World map in AD 1540 — territory by country

Frame AD 1540 — world borders from AD 1540 to AD 1546. 122 countries have territory in this frame, and the largest is Mongol khanate (≈ 5.08 million km²).

Countries with territory in this frame (122, largest first)

Rank	Country	Area
1	Mongol khanate	≈ 5.08 million km²
2	Spanish Empire	≈ 3.97 million km²
3	Ming dynasty	≈ 3.74 million km²
4	Ottoman Empire	≈ 3.20 million km²
5	Khanate of Sibir	≈ 2.82 million km²
6	Grand Principality of Moscow	≈ 2.43 million km²
7	Safavid dynasty	≈ 2.43 million km²
8	Kazakh Khanate	≈ 2.40 million km²
9	Tibet	≈ 1.55 million km²
10	Moghulistan	≈ 939 thousand km²
11	Sur Empire	≈ 865 thousand km²
12	Jagiellonian dynasty	≈ 751 thousand km²
13	Sweden	≈ 673 thousand km²
14	Spain	≈ 640 thousand km²
15	Funj Sultanate	≈ 630 thousand km²
16	Songhai Empire	≈ 629 thousand km²
17	Denmark–Norway	≈ 612 thousand km²
18	Adal Sultanate	≈ 488 thousand km²
19	Kingdom of France	≈ 485 thousand km²
20	Nogai Horde	≈ 439 thousand km²
21	Habsburg monarchy	≈ 427 thousand km²
22	Ayutthaya Kingdom	≈ 404 thousand km²
23	Shan States	≈ 388 thousand km²
24	Khanate of Bukhara	≈ 385 thousand km²
25	Wattasid dynasty	≈ 380 thousand km²
26	Lan Xang	≈ 375 thousand km²
27	Mali Empire	≈ 346 thousand km²
28	Mughal Empire	≈ 345 thousand km²
29	Vijayanagara Empire	≈ 342 thousand km²
30	Sengoku period	≈ 322 thousand km²
31	Holy Roman Empire	≈ 302 thousand km²
32	Khmer Empire	≈ 274 thousand km²
33	Joseon	≈ 235 thousand km²
34	Sultanate of Brunei (1368–1888)	≈ 231 thousand km²
35	Hafsid dynasty	≈ 222 thousand km²
36	Johor Sultanate	≈ 208 thousand km²
37	Kanem–Bornu Empire	≈ 201 thousand km²
38	Portuguese Empire	≈ 174 thousand km²
39	Kingdom of Portugal	≈ 173 thousand km²
40	Khanate of Kazan	≈ 173 thousand km²
41	Maya civilization	≈ 170 thousand km²
42	Kingdom of England	≈ 170 thousand km²
43	Astrakhan Khanate	≈ 163 thousand km²
44	Kashmir Sultanate	≈ 152 thousand km²
45	Bijapur Sultanate	≈ 151 thousand km²
46	Moghulistan	≈ 140 thousand km²
47	Crimean Khanate	≈ 137 thousand km²
48	Lê dynasty	≈ 135 thousand km²
49	Kingdom of Kongo	≈ 132 thousand km²
50	Ethiopian Empire	≈ 127 thousand km²
51	Khanate of Khiva	≈ 125 thousand km²
52	Zayyanid dynasty	≈ 125 thousand km²
53	Kingdom of Hungary	≈ 122 thousand km²
54	Livonian language	≈ 116 thousand km²
55	First Toungoo Empire	≈ 108 thousand km²
56	Sultanate of Maguindanao	≈ 106 thousand km²
57	Golconda Sultanate	≈ 104 thousand km²
58	Kingdom of Mrauk U	≈ 102 thousand km²
59	Eastern Hungarian Kingdom	≈ 90 thousand km²
60	Kingdom of Scotland	≈ 89 thousand km²
61	Moldavia	≈ 82 thousand km²
62	Berar Sultanate	≈ 79 thousand km²
63	Palembang Sultanate	≈ 76 thousand km²
64	Wallachia	≈ 74 thousand km²
65	Ahmadnagar Sultanate	≈ 73 thousand km²
66	Haudenosaunee	≈ 72 thousand km²
67	Mạc dynasty	≈ 68 thousand km²
68	Republic of Venice	≈ 64 thousand km²
69	Lanna Kingdom	≈ 53 thousand km²
70	Portuguese Ceylon	≈ 50 thousand km²
71	Madurai Nayak dynasty	≈ 48 thousand km²
72	Switzerland	≈ 46 thousand km²
73	Demak Sultanate	≈ 46 thousand km²
74	Aceh Sultanate	≈ 45 thousand km²
75	Sunda Kingdom	≈ 44 thousand km²
76	House of Bourbon	≈ 44 thousand km²
77	Margraviate of Brandenburg	≈ 42 thousand km²
78	Papal States	≈ 41 thousand km²
79	Sultanate of Banjar	≈ 39 thousand km²
80	Duchy of Prussia	≈ 39 thousand km²
81	Duchy of Bavaria	≈ 35 thousand km²
82	Electorate of Saxony	≈ 34 thousand km²
83	Portuguese Africa	≈ 33 thousand km²
84	Bidar Sultanate	≈ 32 thousand km²
85	County of Foix	≈ 30 thousand km²
86	Hanthawaddy kingdom	≈ 30 thousand km²
87	Blambangan Kingdom	≈ 28 thousand km²
88	Kingdom of Kartli	≈ 28 thousand km²
89	Qasim Khanate	≈ 25 thousand km²
90	Sultan of Perak	≈ 24 thousand km²
91	Kingdom of Kakheti	≈ 23 thousand km²
92	Malacca Sultanate	≈ 20 thousand km²
93	Prome kingdom	≈ 20 thousand km²
94	Duchy of Lorraine	≈ 17 thousand km²
95	Electorate of Trier	≈ 17 thousand km²
96	Thanjavur Nayak kingdom	≈ 15 thousand km²
97	Principality of Mingrelia	≈ 13 thousand km²
98	Kedah Sultanate	≈ 13 thousand km²
99	Republic of Genoa	≈ 13 thousand km²
100	Republic of Florence	≈ 12 thousand km²
101	Jaffna kingdom	≈ 12 thousand km²
102	Kingdom of Imereti	≈ 11 thousand km²
103	Banten Sultanate	≈ 9,894 km²
104	Sultanate of Cirebon	≈ 7,967 km²
105	Champa	≈ 7,917 km²
106	Bali Kingdom	≈ 7,719 km²
107	Cebu (historical polity)	≈ 6,669 km²
108	Principality of Abkhazia	≈ 6,066 km²
109	Inca Empire	≈ 4,864 km²
110	Tondo (historical polity)	≈ 4,840 km²
111	Principality of Guria	≈ 4,659 km²
112	Sultanate of Sulu	≈ 3,844 km²
113	Maynila (historical polity)	≈ 3,359 km²
114	Sultanate of Gowa	≈ 2,613 km²
115	Comtat Venaissin	≈ 2,319 km²
116	Sultan	≈ 2,155 km²
117	Republic of Ragusa	≈ 1,540 km²
118	Namayan	≈ 1,043 km²
119	Ashikaga shogunate	≈ 879 km²
120	Kathmandu	≈ 661 km²
121	County of Urgell	≈ 404 km²
122	Principality of Orange	≈ 141 km²

Map of this frame (only countries over 400,000 km², simplified)

New countries in this frame (1)

Sur Empire

Countries that disappeared in this frame (4)

Hussain Shahi dynasty · Shirvan · Duchy of Milan · County of Savoy

Directions of expansion (1)

These are cases where one country’s land grew into another country’s former land (not actual routes of advance).

Spanish Empire → former land of Inca Empire, ≈ 2.11 million km²

The world in AD 1540

24 events from the sources that fall in this frame, grouped by region.

China (3)

AD 1541 — Altan invaded Shanxi and entered Shizhou. (History of Ming (Mingshi), Annals 明史卷17 嘉靖二十年)
AD 1542 — Altan invaded Shuozhou, crossed Yanmen Pass and attacked Taiyuan. (History of Ming (Mingshi), Annals 明史卷17 嘉靖二十一年)
AD 1542 — Palace attendants who tried to harm the emperor were executed (the Renyin Palace Incident); Consort Cao of Duan and Consort Wang of Ning were crucified. (History of Ming (Mingshi), Annals 明史卷17 嘉靖二十一年)

Southeast Asia (3)

AD 1540 — Grand Master Duke Nguyễn Cám of Xingguo attacked Nghệ An, and many heroes came to his side. (Đại Việt sử ký toàn thư 本紀卷之十六「'''庚子，八年（莫大正十一年，」)
AD 1543 — Mạc general Chong Hou Hou, at military headquarters, had an audience with the emperor at the south gate of Tây Đô citadel. (Đại Việt sử ký toàn thư 本紀卷之十六「'''癸卯，十一年（莫廣和三年，」)
AD 1545 — On the 20th day of the 5th month, the Mạc general Chong Hou Hou invited Nguyễn Cám and poisoned the melon. (Đại Việt sử ký toàn thư 本紀卷之十六「'''乙巳，十三年（莫廣和五年，」)

Egypt & North Africa (1)

AD 1541 — Chaloner's expedition to Algiers — Algiers passage (based on the sentence mentioning Algiers) (Hakluyt, The Principal Navigations vol11 l.191 (표제 l.191))

Sub-Saharan Africa (3)

AD 1542 — Ishaq campaigns against Taba, the most distant city of the Bidoko sultans' empire (Tarikh al-Sudan (Chronicle of the Sudan) Houdas 1900 불역 장 XVI (houdas1900_fr_djvu.txt 줄 7575))
AD 1544 — Ishaq goes to Kokorkabi in the Dendi region (Tarikh al-Sudan (Chronicle of the Sudan) Houdas 1900 불역 장 XVI (houdas1900_fr_djvu.txt 줄 7657))
AD 1545 — Ishaq sends his younger brother Dawud on a campaign against Melle (Tarikh al-Sudan (Chronicle of the Sudan) Houdas 1900 불역 장 XVI (houdas1900_fr_djvu.txt 줄 7659))

Eastern Europe & Russia (5)

AD 1540 — Safa Girey fled too quickly for the Moscow governors to catch him; a fruitless campaign. (Karamzin, History of the Russian State 제8권 II장)
AD 1541 — The khan burned his siege towers and withdrew from Pronsk on 6 August; he was pursued to the Don, and Borotynsky defeated the emigrant princes. (Karamzin, History of the Russian State 제8권 II장)
AD 1542 — The boyars burst into the grand prince's room and exiled the archbishop to Kirillov Monastery (Beloozero) (Moscow inferred from context). (Karamzin, History of the Russian State 제8권 II장)
AD 1542 — The Moscow governor struck the Crimean army on the famous Kulikovo field and pursued it to the Meca river (the field is not a city). (Karamzin, History of the Russian State 제8권 II장)
AD 1544 — A surprise attack by the Rus led the Kazan king to suspect that the nobles had secretly invited them; he killed some and drove out others. (Karamzin, History of the Russian State 제8권 II장)

The Americas (9)

AD 1540 — Robledo founded the city of Cartago (1540); the settlers named it because they came from Cartagena. (Cieza de León, Chronicle of Peru ch. XXV (Gutenberg 48770 l.5070))
AD 1541 — By order of Belalcázar, Robledo founded the city of Antioquia (1541). (Cieza de León, Chronicle of Peru ch. XII (Gutenberg 48770 l.3961))
AD 1541 — Bishop Valverde, while holding his see, was killed by Indians on the island of Puná. (Cieza de León, Chronicle of Peru ch. CXX (Gutenberg 48770 l.13561))
AD 1542 — On the Chupas plain, Vaca de Castro and the young Almagro fought a cruel battle. (Cieza de León, Chronicle of Peru ch. LXXXIX (Gutenberg 48770 l.10772))
AD 1544 — In 1544 large gold deposits were found in the Cañari rivers, and the people of Quito mined over 800,000 pesos. (Cieza de León, Chronicle of Peru ch. XLIV (Gutenberg 48770 l.7196))
AD 1546 — Belalcázar and his lieutenant Hernández Girón captured Marshal Robledo here and beheaded him. (Cieza de León, Chronicle of Peru ch. XXI (Gutenberg 48770 l.4736))
AD 1546 — Original text: when Viceroy Blasco Núñez Vela reached near Quito, Gonzalo Pizarro came out of Quito to meet him and fought. (Cieza de León, Chronicle of Peru ch. XXXIX (Gutenberg 48770 l.6490))
AD 1546 — Mercadillo founded the city of Loja (1546). (Cieza de León, Chronicle of Peru ch. LVII (Gutenberg 48770 l.8241))
AD 1546 — In 1546 the Spaniard Villarroel discovered a silver vein on the hill of Potosí; even amid Gonzalo's revolt, people crowded its slopes. (Cieza de León, Chronicle of Peru ch. CIX (Gutenberg 48770 l.12703))

Changes of power ◆

◆ AD 1540 — Sur Empire appears
◆ AD 1540 — Hussain Shahi dynasty ends
◆ AD 1540 — Shirvan ends
◆ AD 1540 — Spanish Empire takes 2,106,500 km² of former Inca Empire land
◆ AD 1540 — Inca Empire loses 2,106,500 km² to Spanish Empire

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