How Well Do You Know History's Conquerors?

Ghengis Khan's Mongol Empire stretched from Eastern Europe to the seas of Japan. It was the largest contiguous land empire in history.

Napoleon's French Empire stretched across most of continental Europe. One of the largest empires in history, at its peak Napoleon ruled over more than 700,000 miles of land.

By age 30, Alexander the Great had created one of the largest empires of all time, which stretched from Greece to Northwestern India. Undefeated, he and his men most likely could have gone even farther - if they'd wanted to.

Rising from poverty and slavery to the ruler of a massive empire, Genghis Khan showed no mercy to any who opposed him. For a man born in the mid-12th century, he was unusually progressive in some ways. All religions were protected throughout his empire.

Hannibal Barka was a master tactician and major adversary of Rome. He is remembered for defeating Roman armies in battle despite having fewer soldiers and less equipment than Rome.

Francisco Pizarro led several expeditions across the Atlantic, and on one defeated most of the Incan Empire with only about 150 men on horseback. He changed history forever when he conquered Peru.

The 14th-century Turkish conqueror Timur, also known as Tamerlane, had one of the most brutal reputations of his day. A Turco-Mongol conqueror, he founded the Timurid Empire in Asia and it is estimated his military campaigns killed 17 million people.

Hannibal Barka led Carthaginian forces against Rome during the Second Punic War. He is known as one of history's greatest military leaders.

Napoleon Bonaparte began as a soldier, and at his peak ruled over more than 70 million people. Among his titles were Emperor of France and King of Italy.

Hernan Cortes is one of the most famous conquerors of all time. A Spanish Conquistador who began the first phase of the Spanish colonization of the Americas, his expedition caused the fall of the Aztecs.

Cyrus the Great of Persia had an empire which stretched from Europe to the Indus River, which flows through India and Pakistan. At his time of death, in 530 BC, he had the largest empire the world had ever seen.

Attila the Hun's empire stretched from modern-day Uzbekistan to Germany. His massive empire survived him by less than two decades.

Philip II of Macedon was a Greek king who was eventually assassinated. He created and led the League of Corinth and was the father of Alexander the Great.

Napoleon was actually about 5'6'', which was an average height for a man of his era. He may be remembered as being short because one of his battle strategies was to surround himself with taller soldiers, which made him look tiny in comparison.

Chandragupta Maurya founded the Mauryan Empire. He unified India only to fast to death trying to save it from famine.

While there may be many men walking around today carrying the conqueror's genetic material, it is not most of the population. It is estimated that about 0.5% of the men on earth, about 16 million people, have his Y chromosome.

Babur was a Muslim conqueror descended from Genghis Khan. He expanded Persian cultural influence throughout the Indian subcontinent.

Sargon of Akkad is history's first known emperor. Reigning from 2270 BC to 2215 BC over the Akkadian Empire, his territory stretched from the Mediterranean coast to the Persian Gulf.

Napoleon made the tactical mistake of attempting to invade Russia in the winter. The Russians used the winter to their advantage, drawing his armies deeper and deeper into the cold and watching them freeze to death.

Alexander the Great was the son of King of Macedonia Philip II. As King of Macedonia, he extended their empire from Greece to India.

Julius Caesar rose to power through any means necessary and was deeply in debt as dictator of Rome. Declaring war on a few Gallic tribes for resources turned into an 8-year war which ended with the Roman Republic overtaking all of Gaul.

Cyrus the Great founded the Achaemenid Empire, which expanded throughout Asia and the Caucuses. For over 29 years, he ruled every nation in Central Asia, crushing numerous empires in the process.

Widely considered to be one of the most evil men who has ever lived, it's thought that if Adolf Hitler and the Nazis had not lost World War II they might have gone on to conquer the world. They had expanded to over a dozen European countries before their fall.

William I, also known as William the Conqueror, invaded England with a large fleet. He took the throne by force at the Battle of Hastings in 1066.

Queen Zenobia was a 3rd-century ruler of the Palmyrene Empire, who took over after her husband's death. She expanded her empire into Egypt, which she ruled from 269 to 274.

Charlemagne, also known as Charles the Great, was both King of the Franks and Emperor of the Romans. His rule stretched across Western and Central Europe, helping to define Europe as a whole.

Mahmud of Ghazni ruled the Ghaznavid Empire from 997 until his death in 1030. His empire stretched from the Middle East into Northwestern India.

Hari Singh Nalwa was chief of the Sikh Kalsa Army. Under his leadership, the army saw many victories and was the only one to take the treacherous Khyber Pass.

Timur, also known as Tamerlane, was a brutal conqueror of more than 2 million square miles of Asia and Russia. A descendant of Genghis Khan, he saw his empire as a restoration of the Mongol Empire.

Over the course of history, many have tried to conquer Russia and failed due to the frigid winters. The Mongols are among a victorious few who managed to successfully invade Russia, due to Genghis Khan's superior military know-how.

Mehmed II was the Sultan of the Ottoman Empire when they captured Constantinople, which led to the fall of the Byzantine Empire. Due to his many successes, the Ottoman Empire began being recognized as an empire under his rule.

Akbar the Great was only 14 when he ascended the throne in 1542. By his death in 1603, the Mughal Empire spanned over 600,000 square miles.

Toyotomi Hideyoshi reunited a divided Japan as a strong emperor with great military skill. While he ruled nearly all of mainland Japan, his invasions of China failed.

A naval mastermind, Barbarossa was a bloodthirsty pirate whose exploits led to the Ottoman Empire ruling the Mediterranean in the mid-16th century. He was recognized by the Sultan of the Ottoman Empire and feared throughout Europe.

Dayan Khan not only reunited the Mongol Empire, but by dividing the empire into 6 fiefs for his sons created a century of stability. He lived from 1464-1517.