire

The British Empire stretched across a quarter of the world making it the largest in history with 35.50 million square kilometers. It had a remarkable ability to handle multiple wars at once. This foremost global power held sway over 412 million people, which was about 23% of the world population at the time. “The empire on which the sun never sets” was often used to describe the British Empire. It controlled the economies of many regions such as Asia, Latin America, and Parts of Africa. The British Empire existed from 1583 to 1945, which helped to spread “The English”, which is considered as the second most widely spoken language in the world today. It was the largest empire by landmass, population, military and naval power. However, two World Wars drained England financially.

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