When people think of empires, they often cast their minds back to the Romans – the military state that spread its influence throughout Europe, North Africa and the Middle East is perhaps the most famous example of imperialism that we have. But does that make it the greatest? All About History Greatest Empires takes a look at the others that have risen and fallen, from the very first – the Akkadian Empire, founded in 2334 BCE – to the setting of the Sun on the British Empire in 1997 and everything in between.