The British Empire was the largest empire in human history. At its 1920s peak, roughly what fraction of the world's land area did it cover?
The British Empire at its post-WWI peak covered roughly 35.5 million km² — about a quarter of the world's land area and a quarter of its population. The Mongol Empire's 1279 peak was about 24 million km² and is still the largest *contiguous* land empire ever, but the British total was larger because it was scattered across the oceans. The Roman Empire at Trajan's peak was about 5 million km² — about a seventh the size of the British peak.
Read the full facts →The British Empire was the largest empire in world history, ruling at its 1920s peak approximately one-quarter of the global population and one-quarter of the world's land area. Built progressively over four centuries from the late-Tudor maritime ventures to the post-WWII decolonization, it produced the modern English-speaking world, the global political dominance of the common-law tradition, and the foundational institutions of modern international finance and trade.
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