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Historical map · 1945

Map of the World in 1945

In 1945, the historical border data behind our interactive map draws 80 states, empires and other polities in the world. By the land they held , the largest were the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics, the British Empire and the French Fourth Republic.

See this map live. The interactive map opens on the World in 1945. Zoom in, move the year slider to watch the borders change, or ask the history guide a question and it draws the answer on the map.

OPEN 1945 ON THE MAP →Ask the history guide about 1945
Atlas map: How Thin the Empire Really Was (Jan 1945)
FROM THE ATLAS · THE DECOLONIZATION OF AFRICA, CHAPTER 1: HOW THIN THE EMPIRE REALLY WAS (JAN 1945)

States and empires in the World in 1945

StateTerritoryWhole stateIn the data
Union of Soviet Socialist Republics Wikipedia22.0 million km²22.0 million km²1922–1991
British Empire Wikipedia18.5 million km²18.5 million km²1706–1999
French Fourth Republic Wikipedia13.0 million km²13.0 million km²1945–1957
United States of America Wikipedia11.9 million km²11.9 million km²1776–2024
French Africa Wikipedia11.7 million km²11.7 million km²1846–1957
Canada Wikipedia9.6 million km²9.6 million km²1932–2024
British Africa Wikipedia8.8 million km²8.8 million km²1885–1960
Brazil (Vargas era) Wikipedia8.6 million km²8.6 million km²1890–2024
Commonwealth of Australia Wikipedia8.2 million km²8.2 million km²1905–2024
Empire of Japan Wikipedia6.4 million km²6.4 million km²1868–1946
Republic of China5.4 million km²5.4 million km²1912–1949
British Raj Wikipedia4.9 million km²4.9 million km²1859–1947
Argentine Republic Wikipedia2.8 million km²2.8 million km²1930–2024
Belgian Congo Wikipedia2.4 million km²2.4 million km²1890–1962
Portugal (Estado Novo) Wikipedia2.2 million km²2.2 million km²1926–2024
South Africa Wikipedia2.1 million km²2.1 million km²1932–2024
Mexico2.0 million km²2.0 million km²1868–2024
Kingdom of Saudi Arabia Wikipedia1.9 million km²1.9 million km²1936–2024
Mongolian People's Republic Wikipedia1.6 million km²1.6 million km²1925–1991
Republic of Peru Wikipedia1.3 million km²1.3 million km²1822–2024
British Gold Coast Wikipedia1.2 million km²1.2 million km²1873–1960
Pahlavi Iran Wikipedia1.2 million km²1.2 million km²1924–1978
Republic of Colombia Wikipedia1.2 million km²1.2 million km²1866–2024
Ethiopia Wikipedia1.1 million km²1.1 million km²1942–2024
Bolivia Wikipedia1.1 million km²1.1 million km²1825–2024
Kingdom of Egypt Wikipedia1.0 million km²1.0 million km²1922–1952
Venezuela Wikipedia941,000 km²941,000 km²1811–2024
Tibet Wikipedia911,000 km²911,000 km²1363–1952
Francoist Spain Wikipedia855,000 km²855,000 km²1939–1975
Republic of Chile Wikipedia803,000 km²803,000 km²1812–2024
Republic of Turkey Wikipedia768,000 km²768,000 km²1924–2024
French Indochina Wikipedia763,000 km²763,000 km²1860–1957
United Kingdom Wikipedia678,000 km²678,000 km²1709–2024
Kingdom of Afghanistan Wikipedia644,000 km²644,000 km²1926–1972
Kingdom of Thailand Wikipedia524,000 km²524,000 km²1932–2024
Kingdom of Sweden Wikipedia456,000 km²456,000 km²980–2024
Kingdom of Norway Wikipedia418,000 km²418,000 km²1814–2024
Paraguay Wikipedia403,000 km²403,000 km²1811–2024
Allied-occupied Germany356,000 km²356,000 km²1945–1948
Republic of Finland Wikipedia335,000 km²335,000 km²1918–2024

Also on the map: Muscat and Oman, Republic of Poland, Kingdom of Italy, East Turkestan Republic, Republic of Ecuador, Yugoslavia, Kingdom of Romania, French Mandate for Syria and Lebanon, Oriental Republic of Uruguay, North Yemen, Surinam (Dutch colony), Nepal, Republic of Nicaragua, Czechoslovakia, Republic of Cuba, Kingdom of Greece, Honduras, Republic of Iceland, Kingdom of Bulgaria, Guatemala, Republic of Liberia, Kingdom of Hungary, Second Republic of Austria, Republic of Panama, Netherlands, Éire (Ireland), Kingdom of Bhutan, Republic of Costa Rica, Denmark, Dominican Republic, Swiss Confederation, Communist-held China, Haiti, Kingdom of Belgium, Albania, Republic of El Salvador, New Hebrides, Lebanon, Luxembourg, Principality of Andorra.

"In the data" gives the first and last year the dataset draws the state under this identity; states often existed earlier or later in another form.

What changed since 1942

New on the map: French Fourth Republic, Allied-occupied Germany, Republic of Poland, East Turkestan Republic, Yugoslavia, Czechoslovakia, Kingdom of Greece, Republic of Iceland, Second Republic of Austria, Denmark, Kingdom of Belgium, Albania, Lebanon, Luxembourg.

Gone from the map: Vichy France, Nazi Germany, Free French, Dutch East Indies, Italian Africa, Kingdom of Iraq, Kingdom of Iceland, Independent State of Croatia.

What comes next: 1950

Appear by 1950: People's Republic of China, Republic of India, Republic of Indonesia, Dominion of Pakistan, Burma, Territory of Papua and New Guinea (Australian), Kingdom of Iraq, Japan, Republic of the Philippines, New Zealand, Italian Republic, Federal Republic of Germany, Romanian People's Republic, Second Syrian Republic, Democratic People's Republic of Korea, German Democratic Republic, People's Republic of Bulgaria, Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, Republic of Korea, Hungarian People's Republic, Dominion of Ceylon, Republic of China, People's Republic of Albania, State of Israel, West Berlin.

Gone by 1950: Empire of Japan, Republic of China, British Raj, Allied-occupied Germany, Kingdom of Italy, East Turkestan Republic, Kingdom of Romania, French Mandate for Syria and Lebanon, Kingdom of Bulgaria, Kingdom of Hungary, Communist-held China, Albania.

Read the history of 1945

Guided atlas chapters set near this date, each with its own map, causes and consequences:

Questions about this map

Which countries were in the World in 1945?

The map data draws 80 states and other polities in the World in 1945. The largest by land were the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics, the British Empire, the French Fourth Republic, the United States of America and the French Africa.

What was the largest empire in the world in 1945?

Of the states on this map, the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics held the most land in total: about 22.0 million km² in the reconstruction used here. Ancient and frontier borders are approximate, so treat areas as estimates.

Can I explore the World in 1945 interactively?

Yes. Open the interactive map at 1945, zoom into any region, move through the years, and ask the history guide questions: it answers in plain words and draws places, armies and borders on the map.

About these borders

The borders come from Cliopatria (v0.2.1, Seshat Global History Databank, CC BY 4.0), the dataset behind our interactive map, with our audited name and border corrections. It records each state's territory year by year from 3400 BC to 2024. Borders before modern surveys are reconstructions: the data draws a state where it held control, and frontier zones, nomadic realms and loose overlordships are approximate. Areas are measured on an equal-area projection. Read how we make our maps.

World in other years

Other regions in 1945