⚔️Best Conquerors in History

Genghis Khan▲ Rising

Genghis Khan united the Mongol tribes and launched campaigns that created the largest contiguous empire in history. His disciplined cavalry and merit-based command crushed larger foes across Asia and Europe. The resulting Pax Mongolica reshaped trade and administration for centuries.

Peak Territory: 24 M km²Reign Period: 1206-1227Major Victories: 20Legacy Impact: 9/10Empire Duration: 150 years

added by IJRin 11 rankingsGenghis Khan

Napoleon Bonaparte▲ Rising

Napoleon rose from artillery officer to emperor and briefly dominated Europe through rapid maneuver warfare. His Grande Armée won decisive victories at Austerlitz and Jena using corps system and artillery concentration. The Napoleonic Code and metric system still shape modern governance and measurement.

Peak Territory: 2.1 M km²Reign Period: 1799-1815Major Victories: 40Legacy Impact: 8/10Empire Duration: 16 years

added by IJRin 10 rankingsNapoleon Bonaparte

Alexander the Great▲ Rising

Alexander inherited a Macedonian army and in thirteen years conquered the Persian Empire and lands from Greece to India. His phalanx and siege tactics repeatedly defeated numerically superior forces. He founded dozens of cities that spread Greek culture for centuries.

Peak Territory: 5.2 M km²Reign Period: 336-323 BCMajor Victories: 15Legacy Impact: 9/10Empire Duration: 13 years

added by IJRin 10 rankingsAlexander the Great

Qin Shi Huang▲ Rising

Qin Shi Huang ended the Warring States period by conquering all rival Chinese kingdoms with iron discipline and standardized weapons. His centralized bureaucracy, uniform script, and Great Wall segments created the template for imperial China. The First Emperor’s tomb and legalist system left a lasting institutional legacy.

Peak Territory: 3.4 M km²Reign Period: 221-210 BCMajor Victories: 10Legacy Impact: 8/10Empire Duration: 15 years

added by IJRin 6 rankingsQin Shi Huang

Julius Caesar▲ Rising

Caesar conquered Gaul in eight years, doubling Roman territory and building a veteran army loyal to him alone. His engineering feats, including Rhine bridges and siege works at Alesia, demonstrated unmatched logistical skill. The civil war victory ended the Republic and set the template for imperial rule.

Peak Territory: 1.8 M km²Reign Period: 49-44 BCMajor Victories: 12Legacy Impact: 8/10Empire Duration: 500 years

added by IJRin 9 rankingsJulius Caesar

Suleiman the Magnificent▲ Rising

Suleiman expanded the Ottoman Empire to its greatest extent, conquering Hungary, Rhodes, and parts of North Africa. His janissary corps and artillery train dominated European battlefields for decades. Legal and architectural reforms earned him the title Lawgiver.

Peak Territory: 2.2 M km²Reign Period: 1520-1566Major Victories: 13Legacy Impact: 8/10Empire Duration: 46 years

added by IJRin 4 rankingsSuleiman the Magnificent

Cyrus the Great

Cyrus founded the Achaemenid Empire by defeating Media, Lydia, and Babylon in rapid succession. His policy of tolerating local religions and customs allowed stable rule over diverse populations. The resulting administrative model influenced later Persian and Hellenistic states.

Peak Territory: 5.5 M km²Reign Period: 559-530 BCMajor Victories: 8Legacy Impact: 8/10Empire Duration: 220 years

added by IJRin 5 rankingsCyrus the Great

Tamerlane

Tamerlane rebuilt a vast Central Asian empire through relentless campaigns that echoed Genghis Khan’s reach. He crushed Delhi, Baghdad, and Damascus with superior siege engineering and cavalry mobility. His Timurid Renaissance later influenced art and architecture across the region.

Peak Territory: 4.4 M km²Reign Period: 1370-1405Major Victories: 18Legacy Impact: 7/10Empire Duration: 35 years

added by IJRin 3 rankingsTamerlane

Hernán Cortés

Cortés landed in Mexico with a few hundred men and toppled the Aztec Empire through alliances, disease, and superior steel and horses. His capture of Tenochtitlán demonstrated audacious siege tactics and political maneuvering. Spanish rule over Mesoamerica followed directly from his campaign.

Peak Territory: 2 M km²Reign Period: 1519-1521Major Victories: 4Legacy Impact: 6/10Empire Duration: 300 years

added by IJRin 2 rankingsHernán Cortés

Attila the Hun

Attila welded Hunnic tribes into a mobile striking force that extracted tribute from both Eastern and Western Roman Empires. His raids reached Gaul and Italy before his sudden death halted further expansion. The terror he inspired reshaped Roman diplomacy and frontier defenses.

Peak Territory: 4 M km²Reign Period: 434-453Major Victories: 9Legacy Impact: 6/10Empire Duration: 19 years

added by IJRin 4 rankingsAttila the Hun

Charlemagne

Charlemagne conquered Saxony, Lombardy, and Bavaria, uniting most of Western Europe under Frankish rule. His mobile field armies and siege expertise overcame fortified strongholds across diverse terrain. The Carolingian Renaissance and imperial coronation revived the idea of a Christian Roman Empire.

Peak Territory: 1.2 M km²Reign Period: 768-814Major Victories: 14Legacy Impact: 7/10Empire Duration: 46 years

added by IJRin 6 rankingsCharlemagne

Ramses II

Ramses II campaigned deep into Canaan and Syria, fighting the Hittites at Kadesh in the largest chariot battle recorded. Monumental building programs and peace treaties secured Egyptian influence for decades. His long reign stabilized the New Kingdom at its height.

Peak Territory: 0.8 M km²Reign Period: 1279-1213 BCMajor Victories: 5Legacy Impact: 6/10Empire Duration: 66 years

added by IJRin 2 rankings

Mehmed II▲ Rising

Mehmed II captured Constantinople in 1453 using massive bombards and disciplined janissary infantry, ending the Byzantine Empire. He then consolidated Ottoman control over Anatolia and the Balkans. The conquest opened centuries of Ottoman dominance in the eastern Mediterranean.

Peak Territory: 2.2 M km²Reign Period: 1444-1446, 1451-1481Major Victories: 7Legacy Impact: 7/10Empire Duration: 200 years

added by IJRin 2 rankingsMehmed II

Peter the Great▲ Rising

Peter modernized the Russian army and navy, defeating Sweden at Poltava and securing Baltic access. His conquests and reforms transformed Russia into a European great power. The new capital St. Petersburg symbolized the westward reorientation of the empire.

Peak Territory: 17 M km²Reign Period: 1682-1725Major Victories: 8Legacy Impact: 7/10Empire Duration: 200 years

added by IJRin 4 rankingsPeter the Great

Francisco Pizarro

Pizarro captured the Inca emperor Atahualpa and seized Cuzco with a tiny force, exploiting civil war and superior weapons. His rapid conquest brought the Andes under Spanish control. The resulting silver flow reshaped the global economy for centuries.

Peak Territory: 2.5 M km²Reign Period: 1532-1533Major Victories: 3Legacy Impact: 5/10Empire Duration: 300 years

added by IJRFrancisco Pizarro

Kublai Khan▲ Rising

Kublai completed the Mongol conquest of China and founded the Yuan dynasty, ruling the largest empire of his era. He adapted Chinese bureaucracy while maintaining Mongol military supremacy. His fleets and postal network linked East Asia with Central Asia and beyond.

Peak Territory: 24 M km²Reign Period: 1260-1294Major Victories: 12Legacy Impact: 7/10Empire Duration: 97 years

added by IJRin 4 rankingsKublai Khan

Ivan the Terrible▼ Falling

Ivan IV conquered the khanates of Kazan and Astrakhan, opening the Volga trade route and expanding Russia eastward. His oprichnina terror apparatus and centralized autocracy created the model for Russian state power. The conquests laid the foundation for later Siberian expansion.

Peak Territory: 5.5 M km²Reign Period: 1547-1584Major Victories: 5Legacy Impact: 6/10Empire Duration: 200 years

added by IJRin 3 rankingsIvan the Terrible

Hannibal Barca

Hannibal crossed the Alps with elephants and crushed Roman legions at Cannae using double-envelopment tactics. His fifteen-year Italian campaign forced Rome to adopt Fabian strategy and ultimately innovate new command structures. Though ultimately defeated, he changed Roman military doctrine forever.

Peak Territory: 0.1 M km²Reign Period: 221-183 BCMajor Victories: 7Legacy Impact: 7/10Empire Duration: 20 years

added by IJRin 4 rankings

Tokugawa Ieyasu

Ieyasu won the Battle of Sekigahara and established the Tokugawa shogunate that ruled Japan for over 250 years. His castle networks and sankin-kotai hostage system prevented daimyo rebellion. The resulting peace allowed economic and cultural growth unmatched in prior eras.

Peak Territory: 0.4 M km²Reign Period: 1603-1605Major Victories: 5Legacy Impact: 7/10Empire Duration: 268 years

added by IJRin 2 rankingsTokugawa Ieyasu

Ashoka▼ Falling

Ashoka expanded the Maurya Empire across most of the Indian subcontinent through brutal conquests, most famously the Kalinga war. Horrified by the carnage, he converted to Buddhism and promoted non-violence while maintaining strong central rule. His edicts spread ethical governance across South Asia.

Peak Territory: 5 M km²Reign Period: 268-232 BCMajor Victories: 4Legacy Impact: 7/10Empire Duration: 50 years

added by IJRin 5 rankingsAshoka

William the Conqueror

William crossed the Channel in 1066 and defeated Harold at Hastings, seizing the English throne. His castle-building program and feudal reorganization secured Norman control over England. The Domesday Book recorded the new order with unprecedented administrative precision.

Peak Territory: 0.3 M km²Reign Period: 1066-1087Major Victories: 3Legacy Impact: 7/10Empire Duration: 88 years

added by IJRin 4 rankingsWilliam the Conqueror

Chandragupta Maurya

Chandragupta overthrew the Nanda dynasty and defeated Seleucid forces to create India’s first pan-subcontinental empire. His advisor Kautilya helped build a centralized administration and standing army. The Maurya state controlled trade routes and resources across the Ganges plain and beyond.

Peak Territory: 5 M km²Reign Period: 321-297 BCMajor Victories: 6Legacy Impact: 7/10Empire Duration: 137 years

added by IJRin 2 rankingsChandragupta Maurya

Sargon of Akkad▼ Falling

Sargon rose from cupbearer to conquer Sumerian city-states and create the world’s first known empire. His standing army and provincial governors allowed sustained control over Mesopotamia. The Akkadian language and imperial model influenced later Near Eastern rulers for centuries.

Peak Territory: 0.8 M km²Reign Period: 2334-2279 BCMajor Victories: 10Legacy Impact: 6/10Empire Duration: 180 years

added by IJRSargon of Akkad

Timur▼ Falling

Timur (Tamerlane) conquered Persia, Central Asia, and northern India, creating a vast but short-lived empire through terror and engineering. His victories at Delhi and Baghdad demonstrated mastery of combined siege and cavalry operations. The Timurid cultural flowering later influenced Mughal India and Safavid Iran.

Peak Territory: 4.4 M km²Reign Period: 1370-1405Major Victories: 18Legacy Impact: 7/10Empire Duration: 35 years

added by IJRin 2 rankingsTimur

Saladin▼ Falling

Saladin united Egypt and Syria under the Ayyubid banner and recaptured Jerusalem from the Crusaders at Hattin. His mobile cavalry and siege operations repeatedly outmaneuvered larger European coalitions. The chivalric reputation he earned shaped later Muslim and European views of leadership.

Peak Territory: 1.5 M km²Reign Period: 1174-1193Major Victories: 6Legacy Impact: 7/10Empire Duration: 57 years

added by IJRin 4 rankingsSaladin