So, what are the biggest nations or empires in history in terms of size and population? My guesses would be the Spanish empire around 1750 and current day India respectively - I got curious after reading that Carolingian Europe comprised about 30 million people, and I though that many current day governments are ruling over larger populations…
This thread about the greatest empires may be of interest. I think consensus eventually converged around the British Empire of the 19th and 20th centuries as the largest in land area and population.
In 2011, I think you’ll find that modern China is larger than India in both size and population, and Russia the largest nation on the planet by land area.
For sheer size the British Empire at its peak has to be up there.
A quick review of the old thread and some googling showed that in Area the British empire got to about 37 million sq. km, bigger than any other in history. In terms of population it peaked at 480 million, which is far less than current day China. I’ll take the British empire for size and China for population. Thanks.
In terms of area, was the British Empire larger than the Mongol empire at its peak?
Wikipedia puts the British Empire in 1922 at about 13 million square miles (including “Dominions”), while the Mongol Empire c. 1300 was “only” about 9 million square miles. Keep in mind that the British Empire originally included Canada, Australia, and India (which included Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Burma at the time), which are the second, sixth, and seventh largest countries in the world currently. Oh, and throw in a good chunk of Southern and Eastern Africa as well.
(Of course, most of the land claimed by the British in Canada and Australia is desert, either cold or hot. But that’s as may be.)
The Mongol figure is actually a little weird in the sense that the land area quoted is for 1270 ( from the cite wiki used ). Which is an odd pick, date-wise. At that point actual central control had lapsed and the Mongol empire had seperated into ( roughly ) two warring camps. Theoretically it was still a unified empire, with the simplified issue being a dispute over who should be Great Khan. But de facto it had seperated into four states, opposed in a 2 vs. 2 format. The last truly unitary state ended more or less by 1259 ( or perhaps 1262 depending on how you look at things ) and you could argue that by 1270 the Mongol successor states should all be counted seperately.
Of course the difference in size of the theoretical state in 1259 vs. 1270 isn’t large. However if you consider the theoretical state to be valid, then a better date would be ~1290 or so, when conquest and vassalization would probably have added another ~1,200,000 sq. miles or so - ~800,000 for the S. Sung ( conquered ), maybe ~100,000+ for Dai Viet + Champa ( vassalized ), ~300,000 for the smashed state of Pagan in Burma ( vassalized ).
If you just consider the amount of globe covered, the Japanese Empire during WW2 would be a winner.
This Wiki article puts the British Empire as No 1: List of Largest Empires.
What about for percentage of the world’s population?
no matter how big those empires in the 19th and 20th centuries were, they were limited. in fact, bottled up in many places. only alexander’s empire entered into all the unknown frontiers and found none to match him.
land area man, land area.
Apparently I am a bad Geography teacher because just yesterday I told a student that the Mongol Empire was the largest.
:smack:
I swear I learned that in college.
they trampled farther on land than anyone else at least. but an empire? the experts will delineate the mongol “empire” to only a few countries (with different time frames.)
Largest contiguous empire I believe.
Well, it was the largest contiguous empire, if that makes you feel better ;).
ETA: Ah, beaten to it.
As opposed to…? The Mongol empire was imperial anyway you slice it.
how centralized was it over several generations? now, i’m not a deep reader on the subject but from what i gather, genghis and his generals swept through china, then through india and the gulf area. he turned back but his generals looped around europe, the steppes, russia then back. his sons tried for a second shot at europe but didn’t go past hungary. his granson founded a dynasty in china. then there was the golden horde in russia.
three generations and each territory was basically autonomous. am i right so far?
If generational continuity matters to you, why do you believe Alexander had an empire?
What does that even mean? Alexander got as far as western India, he never reached China for example.
At one time the sun never set on the British empire. Also the Lloyd Webber empire, but that’s another thread.