Classical Antiquity
Roman Empire
509 BC – 395 AD · peak 117 AD
The Roman Empire reached its greatest territorial extent in 117 AD under Trajan, governing approximately 5 million square kilometers from its capital in Rome. It maintained authority through a professional military, Roman law, and integrated infrastructure, granting universal citizenship via the Constitutio Antoniniana in 212 AD. The Western Roman Empire collapsed in 476 AD due to internal instability and Germanic migrations, while the East survived as the Byzantine Empire.
Capital: Rome
Key figures
Battles in this period
Trade routes in use
- Amber Road (1500 BC – 500 AD)
- Incense Route (1000 BC – 400 AD)
- Persian Royal Road (500 BC – 300 BC)
- Phoenician Mediterranean Routes (1100 BC – 300 BC)
- Alexandria–Rome Grain Route (30 BC – 400 AD)
- Silk Road (130 BC – 1450 AD)