Historical atlas · Map guide
Interactive world history map
Move through history on a world map. Choose a year, month, and day to see country and empire borders, then move the timeline to compare another date. The map opens in 1862; you can explore earlier and later periods without leaving the page.
A world map timeline for changing borders
A present-day political map gives one arrangement of countries. A historical map adds a date. On this timeline, a territory appears when its recorded start date is reached and disappears when its recorded end date is reached. Use the previous and next change controls to jump between dates when a territory record begins or ends.
The Countries view includes countries, colonies, and dependencies. Switch to Empires & unions to explore larger political groupings. Select a colored area to see its name and historical period.
Explore a region, an empire, or a particular year
Start with Europe, East Asia, Africa, the Americas, or the full world. Search for a territory by its name, or enable All periods to find a name that is absent from the current date. Selecting a result opens its start and end dates.
The maps below open specific starting points: Europe in 1914, the Roman Empire in 117, the Ottoman Empire in 1683, and the world in 1900. Each still has the full timeline. Change the date to investigate how the same region appears in another period.
Territories in this starting view
Explore these territories at this page's starting date. The Countries layer contains 214 active territory records worldwide at this date.
| Territory | Recorded start | Recorded end |
|---|---|---|
| Ottoman Empire | 1856-03-30 | 1878-03-03 |
| Spain | 1802-03-27 | 1899-04-11 |
| Kingdom of Portugal | 1834-05-26 | 1910 |
| Second French Empire | 1861-02-02 | 1862-12-08 |
| Persia | 1828-02-22 | 1935 |
| Turkmen Tribes | 1850 | 1881-09-21 |
How to use the historical map
- Enter a year and choose CE or BCE. Set the month and day when you need a particular date.
- Choose a region or drag the map to the area you want to investigate.
- Search for a territory and open its details. Enable All periods to search outside the current date.
- Move the timeline, play it automatically, or jump to the previous or next recorded boundary change.
- Use Share view to copy the current date and camera. Export GeoJSON to download the active records in the selected layer.
Questions about historical maps
What is a historical map?
A historical map represents geography at a specified past date or period. This atlas reconstructs recorded political boundaries on a modern coastline. It is a dated border viewer, rather than a collection of scanned maps printed in the past.
How do I see country borders in a particular year?
Enter the year, choose CE or BCE, and set the month and day. The map displays records whose start date has been reached and whose end date has not yet been reached. Use the region controls to move the camera without changing the selected date.
Which years does the timeline cover?
You can choose dates from 8000 BCE through 29 September 2026. Use Ancient, Pre-modern, Modern, or All time to change the timeline range, then enter a year or drag the timeline to explore a particular date.
Can I download the historical map as GeoJSON?
Yes. Use Export GeoJSON for the current date to download the territories displayed in the selected country or empire layer. Choose the date and layer before exporting to save that view's boundaries.