many empires have risen and fallen through the ages of History welcome to watchmojo.com and today we're counting down our picks for the top 10 world Empires number 10 the Mayan empire surviving from roughly 2,000 BC to the 1500s ad the Mayans are arguably one of the world's longest running Empires extending through Mexico Guatemala Honduras El Salvador and Biz this Mesoamerican civilization was famous for its art and architecture advances in writing and Mathematics the calendar and of course their end of the world prophecies so what was it that finally caused the downfall of this mysterious Empire
war with Spanish conquistadors number nine the Ching Dynasty in one last Imperial Harrah before China became a republic the Ching Dynasty ruled a huge area that stretched from China into Russia governed by the foreign Manu tribe China during this period was blessed with fortune and peace in part because of its impressive military strength however struggles against Western influence the Opium Wars and finally the shenhai revolution saw the Manus overthrown and the Ching Dynasty ended number eight the Byzantine empire in 395 ad the Roman Empire split while the Western half officially fell into 476 ad the
eastern half kept on trucking not only that the primarily greek-speaking Byzantine Empire thrived becoming one of Europe's strongest forces economically culturally and militarily lasting over 1,000 years it was also one of History's Greatest Christian States again and again its borders were defended against Muslim Invaders until in 1453 the capital of Constantinople fell number s the aid Empire some remember them from the film 300 but history tells a different tale better known as the Persian Empire this civilization was founded in the 6th Century BC by Cyrus the Great aside from instituting a centralized administrative structure the
Persians were Fierce and feared Warriors extending through Western and Central Asia the AIDS became the largest Empire to that point with almost half the world's population living under their Banner number six the Egyptian Empire with pharaohs ruling as both Kings and gods the Egyptian Empire became one of the world's most famous lasting from the 16th to the 11th century BC the New Kingdom of Egypt was the height of this civilization's power but its significance didn't end there mummies pyramids hieroglyphics and papirus are some of the famous heirlooms we've inherited from this Rich culture while irrigation
ship chps and even beer are also lasting gifts number five the Ottoman Empire though it lasted from 1299 until after World War I the Ottoman Empire was at its height during the 16th century under sulon the Magnificent reaching from Southeast Europe to Western Asia and North Africa this strong Islamic State controlled trade through the region and while its multiculturalism is celebrated ethnic and religious tensions eventually tore the Turkish Empire apart from the inside while rival Nations dismantled it from the outside number four the Macedonian Empire Alexander the Great is a famous conqueror for a reason
while he lived only until age 33 he amassed one of the world's largest Empires comprising the Persian Empire Egypt and much more from the tiny state of mdon he took the throne at age 20 and continued overpowering enemies until he died under defeated however his premature death left his heirs fighting and the Empire he built soon collapsed number three the Mongol Empire this was the world's largest contiguous Empire thanks to one of history's most feared men genas Khan took power in 1206 and under his rule the Mongol and turkic tribes merged within a century his
Empire's brutal tactics won them upwards of 12 million square miles of land Khan's heirs continued this work after his death however the Empire's sheer size worked against them without the unity of their people it disbanded number two the British Empire called the Empire on which the Sun never sets this was the world's largest Empire at its peak and a primary Global power controlling about 1/5th of the global population after building influence in the 16th century it peaked in 1922 however two world wars depleted its resources and the British Empire soon dissolved even so its Legacy
endures as English is now the world's most widely spoken language number one the Roman Empire known for prosperity and peace this European civilization impacted art architecture language religion politics and more though it was officially founded by Augustus in the 1st Century BC Perpetual dictator Julius Caesar greatly aided the transition from Republic to Empire but its staggering size eventually made the Empire weak against enemies and in 476 ad the Western half collapsed while the eastern half lasted until the fall of Constantinople in 1453 do you agree with our list where do you think the American Empire
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