The 10 Greatest Empires In History

"The sun never sets on the British Empire.

History's greatest empires covered a fifth of the world, ruled hundreds of millions of people, and lasted anywhere from 100 years to over a millennium. Empire, which comes from the Latin "imperare" meaning "to command," is a collection of states or ethnic groups united under one ruler or oligarchy.
It is a term that has been used to describe recent US foreign policy. Wrote filmmaker Oliver Stone and historian Peter Kuznick in a recent USA Today op-ed : "Obama is about to enter his second term as heir of George W. Bush's imperial strategy unless his latest foreign policy appointments signal significant change."
Each empire seemed unstoppable for an age, but in the end they were all consigned to history.

`The Portuguese Empire reached 4 million square miles at its height in 1815.

The Abbasid Caliphate covered 4.29 million square miles at its height in 850.

The French Colonial Empire covered 5 million square miles at its peak in 1938.

Yuan Dynasty, the first dynasty to rule all of China, extended 5.4 million square miles at its peak in 1310.

Qing Dynasty, the last imperial dynasty of China, controlled 5.68 million square miles at its greatest point in 1790.

The Umayyad Caliphate grew to 5.79 million square miles at its height in the 7th century.

The Spanish Empire governed 13% of the world's land–7.5 million square miles–at its height in the mid-18th century.

The Russian Empire spanned 8.8 million square miles during its peak in 1866.

The Mongol Empire reached from Eastern Europe to the Sea of Japan, spanning 9.3 million square miles at its height in 1279.

The British Empire stretched over 13 million square miles across several continents—23 percent of the world's land—at its height in 1922, whence comes the phrase: "The sun never sets on the British Empire."