The 20 Most Powerful Empires To Exist

4. The French Colonial Empire

One of the most expansive empires in the world was the French Empire, which extended over 12 million square kilometers. The French Empire also lasted extremely long from the 17^th century until the late 1960’s, and they fought to keep their colonies. However, they lost wars in Vietnam in 1955, and Algeria in 1962, which prompted the rest of their decolonization soon after. The Empire was keeping up with Spain, Portugal, and Britain in the height of their expansion to gain world power, but due to wars throughout the 18^th and 19^th century, much of what they conquered was lost over time. After 1850 they concentrated colonizing Africa until European authority was rightly challenged and defused.