ConquestHeld by forceBosporus
Ottomans take Constantinople
- Control taken
- 1453
- Made official
- Never
Never formalized
Mehmed II ends the Byzantine Empire after a 53-day siege and makes the city his capital.
See it on the 1492 mapApproximate borders
The world in 1492
The year Columbus reaches the Caribbean. This snapshot also maps hundreds of Indigenous nations across the Americas and Australia, which is why it contains far more shapes than its neighbours.
Explore 1492 on the mapLargest in 1492
Areas calculated from the map outlines (≈). Share of Earth's land area including Antarctica.
| # | State or people | Area | Share of land |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Siberians | 8,392,939 km² (3,240,532 sq mi) | 5.6% |
| 2 | Chagatai Khanate | 8,367,725 km² (3,230,797 sq mi) | 5.6% |
| 3 | Bantu peoples | 8,242,186 km² (3,182,326 sq mi) | 5.5% |
| 4 | Australian aboriginal hunter-gatherers | 7,602,370 km² (2,935,292 sq mi) | 5.1% |
| 5 | Ming Empire | 4,206,543 km² (1,624,155 sq mi) | 2.8% |
| 6 | West African cereal farmers | 3,969,014 km² (1,532,445 sq mi) | 2.7% |
| 7 | Dënéndeh | 3,404,880 km² (1,314,632 sq mi) | 2.3% |
| 8 | Očhéthi Šakówiŋ | 2,792,816 km² (1,078,312 sq mi) | 1.9% |
| 9 | White Horde | 2,700,790 km² (1,042,781 sq mi) | 1.8% |
| 10 | Michif Piyii (Métis) | 2,658,942 km² (1,026,623 sq mi) | 1.8% |
| 11 | Inuit | 2,564,988 km² (990,347 sq mi) | 1.7% |
| 12 | Khoisan | 2,331,889 km² (900,347 sq mi) | 1.6% |
What changed since 1400
Comparing the two snapshots. Some differences reflect improved mapping rather than real events, especially before 1500.
Grew the most
- Chagatai Khanate2,172k km² → 8,368k km²
- Ottoman Empire389k km² → 1,086k km²
- Ayutthaya255k km² → 779k km²
- Poland-Lithuania906k km² → 1,180k km²
- Mamluke Sultanate1,241k km² → 1,464k km²
- Ethiopia348k km² → 501k km²
- Aragón130k km² → 245k km²
- Taino167k km² → 239k km²
Shrank the most
- Sultanate of Delhi2,933k km² → 685k km²
- Thule2,225k km² → 519k km²
- White Horde3,718k km² → 2,701k km²
- Mali1,570k km² → 623k km²
- Hafsid Caliphate685k km² → 226k km²
- West African cereal farmers4,395k km² → 3,969k km²
- Caribbean hunter-gatherers315k km² → 33k km²
- Sámi487k km² → 295k km²
Appeared
- Dënéndeh3,405k km²
- Očhéthi Šakówiŋ2,793k km²
- Michif Piyii (Métis)2,659k km²
- Inuit2,565k km²
- Timurid Emirates2,159k km²
- Arabs2,067k km²
- Tekohá (Guarani)2,039k km²
- Grand Duchy of Moscow1,972k km²
Disappeared
- Northern Yuan6,400k km²
- Timurid Empire5,096k km²
- Eastern North American hunter-gatherers3,543k km²
- Amazon hunter-gatherers3,215k km²
- Savanna hunter-gatherers3,035k km²
- Kalmar Union2,821k km²
- Plain bison hunters2,620k km²
- Subarctic forest hunter-gatherers2,500k km²
Land that changed hands, 1400 – 1492
CessionMade officialAndalusia
Granada surrenders, completing the Reconquista
- Control taken
- 1492
- Made official
- 1491
Agreed 1 year before control changed hands · Treaty of Granada (signed November 1491)
The surrender terms were signed weeks before the handover. Castile and Aragon took the city on 2 January 1492.
See it on the 1492 map