List of empires

This is an alphabetical list of empires. The table may be resorted by other columns if your browser supports this function.

Empires and dynasties[]

This list is incomplete; you can help by . (December 2017)

Empire	Modern state	Capital	From	To	Duration (years)	Note	First leader	Last leader	Flag
Abbasid Caliphate	Iraq	Baghdad, Raqqa, Kufa, Samarra, Anbar	750	1258	508	Successor of the Umayyad Caliphate and Third of the Four Caliphates.	As-Saffah	Al-Musta'sim
Aceh Sultanate	Indonesia	Kutaraja	1496	1903	407		Ali Mughayat Syah	Alauddin Muhammad Da'ud Syah II
Achaemenid Empire	Iran	Pasargadae, Ecbatana, Persepolis, Susa, Babylon	550 BC	330 BC	220	The first Persian empire, and the fourth largest List of largest empires (after Xiongnu Empire, Han Dynasty and the First Turkic Khaganate) in classical antiquity time period, founded by Cyrus the Great.	Cyrus the Great	Darius III
Afsharid Dynasty	Iran	Mashhad	1736	1796	60	Founded by Nader Shah, at its peak expanded Persia as far west as Baghdad, and as far east as Delhi.	Nader Shah	Shahrokh Afshar
Aghlabid Emirate	Tunisia	Kairouan	800	909	109	The Aghlabids were an Arab dynasty that ruled Ifriqiya and southern Italy as a vassal of the abbasids, though they were de facto independent from the caliphate.	Ibrahim I ibn al-Aghlab	Ziyadat Allah III
Ahom Dynasty	India	Charaideo, Garhgaon, Rangpur (Ahom capital), Jorhat	1228	1838	610	It is well known for maintaining its sovereignty for nearly 600 years and successfully resisting Mughal expansion in Northeast India.	Sukaphaa	Purandar Singha
Akkadian Empire	Iraq	Akkad	2334 BC	2154 BC	180	The Oldest Empire in the World.	Sargon of Akkad	Shu-turul
Aksumite Empire	Ethiopia	Axum	150	940	790	Succeeded by the Ethiopian Empire.	Za Haqala	Dil Na'od
Akwamu	Ghana	Akwamufie, Nyanoase	1505	1867	362
Alaouite dynasty	Morocco	Fes, Meknes	1631	2021	281	Sharifian Empire of Morocco. Later became a protectorate of France. Current ruling dynasty of the Kingdom of Morocco	Sharif ibn Ali	Mohammad VI
Almohad Caliphate	Morocco	Marrakech, Seville	1121	1269	148	Berber Empire	Ibn Tumart	Abu al-Ula al-Wathiq Idris
Almoravid dynasty	Mauritania,  Morocco	Azougui (1040–1058), Aghmat (1058–1062), Marrakech (1062–1147)	1040	1147	107	Berber Empire	Abdallah ibn Yasin	Ishaq ibn Ali
Angevin Empire	United Kingdom, France	No official capital. Court was generally held at Angers and Chinon	1154	1242	88		Henry II	Henry III
Aq Qoyunlu	Azerbaijan	Bayburt, Palu, Ergani, Diyarbakır, Tabriz	1378	1503	125
Armenian Empire	Armenia	Tigranakert	190 BC	428	618	Tigranes the Great took the title King of Kings.
Assyria	Iraq	Assur	2500 BC	911 BC	1589		Tudiya	Ashur-dan II
Neo-Assyrian Empire	Iraq	Assur, Dur-Sharrukin, Nimrud, Nineveh, Harran	911 BC	609 BC	302		Adad-nirari II	Ashur-uballit II
Ashanti Empire	Ghana	Kumasi	1670	1896	226		Osei Tutu	Prempeh I
Austrian Empire	Austria	Vienna	1804	1867	63	Preceded by the Holy Roman Empire.	Francis II	Franz Joseph I
Austria-Hungary	Austria,  Hungary	Vienna, Budapest	1867	1918	51	Often referred to as the "Austro-Hungarian Empire". Formed out of the Austrian Empire as a result of the Austro-Hungarian Compromise of 1867. Officially a real union of the rump Austrian Empire (Cisleithania) and the Lands of the Crown of Saint Stephen/Transleithania. Ruler was therefore referred to as Kaiser und König ("Emperor-King", literally "Emperor and King").	Franz Joseph I	Charles IV and I
Ayyubid dynasty	Egypt,  Syria	Cairo, Damascus, Hama	1171	1260	89	Founded by Saladin, See also List of Muslim states and dynasties.	Saladin	Al-Ashraf[disambiguation needed]
Aztec Empire	Mexico, Mesoamerica	Tenochtitlan	1428	1521	93	The capital of Mexico, Mexico City, is built on the ruins of Tenochtitlan.	Itzcoatl	Cuauhtemoc
Aulikara Empire	India	Mandsaur,	528	550	22	Empire disintegrated after Shiladitya, the second king's death.	Yashodharman	Shiladitya (ruler of Malwa)
Babylonian Empire	Iraq	Babylon	1900 BC	1600 BC	300	See also Neo-Babylonian Empire.
Balhae	North Korea, Manchuria	Sanggyeong	698	926	228	Successor of Goguryeo.
Banten Sultanate	Indonesia	Old Banten, Serang	1526	1813	287		Maulana Hasanuddin of Banten
Sultanate of Banjar	Indonesia	Banjarmasin, Pemakuan, Tambangan, Martapura, Kayu Tangi	1520	1905	385
Bamana Empire	Mali	Ségou	1712	1861	149	Also known as the Bambara Empire or Ségou Empire
Belgian colonial empire	Belgium	Brussels	1901	1962	61	Overseas possessions were referred to as "the colonies" rather than an empire.	Leopold II of Belgium
Benin Empire	Nigeria	Benin City	1440	1897	457
Kadamba dynasty	India	Banavasi	345	540	195	The Kadambas (345–540 CE) were an ancient royal family of Karnataka, India, that ruled northern Karnataka and the Konkan from Banavasi in present-day Uttara Kannada district. The kingdom was founded by Mayurasharma in 345 CE.
Bornu Empire	Nigeria	Ngazargamu	1387	1893	506	The continuation of the Kanem Empire.
Empire of Brazil	Brazil	Rio de Janeiro	1822	1889	67	Established after Pedro I of Brazil declared the independence of Brazil from Portugal.	Pedro I of Brazil	Pedro II of Brazil
Britannic Empire	United Kingdom	Londinium	286	296	10	Was a break-away state of the Roman Empire. See also the Carausian Revolt.
British Empire	United Kingdom	London	1603	Either surviving until present or ended in 1997	394	The largest empire in world history. Precursor to the modern Commonwealth of Nations. Remnants of the empire include the British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies. Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II remains as sovereign. For many the handover of Hong Kong to the People's Republic of China on 1 July 1997 marked the end of the British Empire.[1]	James I	Elizabeth II
British Raj	Pakistan,  Bangladesh,  India,  Myanmar	Calcutta (1858–1912), New Delhi (1912–1947)	1858	1947	89	Governed by the Crown and part of the British Empire. Queen Victoria was proclaimed Empress of India in 1876.	Queen Victoria	George VI
Bruneian Empire	Brunei	Not specified, possibly Kota Batu	1368	1888	520	Lasted until it became a British protectorate in 1888.	Muhammad Shah of Brunei	Hashim Jalilul Alam Aqamaddin
First Bulgarian Empire	Bulgaria	Pliska (680–893), Preslav (893–972), Skopie (972–992), Ohrid (992–1018)	680	1018	338	Founded by Khan Asparukh. Under Tsar Simeon I became the first powerful Slavic Empire. Falls to the Byzantine Empire under Emperor Basil II.	Asparuh of Bulgaria	Ivan Vladislav of Bulgaria
Second Bulgarian Empire	Bulgaria	Veliko Turnovo (1185-1396)	1185	1422	237	Successor of the First Bulgarian Empire. Under the Tsars Kaloyan and Ivan Asen II became the most powerful state in the Balkans.	Peter II of Bulgaria	Ivan Sratsimir of Bulgaria
Duchy of Burgundy	France	Dijon	1364	1477	113	Theorically vassal of France. Ruled a very large territory from Alps to North Sea.	Phillip the Bold	Charles the Bold
Buyid dynasty	Iran	Shiraz	934	1055	121		Imad al-Dawla	Abu Mansur Fulad Sutun
Byzantine Empire	Greece	Constantinople	330	1453	1123	The eastern half of the Roman Empire. Term conventionally used since the 19th century to describe the Greek-speaking Roman Empire during the Middle Ages.	Constantine I	Constantine XI
Caliphate of Córdoba	Spain,  Portugal	Córdoba	756	1031	275	See also Caliphate.	Abd al-Rahman III
Cao Wei	China	Luoyang	220	265	45	See also Three Kingdoms.	Cao Pi
Carthaginian Empire	Tunisia	Carthage	814 BC	146 BC	668	Best known as the Roman Republic’s rival in the Punic Wars, Carthage was a North African commercial hub that flourished for over 600 years.	Dido
Cebu Rajahnate	Philippines	Cebu City	1279	1565	286	An Indianized state founded by a minor Chola prince.
Chagatai Khanate	Transoxania	Almaliq, Qarshi	1225	1687	462	Division of the Mongol Empire.
Chalukya dynasty	India	Badami	543	753	210
Chauhan dynasty	India	Delhi	800	1200	400
Chavín Empire	Peru		900 BC	200 BC	700
Chenla	Cambodia	Isanapura	550	802	252	Succeeded by the Khmer Empire.
Chera dynasty	India	Vanchi Muthur, Karur, Kodungallur, Kollam.	400 BC	1729	2129	A Tamil (Later, Malayalam) dynasty which includes Early Cheras, Medieval Cheras, Kodungallur Cheras and Venadu Cheras.
Chola empire	India	Uraiyur, Pazhaiyaarai, Thanjavur, Gangaikonda Cholapuram	400 BC	1540	1940	A Tamil dynasty which includes Early Cholas, Medieval Cholas and Later Cholas till the reign of Virasekhara Chola (opponent of Nagama Nayak). Ruled parts of India, Sri lanka, Malaysia, Singapore, Indonesia, Burma Maldives and Philippines.	Vijayalaya Chola
Comanche Empire	United States	N/A	1750	1850	100	A region of the southwest United States and Northern Mexico which was dominated by highly mobile Comanche warrior units known as racherías.
Commonwealth of England	United Kingdom	London	1649	1660	11	Short puritan and republican period in Britain. The Cromwell's army conquered Ireland and Jamaica.	Oliver Cromwell	Richard Cromwell
Congo Free State	DR Congo	Vivi then Boma	1885	1908	23	Private kingdom of Leopold II. Annexed by Belgium after the revelation of committed atrocities in rubber plantations.
Crimean Khanate	Crimea	Bakhchysarai	1441	1783	342	One of the last Turkic kingdoms, annexed by Russia.	Hacı I Giray	Şahin Giray
Dacian Empire	Romania	Sarmizegetusa Regia	168 BC	106	274	Reached its territorial expansion under King Burebista (82 BC – 44 BC) and also had the title of King of Kings.	Rubobostes	Decebalus
Danish colonial empire	Denmark (as Denmark–Norway 1536 – 1814)	Copenhagen	1536	1953	417	See also Danish overseas colonies.	Christian III of Denmark	Frederick IX of Denmark
Delhi Sultanate	India,  Pakistan	Delhi	1206	1527	321		Qutb al-Din Aibak	Ibrahim Lodi
Demak Sultanate	Indonesia	Bintara	1475	1568	93		Raden Patah	Arya Penangsang
Durrani Empire	Afghanistan,  Pakistan	Kandahar, Kabul	1747	1823	76		Ahmad Shah Durrani	Shah Shujah Durrani
Dutch Empire	Netherlands	Amsterdam	1568	1975	407	See also Dutch East India Company and Dutch West India Company.
Egyptian Empire	Egypt	Various, including Thebes, Akhetaten, Pi-Ramesses, Memphis	1550 BC	1077 BC	473	See also 18th Dynasty, 19th Dynasty & 20th Dynasty.	Ahmose I	Ramesses XI
Elamite Empire	Iran	Susa	1210 BC	1100 BC	~110 Elam#Elamite Empire (About Elamite Empire)				Elam Haltamti
Exarchate of Africa	Tunisia	Carthage	585	698	113	The Exarchate of Africa was a division of the Byzantine Empire centered around Carthage, Tunisia, that encompassed its possessions on the Western Mediterranean (excluding Italy and Sicily). And it was ruled by an exarch.	Gennadius	John the Patrician
Abbasynia	Ethiopia	Addis Ababa	1137	1974	837		Yekuno Amlak	Haile Selassie
Fatimid Caliphate	Tunisia,  Egypt	Mahdia (909–969), Cairo (969–1171)	909	1171	262	See also Caliphate.	Abdallah al-Mahdi Billah	al-Adid
First French Empire	France	Paris	1804	1815	11	Established after the French Revolution	Napoleon	Napoleon
Second French Empire	France	Paris	1852	1870	18	Established after the French loss of the Franco-Prussian War	Napoleon III	Napoleon III
French colonial empire	France	Paris	1534	Either surviving until present or ended in 1980	487 as of 2021 or 446 as of 1980	Some consider the Empire ending with the end of French presence in Vanuatu (see New Hebrides) France still maintains overseas possessions in the form of Overseas France.	Francis I of France	Emmanuel Macron
Frankish Empire	France	Various, including Soissons, Paris, Reims, Orléans, Metz & Aachen	800	843	43	Succeeded by Middle Francia, East Francia, and West Francia.	Clovis I	Louis the Pious
Funan	Cambodia	Vyadhapura	50	550	500	Succeeded by the Chenla.
Gallic Empire	Rhineland-Palatinate	Colonia Agrippina	260	274	14	Broke off from the Roman Empire during the Crisis of the Third Century.
Gaza Empire	Southern Africa	Not specified	1824	1895	71
Republic of Genoa	Italy	Genoa	1096	1797	701	Major commercial power during the Late Middle Ages. Established colonies across the Mediterranean and Black Sea.
Georgian Empire	Georgia	Kutaisi, Tbilisi	1008	1490	482	Established in 1008 as an unified kingdom. Georgian kings took title "King of Kings" and ruled over large territory consisting of Georgian, Armenian and Muslim areas, as well as numerous client states. Officially dissolved at 1490.	Bagrat III of Georgia	George VIII of Georgia
German Empire	Germany	Berlin	1871	1918	47	See also German colonial empire/Also known as "The Second Reich". Otto Von Bismark as Prime minister of Prussia, uniter of Germany and then Chancellor of Germany(1871-1890) likely had far more political pull than Wilhelm I.	Wilhelm I	Wilhelm II
Ghana Empire	Mauritania,  Mali	Koumbi Saleh	300	1240	940	The empire became known in Europe and Arabia as the "Ghana Empire" by the title of its ruler (meaning "Warrior King"). Also known as Wagadou.
Ghaznavid dynasty	Afghanistan,  Pakistan	Ghazni later Lahore	963	1187	224		Sabuktigin	Khusrau Malik
Ghurid dynasty	Afghanistan,  Pakistan	Firuzkuh	1148	1215	67		Amir Suri	Ala al-Din Ali
Goguryeo	Korea[2]	Jolbon, Gungnae City, Pyongyang	37 BC	668	705	Predecessor of Balhae and Goryeo.
Goryeo	Korea	Gaegyeong, Ganghwa	918	1392	474	Successor of Goguryeo. Unification of the Korean Peninsula. State maintained as an empire between 918 and 1274.	Taejo of Goryeo	Gongyang of Goryeo
Gorkha Empire	Nepal	1600	1850	250	Unification of Greater Nepal. State maintained as an empire between 1600 and 1840.
Göktürk Khaganate	Inner Asia	Ötüken	552	747	195	552–603 First empire, 603–658 Double empire, 658–681 Dark age, 681–747 Second empire.
Golden Horde	Central Asia	Sarai Batu	1240	1502	262	Successor state of the Mongol Empire.	Jochi	Sheikh Ahmed
Sultanate of Gowa	Indonesia	Sungguminasa	1300	1945	645
Empire of Great Fulo	Senegal	Tekrur	1514	1776	262
Great Moravian Empire	Czechia	833	900	67	The word "Moravia" did not refer only to present-day Moravia.	Mojmir I of Moravia	Mojmir II of Moravia
Seljuq Empire	Aral Sea, Asia Minor, Persia	Nishapur and later on Rey	1037	1194	157	Turkish empire, predecessor of the Sultanate of Rum.
Gurjara-Pratihara dynasty	India	Kannauj	600	1136	536	Founded by great king of Gujjars.
Gupta Empire	India,  Pakistan	Pataliputra	320	550	230	Founded by Sri Gupta.
Hafsid Kingdom	Tunisia	Tunis	1228	1574	346	The Hafsids were a sunni muslim dynasty of Berber descent who ruled Ifriqiya for over 300 years.	Abu Zakariya Yahya	Abu Abdallah Muhammad VI ibn al-Hasan
Han dynasty	China	Chang'an, Luoyang, Xuchang	206 BC	220	426	Founded by Liu Bang the High Ancestor.	Emperor Gaozu of Han	Emperor Xian of Han
Hanseatic League	North and Baltic Sea	Lübeck	1356	1648	292	Alliance of German and Baltic merchant city-states.
Empire of Harsha	India	Kannauj	606	647	41	Founded by Harshavardhana; collapsed after his death.
Hephthalite Empire	Afghanistan	Kabul	420	567	147
Hittite Empire	Anatolia	Hattusa	1460 BC	1180 BC	280	See also Syro-Hittite states.
Holy Roman Empire	Central Europe	Not specified	962	1806	844	Referred to simply as the Roman Empire (not to be confused with the actual Roman Empire) before 1157, when it became the Holy Empire. The Holy Roman Empire is attested from 1254. Was officially known as the Holy Roman Empire of the German Nation after 1512, although this designation had fallen out of use again by the 18th century. See Holy Roman Empire § Name.	Otto I the Great	Francis II
Hotak dynasty	Iran,  Afghanistan	Isfahan	1709	1738	29		Mirwais Hotak	Hussain Hotak
Hoysala Empire	India	Belur, Halebidu	1026	1343	317
Hunnic Empire	Eurasia	Not specified	370	469	99
Husainid dynasty	Tunisia	Tunis	1705	1957	252	The Husainids were a dynasty that ruled the Beylik of Tunis which was a largely autonomous governorate of the Ottoman Empire.	Al-Husayn I ibn Ali	Muhammad VIII al-Amin
Idrisid dynasty	Morocco	Fes	788	974	186	Founders of the first Moroccan state.	Idris I	Al-Hasan ibn Kannun
Ilkhanate	Iran	Maragheh, Tabriz, Soltaniyeh	1256	1335	79	Successor state of the Mongol Empire.	Hulagu Khan	Abu Sa'id Bahadur Khan
Kingdom of Israel (united monarchy)	Egypt,  Israel,  Jordan,  Lebanon, Palestine,  Syria	Gibeah (1030–1010 BC), Mahanaim (1010–1008), Hebron (1008–1003), Jerusalem (1003–930)	1047 BC	930 BC	117	Split into Kingdom of Israel and Kingdom of Judah	Saul	Rehoboam
Kingdom of Judah (united monarchy)	Israel	Jerusalem	1050 BC	586 BC	464	Considers the Start of Saul's reign, through the dual kingdoms of the Kingdom of Israel (Samaria) and the Kingdom of Judah, until the Babylonian conquest of Judah.
Inca Empire (Tawantinsuyo)	Andes ( Peru, Chile, Bolivia,  Ecuador, And Northwest of  Argentina and South of  Colombia)	Cusco	1438	1533	95	The largest empire in pre-Columbian America.	Pachacuti	Waskar (legitimately)
Italian Empire	Italy	Rome	1885	1943	58	See also Italian imperialism under Fascism.	Umberto I	Victor Emmanuel III
Empire of Japan	Japan	Tokyo	1868	1947	79	Emperor's government took control of the country in 1868. Regional hegemony in East Asia ended in 1945. The new constitution of 1947 formally abolished the empire.[3]	Meiji	Shōwa (Hirohito)
Jin dynasty (266–420)	China	Luoyang (265–311), Chang'an (312–316), Jiankang (317–420)	266	420	154	Subdivided into two dynasties. Western Jìn dynasty (266–316), Eastern Jìn dynasty (317–420).
Jin dynasty (1115–1234)	China	Huining, Zhongdu, Kaifeng	1115	1234	119	Also known as the Jurchens, were the ancestors of the Manchus who established the Qing dynasty.
Johor Empire	Malaysia	Muar, Johor Lama	1528	1855	327		Alauddin Riayat Shah II	Ali Iskandar
Jolof Empire	Senegal	Linguère	1350	1549	199	Also known as the Wollof Empire. Succeeded by the Kingdom of Jolof (1549–1875).
Joseon	Korea	Hanseong	1392	1897	505		Taejo	Gojong
Kaabu Empire	West Africa	Kansala	1537	1867	330	Also written Gabu, Ngabou, and N’Gabu'.
Kachari kingdom[4]	India	Dimapur, Maibang and Khaspur	835	1832	997	The first of the Kachari kings claimed to rule in the town of Dimapur in Assam in the early ninth century, although he was probably little more than a powerful chieftain. The Kacharis belonged to the Dimasa Bodo Kachari group and called themselves descendents of Ghatotkacha, the son of the Pandava Prince Bhima. They also appear to have had links to their cousins, the Mlechha kings. They ruled from their capital at Hidimbapur (Dimapur).
Kalmar Union	Scandinavia	Roskilde then Copenhagen	1397	1523	126	Personal union of Denmark, Pomerania, Norway and Sweden.	Margaret I	Christian II
Kanem Empire	Chad	Njimi	700	1387	687		Sef	Omar I
Kanva dynasty	India	Pataliputra, Vidisha	75 BC	30 BC	45	Replaced the Shunga Empire.
Kara-Khanid Khanate	Turkistan	Kashgar	840	1212	372	First Turkic dynasty to embrace Islam.
Kazakh Khanate	Kazakhstan	Turkistan	1465	1847	382		Kerei Khan	Kenesary Khan
Khazar Khaganate	Pontic steppe, North Caucasus	Balanjar, later Atil	700	1000	300	Founded by Western Turks, the members of the royal family embraced Judaism.
Khmer Empire	Cambodia	Hariharalaya (802–889), Angkor (889–1431)	802	1431	629	Succeeded from the kingdom of Chenla.	Jayavarman II	Ponhea Yat
Khilji dynasty	Afghanistan,  Pakistan	Kabul, Delhi	1290	1320	30
Khwarazmian dynasty	Iran	Urgench	1077	1221	144		Anushtegin Gharchai	Qutuz
Kievan Rus'	Ukraine,  Russia	Novgorod, Kiev	879	1240	361
Konbaung dynasty	Myanmar	Mandalay	1752	1885	133
Kong Empire	West Africa	Kong	1710	1898	188	Also known as the Wattara Empire or Ouattara Empire.
Korean Empire	Korean Peninsula	Hanseong	1897	1910	13	Was the last ruling Korean dynasties.	[[Gojong of Korea	Sunjong of Korea
Kushan Empire	Afghanistan,  Pakistan	Various, including Mathura, Peshawar, Begram, Taxila	30	345	315		Kujula Kadphises	Kipunada
Kingdom of Kush	Sudan	Napata, Meroe	1070 BC	350	1420
Lakota people	Great Plains	Great winter camps	1700	1877	177	Main Native power in North America until Black Hills annexation by United States.
Latin Empire	Thrace, Asia Minor	Constantinople	1204	1261	57	See also Latinokratia.
Later Lê dynasty	Vietnam	Đông Kinh	1428	1789	361		Lê Lợi	Lê Chiêu Thống
Liao dynasty	China	Shangjing	915	1125	210
Lodi Sultanate	Afghanistan,  Pakistan	Delhi	1451	1526	75
Macedonian Empire	Greece	Aegae, Pella, Babylon	334 BC	323 BC	11	Founded by Alexander the Great.
Madurai Nayak dynasty	India	Madurai, Tiruchirappalli	1529	1736	207	Branched out from the Vijayanagara Empire by Viswanatha Nayak.
Majapahit Empire	Indonesia	Majapahit, Wilwatikta	1293	1527	234	Successor of the Singhasari; founded by Raden Wijaya.	Raden Wijaya	Prabu Udara
Mali Empire	West Africa	Niani, later Ka-ba	1235	1610	375	A Mandinka empire founded by Sundiata Keita.
Malacca Empire	Malaysia	Malacca	1400	1511	111		Iskandar Shah	Mahmud Shah
Mamluk Sultanate	Egypt,  Syria	Cairo	1250	1517	267	See also Islamic Empire.	Al-Mustansir (Cairo)	Tuman bay II
Manchukuo	China	Hsinking	1932	1945	13	Created as a puppet state of the Japanese Empire, with Emperor Puyi (the last emperor of the Qing dynasty) installed as nominal regent and emperor.	Puyi	Puyi
Maratha Empire	India	Raigad, later Satara	1674	1818	144	Founded by Shivaji Maharaj, also known as the Maratha Confederacy.
Marinid dynasty	Morocco	Fes	1244	1465	221		Abd al-Haqq I	Abd al-Haqq II
Massina Empire	West Africa	Hamdullahi	1820	1862	42
Mataram Sultanate	Indonesia	Kotagede, Karta, Plered, Kartosuro	1587	1755	168	The largest sultanate in Java. Production of Javanese Djong stopped during the era of this sultanate.
Mauretania	Morocco	Volubilis, Caesarea	225 BC	44	269	.	Baga (king)	Ptolemy of Mauretania
Mauryan Empire	India,  Pakistan	Pataliputra	321 BC	185 BC	136	Founded by Chandragupta Maurya. The Mauryan Empire became the largest ever Indian empire under Ashoka.
Median Empire	Iran	Ecbatana	625 BC	549 BC	76	First Iranian empire, Founded by Deioces.
Mlechchha dynasty	India	Tezpur	650	900	250	Founded by Salasthamba(Kachari King). The Mlechchha dynasty replaced the Varman dynasty.
First Mexican Empire	Mexico	Mexico City	1821	1823	2		Agustín I of Mexico	Agustín I of Mexico
Second Mexican Empire	Mexico	Mexico City	1864	1867	3	Succeeded the First Mexican Empire which was short lived (1821–1823). See also Mexican Imperial Orders.	Maximillian I of Mexico	Maximillian I of Mexico
Ming dynasty	China	Nanjing (1368–1421), Beijing (1421–1644)	1368	1644	276	Founded by Zhu Yuanzhang the Great Marshal.	Hongwu Emperor	Chongzhen Emperor
Mitanni Empire	Syria,  Iran,  Iraq,  Turkey	Washukanni	1500 BC	1300 BC	200
Mongol Empire	Mongolia	Karakorum	1206	1368	162	Split into four empires (Yuan dynasty, Ilkhanate, Chagatai Khanate and Golden Horde). Largest contiguous land empire.	Genghis Khan	Toghon Temur
Mughal Empire	Indian Subcontinent	Agra, Delhi	1526	1758	232	Founded by Babur. "Mughal" is a Persian word for the Mongols.	Babur	Bahadur Shah Zafar
Nanda Empire	Indian Subcontinent	Pataliputra	450 BC	350 BC	100
Neo-Babylonian Empire	Iraq	Babylon	626 BC	539 BC	87	See also Babylonia.	Nabopolassar	Nabonidus
Nguyễn dynasty	Vietnam	Phú Xuân	1802	1945	143	Was the last ruling Vietnamese dynasty Would later be a puppet state of the Third French Republic.	Gia Long	Bảo Đại
North Sea Empire	Denmark	Ribe	1016	1035	19	As one historian put it: "When the 11th century began its fourth decade, Canute was, with the single exception of the Emperor, the most imposing ruler in Latin Christendom. ... [H]e was lord of four important realms and the overlord of other kingdoms. Though technically Canute was counted among the kings, his position among his fellow-monarchs was truly imperial. Apparently he held in his hands the destinies of two great regions: the British Isles and the Scandinavian peninsulas. His fleet all but controlled two important seas, the North and the Baltic. He had built an Empire."[5]	Sweyn Forkbeard	Cnut the Great
Empire of Nicaea	Bithynia	Nicaea	1204	1261	57	Successor state of the Byzantine Empire.
Northern Yuan dynasty	Mongolia, North China	Shangdu, Yingchang, Karakorum	1368	1635	267	Created after the expulsion of the Yuan dynasty from China proper in 1368.	Toghon Temür	Ejei Khan
Numidia	Algeria,	Cirta	202 BC	40 BC	162	First Berber Kingdom in North Africa, founded by Massinissa in 202 BC.	Massinissa	Juba II
Omani Empire	Oman	Muscat	1698	1856	158	See Oman.
Ottoman Empire	Turkey	Söğüt, Bursa, Edirne, İstanbul	1299	1922	623	Predecessor of the Republic of Turkey.	Osman I	Mehmed VI
Oyo Empire	Southwestern Nigeria	Oyo-Ile	1400	1905	505
Pagan Empire	Myanmar	Bagan	849	1297	448
Pahlavi dynasty	Iran	Tehran	1925	1979	54	The last Imperial dynasty of the Persian Empire.	Reza Shah	Mohammad Reza Pahlavi
Pala Empire	India	Pataliputra	750	1174	424
Palmyrene Empire	Syria	Palmyra	270	273	3	Broke off from the Roman Empire during the Crisis of the Third Century.
Pandyan dynasty	India	Madurai, Korkai, Tenkasi, Tirunelveli	500 BC	1759[6]	2259	A Tamil dynasty which includes Early Pandyas (possible sunken continent, Kumari Kandam), First Empire, Second Empire and Later Pandyas of Tenkasi and Tirunelveli.
Parthian Empire	Iran	Various, including Asaak, Hecatompylos, Ecbatana, Ctesiphon, Nisa	247 BC	224	471	Third Iranian empire, Founded by Arsaces I.
Pontic Empire	Pontus, (Greece)	Amaseia, Sinope	120 BC	47 BC	73	Mithridates VI had the title: King of Kings.
Portuguese Empire	Portugal	Lisbon, Rio de Janeiro (1815–1821)	1415	1999	584	It was one of the first global empires and one of the longest lived of the colonial Western European empires. See also United Kingdom of Portugal, Brazil and the Algarves.	João I	António Guterres
Kingdom of Prussia	Germany	Berlin	1701	1871	170	Was a great power during the 18th century. Unificated Germany after the Franco-Prussian War against France.	Frederick I of Prussia	Wilhelm I
Ptolemaic Empire	Egypt	Alexandria	305 BC	30 BC	275	See also Diadochi.
Qajar dynasty[citation needed]	Persia	Tehran	1794	1925	131
Qara Qoyunlu	Azerbaijan	Erciş, Mosul, Tabriz	1378	1468	90
Qin dynasty	China	Xianyang	221 BC	206 BC	15	First dynasty of the imperial period.	Qin Shi Huang
Qing dynasty	China	Shenyang, Beijing	1644	1912	268	Last dynasty of the imperial period.	Hong Taiji	Puyi
Ramnad Sethupathis	India	Ramanathapuram	1590	1979	389
Rashidun Caliphate	Saudi Arabia	Medina, Kufa	632	661	29	Predecessor of the Umayyad Caliphate, See also Islamic Empire.	Abu Bakr	Hassan
Rashtrakuta dynasty	India	Manyakheta	753	982	229
Roman Empire	Italy	Rome, Milan, Ravenna	27 BC	395	422	Together with the Roman Kingdom, the Roman Republic, direct Roman states lasted from 753 BC until 1453 AD, 1229 years. Formed from the Roman Republic as a consequence of the dictatorship and political assassination of Julius Caesar. The Empire was divided into the Western Roman Empire and the Eastern Roman/Byzantine Empire in 395 AD, although the latter is usually considered to have become a sort of distinct civilization. However, given that this half of the Empire fell only in 1453 AD, this extends the whole year count to 2206 years.	Octavianus Augustus	Theodosius I (undivided) Romulus Augustus (Western)
Rouran Khaganate	Inner China	Not specified	330	555	225
Rozwi Empire	Southern Africa	Danangombe	1660	1866	206
Rustamid dynasty	Algeria	Tahert	777	909			ʿAbdu r-Rahman ibn Bahram ibn Rūstam	Yaqzan ibn Muhammad Abil-Yaqzan
Russian Empire (Romanov)	Russia	Saint Petersburg	1721	1917	196	Successor state of the Tsardom of Russia.	Peter The Great	Nicolas II
Saadi dynasty	Morocco	Marrakech	1554	1659	105	Sharifian Empire of Morocco who destroyed the Songhai Empire.	Abu Abdallah al-Qaim	Ahmad al-Abbas
Safavid dynasty	Iran	Tabriz, Qazvin, Esfahan	1501	1736	235		Ismail I	Abbas III
Saffarid dynasty	Iran	Zaranj	867	1002	135
Sassanid dynasty	Iran	Ctesiphon	224	651	427	Fourth Iranian Empire.
Satavahana dynasty	India	Amaravathi village, Guntur district Dharanikota	230 BC	220	450	An Andhra dynasty which preceded the Vengi dynasty of Andhra.
Samanid Empire	Iran	Balkh, Bukhara	819	999	180
Saudeleur dynasty	Micronesia	Nan Madol	1100	1628	528	A semi-mythic foreign dynasty ruling from the Pohnpei Island of modern Micronesia.
Duchy of Savoy	Savoy	Chambéry then Turin	1416	1713	297	Theorically member state of Holy Roman Empire then vassal of France. Ruled a territory from Romandy to Nice.	Amadeus VIII, Duke of Savoy	Charles Albert of Sardinia
Seleucid Empire	Iran,  Iraq,  Syria	Seleucia, Antioch	312 BC	63 BC	249	See also Diadochi.	Seleucus I Nicator	Philip II Philoromaeus
Serbian Empire	Serbia,  Montenegro Balkans	Skopje, Prizren	1346	1371	25	Founded by Dušan the Mighty, fell into feudal disarray after his death.	Stefan Dusan	Stefan Uros V
Shu Han	China	Chengdu	221	263	42	See also Three Kingdoms.	Liu Bei	Liu Shan
Siam Empire	Thailand	Bangkok	1782	1932	150		Rama I	Rama VII
Sultanate of Siak Sri Indrapura	Indonesia	Buantan, Mempura, Senapelan Pekanbaru, Siak Sri Indrapura	1722	1945	223
Sikh Empire	Punjab region	Lahore	1733	1849	116	Preceded the Punjab Province of British India in the Indian subcontinent.	Ranjit Singh	Duleep Singh
Singhasari	Java	Singosari	1222	1292	70	Launched the Pamalayu Expedition which ended Malay control in the Straits of Malacca.	Ken Arok	Kertanegara
Sokoto Caliphate	West Africa	Sokoto (1804–1850), (1851–1902), Gudu (1804), Birnin Konni (1850, 1903)	1804	1903	99
Song dynasty	China	Bianjing (960–1127), Lin'an (1127–1279)	960	1279	319	Founded by Zhao Kuangyin.	Emperor Taizu of Song
Songhai Empire	West Africa	Gao	1340	1591	251	Former vassal of the Mali Empire which became one of the largest African empires in history.
Spanish Empire	Spain	Madrid	1479	1975	496	Was founded with Columbus’s funding, by the Catholic monarchs of Castille and Aragon, to his first voyage (that would land in America).	Ferdinand II of Aragon & Isabella I	Francisco Franco
Srivijaya Empire	Indonesian Archipelago	Palembang, Mataram	683	1293	610	It was a powerful ancient thalassocratic Malay empire based on the island of Sumatra, Indonesia, then based on Mataram (Medang Kingdom) under Sailendra's dynasty.
Sui dynasty	China	Chang'an	581	618	37			Emperor Yang of Sui
Wadiyar dynasty (Kingdom of Mysore)	Mysuru, Karnataka	Yaduraya Wodeyar	1399	1950	551
Shunga Empire	India	Pataliputra, Vidisa	185 BC	73 BC	112	Magadha dynasty that controlled North-central and Eastern India.
Swedish Empire	Sweden	Stockholm	1611	1721	110	See also Swedish overseas colonies.	Gustavus Adolphus of Sweden	Frederick I of Sweden
Tahirid dynasty	Persia	Nishapur	821	873	52
Tang dynasty	China	Chang'an (618–904), Luoyang (904–907)	618	907	289	Founded By Li Yuan (aka. Emperor Gaozu of Tang).
Thanjavur Nayak dynasty	South India	Thanjavur	1532	1673	141	Founded by Sevappa Nayak.
Tây Sơn dynasty	Vietnam	Phú Xuân	1778	1802	24		Nguyễn Nhạc	Nguyễn Quang Toản
Sultanate of Ternate	Indonesia	Ternate	1258	1914	657
Empire of Thessalonica	Epirus, Kingdom of Thessalonica	Thessaloniki	1224	1246	22	Evolved from the Despotate of Epirus.
Third Reich	Germany	Berlin, Hamburg	1933	1945	12	Nazi Germany signed a treaty (Tripartite Pact) with the Japanese and Italian Empire. Only lasted at its height from winter 1941-42 when the Soviet Union started counterattacks.	Adolf Hitler	Karl Donitz (Signed surrender terms on May 7, 1945)[7]
Tibetan Empire	Tibet	Lhasa	755	842	87	Expansion of Tibet started ~626. The death of the last leader lead to a civil war which destroyed the empire.[8]	Trisong Dretsen	Tsenpo Langadarma
Tondo dynasty	Philippines	Tondo	900	1587	687
Sultanate of Tidore	Indonesia	Tidore	1274	1967	693
Timurid Empire	Uzbekistan, Persia and Central Asia	Samarkand, Herat	1370	1526	156	Persianized form of the Mongolian word kürügän, Turko-Mongol Empire.	Timur	Badi' al-Zaman Mirza
Tlemcen	Algeria	Tlemcen	1235	1556	321	the Zayyanids is a dynasty that ruled modern day north western Algeria, althought for much of their history they were either a vassal of the Hafsids or the Marinids	Yaghmurasen Ibn Zyan	Al Hassan ibn Abdallah
Empire of Trebizond	Pontus	Trebizond	1204	1461	257	Successor state of the Byzantine Empire and a client state of the Kingdom of Georgia.	Alexios I of Trebizond	David of Trebizond
Toltec Empire	Mesoamerica	Tollan-Xicocotitlan	496	1122	626		Ce Técpatl Mixcoatl or Huémac (Unsure/potentially mythical)	Topiltzin or Huemac (Accounts differ)
Toungoo dynasty	Toungoo	Myanmar	1510	1752	242	The largest empire ever formed in South East Asia’s history.
Toucouleur Empire	West Africa	Ségou	1848	1893	45
Tu'i Tonga Empire	Tonga, Pacific Ocean	Mu'a	950	1865	915	See History of Tonga.
Turgesh Khaganate	Turkistan	Balasagun	699	766	67	Founded as a successor of West Turkish empire.
Umayyad Caliphate	Syria	Damascus, Córdoba (capital-in-exile)	661	750	89	Successor of the Rashidun Caliphate, See also Caliphate.	Muawiya I	Marwan II
Uyunid Emirate	Arabian	Al-Hasa, Qatif	1076	1253	177	The Uyunids were a Sunni Arab dynasty that ruled Bahrain for 163 years, from the 11th to the 13th centuries.
Uyghur Khaganate	Central Asia	Ordubaliq	742	848	106	742–848 Founded as a successor of Göktürk Khaganate, 848–1036 Gansu state, 856–1209 Turfan state.
Vandal Kingdom	Algeria,  Tunisia	Hippo Regius, Carthage	435	534	99	The Vandal Kingdom was established by the Germanic Vandal people, it ruled Africa (Roman province), Sicily, Corsica, Sardinia and other Mediterranean islands.	Gaiseric	Gelimer
Vijayanagara Empire	Karnataka, India	Vijayanagara	1336	1646	310	A Kannada kingdown, where Gold use to be traded in streets; richest kingdom in the world.	Harihara I	Sriranga III
Republic of Venice	Italy	Venice	697	1797	1100	Major great power during the Middle Ages and the Early modern period.	Paolo Lucio Anafesto	Ludovico Manin
Wari Empire	Peru,  Bolivia	Huari/Tiwanaku	500	1100	600	It is a matter of conflict as to whether it was a real organized state that could be called an empire. If so, it would be considered the first empire in the Americas.
Wassoulou Empire	West Africa	Bissandugu	1878	1895	17	Also known as the Mandinka Empire.
Wattasids	Morocco	Fez	1472	1554	82	The Wattasid dynasty was a ruling dynasty of Morocco. Like the Marinid dynasty, its rulers were of Zenata Berber descent.[2] The two families were related.	Abu Abd Allah al-Sheikh Muhammad ibn Yahya	Ali Abu Hassun
Western Chalukya Empire	India	Manyakheta, Basavakalyan	973	1189	216
Western Roman Empire	Italy	Mediolanum, Ravenna	395	476	81	The western half of the Roman Empire.
Eastern Wu	China	Wuchang, Jianye	229	280	51	See also Three Kingdoms.	Sun Quan	Sun Hao
Western Xia dynasty	China	Xingqing	1038	1227	189	Also called the Tangut dynasty.
Xin dynasty	China	Chang'an	9	23	14	Temporary usurper state of the Han Dynasty. Had only one emperor.	Wang Mang	Wang Mang
Yuan dynasty	China,  Mongolia	Dadu	1271	1368	97	Division of the Mongol Empire. The Yuan emperors had nominal supremacy over western khanates.	Kublai Khan	Toghon Temür
Zand dynasty	Iran	Shiraz	1750	1794	44		Karim Khan Zand	Lotf Ali Khan Zand
Zhou dynasty	China	Fenghao, Wangcheng, Chengzhou	1046 BC	256 BC	790	Zenith of bronze age in China.
Zhou dynasty (690–705)	China	Luoyang (Shendu)	690	705	15	Temporary usurper state of the Tang Dynasty ruled by the only officially recognized empress regnant in Chinese history, Wu Zetian.	Wu Zetian	Wu Zetian
Zirids	Algeria,  Tunisia	Achir, Kairouan, Mahdia	972	1148	176	the Zirid dynasty was a Sanhaja Berber dynasty who ruled Ifriqiya, initially starting as a vassal of the fatimids, but gradually gaining more autonomy until becoming fully independent in 1048.	Buluggin ibn Ziri	Abu'l-Hasan al-Hasan ibn Ali
Zulu Empire	South Africa	KwaBulawayo, Ulundi	1818	1897	79		Shaka	Dinuzulu
Sumer	Iraq	Not specified	4500 BC	1900 BC	2600	First civilisation and predecessor to the Akkadian Empire.	Enmebaragesi	Damiq-ilishu

Possible and informal empires[]

These governments, confederations and other entities have sometimes been informally referred to as "empires". Some did not fit the modern definition of empire (e.g. the Delian League), some were self-proclaimed by their first and often last ruler, others were short-lived attempts to turn an existing government into an empire, and there are also instances of the word "empire" being used to refer to unofficial spheres of influence which do not consider themselves empires.

"Empire"	Origin	Capital	From	To	Duration	Note
American Empire	United States	Washington, D.C.	1776	Present	245	The concept of an American Empire was first popularized during the presidency of James K. Polk who led the United States into the Mexican–American War of 1846. Since the Cold War the concept has been revived to refer to the United States' sphere of influence by its critics.
Athenian Empire (Delian League)	Ancient Greece	Delos island	478 BC	404 BC	74	Also known as the Delian League. It was an association of Greek city-states.
Second Athenian League	Ancient Greece	Athens	378 BC	355 BC	23
Central African Empire	Central African Republic	Bangui	1976	1979	3	President Jean-Bédel Bokassa declared himself Emperor Bokassa I in 1976, along him proclaiming the empire as a constitutional monarchy.
United Arab Emirates	Emirates of the United Arab Emirates	Abu Dhabi	1971	Present	48
Empire of China	China	Beijing	1915	1916	1	It was a short-lived attempt by Yuan Shikai to reinstate the recently collapsed imperial monarchy.
First Empire of Haiti	Haiti	Port-au-Prince	1804	1806	2	Jean-Jacques Dessalines declared himself Emperor Jacques I, starting the monarchy.
Second Empire of Haiti	Haiti	Port-au-Prince	1849	1859	10	Faustin Soulouque declared himself Emperor Faustin I, reinstating the monarchy.
European Union (EU)	Various member nations	No capital as it is a political, economic, and military alliance between the member nations. If there were a capital it would be Brussels or Strasbourg.	1993	Present	28	The EU is a political, economic, and military alliance which adheres to certain centralized law-sets and has its own central government positions. While the EU isn't considered a single nation, it still has power for political and economic sway (amassing a combined GDP of $18.292 trillion in 2019), which it uses such as for bailing out member states in situations of bankruptcy and standing as a military unit aligned against what it considers to be threats. The EU may be seen as a sphere of influence such as that of the United States, rather than a unit that directly controls territories.
Grand Duchy of Lithuania	Lithuania	Vilnius	1200	1569	369	It was the largest state in Europe in the 15th century.
Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth	Poland,  Lithuania	Kraków	1569	1795	226	It was formed by the Union of Lublin in 1569, between the Kingdom of Poland and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. It was one of the largest and one of the most populous countries of 16th and 17th-century Europe, with some 390,000 square miles (1,000,000 km2) and a multi-ethnic population of 11 million at its peak in the early 17th century.[9][10][11][12][13][14]
Roman Republic	Italy	Rome	509 BC	27 BC	482	Predecessor of the Roman Empire. Although not a monarchy, which was the norm at the time, it controlled large amounts of territory along the Mediterranean Sea.
Kingdom of Romania	Romania	Bucharest	1920	1944	24	Following the post–World War I treaties that ratified its borders (the last one being the 1920 Treaty of Trianon), the newly-enlarged Romanian monarchy was rated by the Comintern as a multi-national imperial state that subjugated ethnic minorities.[15][16] Indeed, according to the 1930 Romanian census, just over 28% of Romania's inhabitants were not ethnic Romanians. Non-Romanians formed the majority in 14 out of Romania's 71 counties. The issue of "Romanian imperialism" (as Romanian leading politician Iuliu Maniu put it) was further exacerbated by the 1941 creation of the Romanian Transnistria Governorate from parts of the Ukrainian SSR, under the rule of "Conducător" Ion Antonescu.[17] These new borders lasted until 1944. According to the 1941 Romanian census, 21 out of the now 73 Romanian counties were inhabited by a non-Romanian ethnic majority, including all of the 13 Transnistrian counties. Only two of these 21 new counties had a Romanian majority.
Soviet Empire	Soviet Union	Moscow	1922	1991	69	A political term for the sphere of influence of the Soviet Union used by its critics. In 8 March 1983, Ronald Reagan declared the Soviet Union to be an "Evil Empire"

See also[]

• List of former sovereign states
• Fictional empires
• List of former monarchies
• List of medieval great powers
• List of largest empires
• Middle Eastern empires
• Political history of the world

References[]

External links[]

• Pella, John & Erik Ringmar, History of International Relations Open Textbook Project, Cambridge: Open Book, forthcoming.