At its 1279 peak under Kublai Khan, the Mongol Empire was the largest of what specific type of empire in world history?
The 24-million-square-kilometre Mongol Empire of 1279 is the largest *contiguous* land empire in history — a single connected territory stretching from the Pacific coast of China to the Carpathian Mountains. The British Empire of c. 1920 was bigger in absolute terms (about 35 million square kilometres) but was discontinuous — Britain itself was the smallest part. The Roman Empire at its 117 AD peak was about 5 million square kilometres, less than a quarter of the Mongol total. The Mongol population was perhaps 100 million, not 500 million.
Read the full facts →The Mongol Empire was the largest contiguous land empire in history, founded by Genghis Khan in 1206 and reaching its greatest extent under his successors by 1279. It controlled, at peak, approximately 24 million square kilometres of central and eastern Eurasia and approximately 110 million people.
Related questions
- The Mongol Empire under Kublai Khan reached its greatest extent around 1279, stretching from the Pacific to the Black Sea. By territory, where does it rank in the all-time list of land empires?
- Roughly how large was the Mongol Empire at its 1279 peak — and what was its distinction in world history?
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