French colonial empire
From the 16th to the 17th centuries, the First French colonial empire had a total area of over 10,000,000 square kilometres (3,900,000 sq mi), at its peak in 1680. At the time, it was the second-largest empire in the world, behind the Spanish Empire. In terms of land area, the Second French colonial empire extended to over 13,500,000 square kilometres (5,200,000 sq mi) at its peak in 1936. It was also the second largest in the world at the time, at 10% of the world's land area. The total land area of the first and second French colonial empire combined reached 24,000,000 square kilometres (9,300,000 sq mi).