Top 10 European
Empires
10.
The Celtic Empire
The Celts were an ethnolinguistic group of tribal societies in the Iron Age and Medieval
Europe that spoke Celtic languages while having similar culture throughout western Europe.
Though predominant in the British Isles (United Kingdom and Ireland), their reach also extended
over what is now modern-day Portugal, Spain, France, Holland, Belgium, Germany and Italy.
The Celts first appeared in Central Europe around 1,200 B.C.; from there they moved westward.
Their expansion was aided by their weaponry and brutal battle techniques.
Classical writers such as Strabo and Dionysius described them as “wild beasts.”
In Book XIV of Roman Antiquities, Dionysius described their fighting as, “… being
in large measure that of wild beasts and frenzied, was an erratic procedure, quite lacking in
military science.
Thus, at one moment they would raise their swords aloft and smite after the manner of
wild boars, throwing the whole weight of their bodies into the blow like hewers of wood or
men digging with mattocks, and again they would deliver crosswise blows aimed at no
target, as if they intended to cut to pieces the entire bodies of their adversaries, protective
armour and all.”
The Celts also had a strong art culture and later, despite their hedonistic appearance,
adapted Christianity to replace their Paganism.
9.
The Viking Empire
The Vikings were Norse seafarers who, from the late 8th to middle 11th centuries, would
travel away from their homeland to trade, explore and sometimes raid areas of Europe,
Asia and the North Atlantic islands.
Although the Vikings did not conquer mainland Europe like the Celts did, they did travel
to the Middle East and Russia and even traded with China.
There is strong evidence that they even reached North America and had settlements in the modern
Canadian provinces of Newfoundland and Labrador.
Along with their ability to expand, the Vikings were also known for their brutish warfare
and violence as motivated by their Norse religion.
One war tactic even consisted of deploying troops who had ingested hallucinogenic mushrooms
or massive amounts of alcohol.
8.
The Spanish Empire
The Spanish Empire began during the Age of Exploration in 1496 and would reach its peak
as the foremost global power under the House of Habsburg.
In the 16th century, Spain was exploring and colonizing half of North and South America,
parts of Africa and even some islands in the Pacific Ocean.
The Spaniards were an uncontested naval power until King Phillip II sent his Spanish Armada
to invade England in 1588; its crushing defeat by the English paved the way for English expansion
and colonialism.
7.
The Portuguese Empire
Although it started as a small and relatively insignificant European country, Portugal would
go on to have one of the largest and richest empires; its colonies including Brazil, coastal
regions of Africa and trading posts in Asia.
Known more as traders than war farers, the trade route from Portugal to India, founded
by Vasco da Gama in 1498, introduced spices and other exotic new foods to Europe.
In 1580, Philip II of Spain inherited the Portuguese crown, thereby beginning a 60-year
union between Portugal between the two countries.
6.
The French Colonial Empire
For nearly 1,000 years, France has had a long-standing rivalry with England.
Naturally this rivalry extended to their colonies as well, especially during the American Revolution.
Though the French did establish colonies in the Caribbean, India and North America, after
the sale of Louisiana (though named Louisiana, the territory was actually comprised of 15
modern-day U.S. states) to the U.S. in 1803 and the conquest of Algier in 1830, they concentrated
primarily on their colonies in northwestern Africa, Madagascar, French Guiana and select
areas in southeastern Asia.
By World War II, the French colonial empire, including France, had a population of 110
million.
5.
The Byzantine Empire
The Byzantine Empire was the continuation of the eastern half of the Roman Empire and
lasted between 330 and 1453, with a gap from 1204 to 1261.
Its capital was Constantinople, or modern-day Istanbul, Turkey.
For most of its existence, this empire was the most powerful economic, cultural and military
force in Europe.
It eventually fell to the Ottoman Turks.
4.
The Russian Empire
The Russian Empire, which existed from 1721 until it was overthrown by the Bolsheviks
in 1917, stretched over three continents and was only surpassed in size by the British
and Mongol empires.
At its peak, it was comprised of present-day Russia, Mongolia, Alaska and other territories
around the Eurasian Peninsula.
The expansion of the Russian Empire also allowed for the spread of Eastern Orthodox Christianity.
In this article it is ranked over the French Empire because it was the Russians who thwarted
Napoleon’s plans to take over and control all of Europe.
3.
The Third Reich
This empire, although controversial and hated, was responsible for World War II and is still
fresh in our minds.
Known as Nazi Germany, or the Third Reich, and ruled by Adolph Hitler, it only lasted
from 1933 to 1945.
It was a fascist totalitarian state that controlled almost all aspects of life.
Particularly keen on promoting racism and especially anti-Semitism, Hitler and the Nazis
believed Aryans to be the master race.
Jews and others deemed not up to Hitler’s expectations and standards were persecuted
and/or murdered.
Nazi Germany occupied most of central Europe, with much of the rest being under the control
of their allied “puppet states.”
The Nazis eventually lost the war, and their empire was lost along with it.
2.
The Holy Roman Empire
The Holy Roman Empire lasted from the Middle Ages until its dissolution in 1806.
It was multi-ethnic and was comprised of the territories of Germany, Italy, Bohemia and
Burgundy.
The emperor was traditionally elected and then crowned by the Pope.
Throughout its early history, Catholicism was the main religion in its territories,
but with the Reformation, new Protestant churches, such as Lutheranism an Calvinism, were introduced.
After its defeat by Napoleon at the Battle of Austerlitz, it was dissolved.
1.
The British Empire
The British Empire was “the empire on which the sun never sets.”
It had colonies in North America, the Caribbean, Africa, the Middle East, southern Asia, Australia,
New Zealand and even Antarctica.
At its height, it covered more than 33,700,000 km2 (13,012,000 sq. mi), almost a quarter
of the Earth’s total land area.
The British had rivalries with the French, the Irish and the Dutch.
After World War II, Britain began a policy of decolonization, and the end of the Empire
as such came in 1997, when Hong Kong was returned
to China.