The notion of a sovereign state arises in the mid-16th century with the development of modern diplomacy. For earlier times, the term "sovereign state" is an anachronism. What corresponded to sovereign states in the medieval and ancient period were monarchs ruling By the Grace of God, de facto feudal or empire, imperial autocrats, or de facto independent nations or tribal confederations.

Sovereign states

(under construction)

A

* Aach, Baden-Württemberg, Aach - Lordship of Aach * - Free Imperial City of Aachen * Aalen - Free Imperial City of Aalen * – Adal Sultanate * – Sultanate of Algiersh * – Kingdom of Alodia * - Duchy of Alsace * Andorra – Principality of Andorra * Anhalt - Principality of Anhalt * Annam (Chinese province), Annam - Kingdom of Annam * Principality of Ansbach, Ansbach - Margraviate of Ansbach * – Aq Qoyunlu Federation * Kingdom of Aragon, Aragon - Kingdom of Aragon * – Sultanate of Arakan * County of Armagnac, Armagnac - County of Armagnac * – Empire of Ashanti * – Kingdom of Assam * Astrakhan Khanate, Astrakhan – Khanate of Astrakhan * Archduchy of Austria, Austria - Archduchy of Austria * Auvergne (province), Auvergne - County of Auvergne * Ayutthaya Kingdom, Ayutthaya – Ayutthaya Kingdom * Aztec Empire – Aztec Empire

B

* Margraviate of Baden, Baden - Margraviate of Baden *Bali - Sultanate of Bali * Duchy of Bavaria, Bavaria - Duchy of Bavaria * Béarn – Viscountcy of Béarn *Bengal - Sultanate of Bengal * Benin Empire, Benin – Benin Empire * – Kingdom of Bhadgaon * Kingdom of Bohemia, Bohemia - Kingdom of Bohemia * History of Bosnia and Herzegovina (958–1463), Bosnian Kingdom * Bourbonnais - Duchy of Bourbonnais * Margraviate of Brandenburg, Brandenburg - March/Margraviate of Brandenburg * Prince-Archbishopric of Bremen, Bremen - Prince-Archbishopric of Bremen * Duchy of Brittany, Brittany - Duchy of Brittany * - Sultanate of Brunei * Duchy of Brunswick-Lüneburg, Brunswick-Lüneburg - Duchy of Brunswick-Lüneburg

C

* Crown of Castille, Castille - Crown of Castille * Principality of Catalonia, Catalonia - Principality of Catalonia *Chagatai Khanate - Chagatai Khanate *Champa - Kingdom of Champa * – Cherokee Tribe * – Empire of the Great Ming * Duchy of Cleves, Cleves - Duchy of Cleves * Electorate of Cologne, Cologne - Electorate of Cologne * – Kingdom of Connaught * Republic of Cospaia, Cospaia – Republic of Cospaia * – Creek Tribe * Crimean Khanate, Crimea – Crimean Khanate

D

* – Sultanate of Deccan * – Sultanate of Delhi

E

* – Kingdom of England * – Empire of Ethiopia

F

* Duchy of Ferrara, Ferrara – Duchy of Ferrara, Modena and Reggio * – Kingdom of Fez * Republic of Florence, Florence – Republic of Florence * – Kingdom of France * – Funj Tribe

G

* – Republic of Genoa * – Kingdom of Gondwana * – Golden Horde * – Sultanate of Gujarat

H

* – Haasa Tribe * Ifriqiya – Ruled by the Hafsid dynasty * – Hawsa Tribe * – Sultanate of Hedjaz * Kingdom of Hungary, Hungary – Kingdom of Hungary * – Huron Tribe

I

* – Kingdom of Imereti, with autonomous vassals: ** Principality of Guria, Guria – Principality of Guria ** – Principality of Mingrelia, with vassal: *** Abkhazia – Principality of Abkhazia ** – Principality of Svaneti * – Inca Empire * – Iroquois, the Nations

J

* Japan – Sengoku period, divided into small warring states * – Jolof Empire, with vassal: ** Waalo – Kingdom of Waalo

K

* – Kingdom of Kaffa * – Kingdom of Kakheti * – Kalmar Union, consisting of ** – Kingdom of Denmark ** Norway – Kingdom of Norway ** Sweden – Kingdom of Sweden * – Empire of Kanem Bornu * – Kingdom of KartliKing Constantine II of Georgia, Constantine II still claimed to be the King of Georgia (country), Georgia, although by this time the kingdom had fragmented into Kartli, Kakheti, and Imereti * – Sultanate of Kashmir * – Kingdom of Kathmandu * Kazakh Khanate – Kazakh Khanate * Khanate of Kazan, Kazan – Khanate of Kazan * – Sultanate of Khandesh * Knights Hospitaller, Knights of St. John – Knights of St. John * Kingdom of Kongo, Kongo – Kingdom of Kongo * Joseon Dynasty, Korea – Kingdom of Joseon * – Kotoko Kingdom

L

* Grand Duchy of Lithuania, Lithuania – Grand Duchy of Lithuania * Republic of Lucca, Lucca – Republic of Lucca

M

* – Majapahit Empire * – Sultanate of Malacca * Maldives – Sultanate of Maldives * – Mali Empire * – Sultanate of Malwa * Mamluk Sultanate (Cairo), Mamluk Sultanate – Mamluk Sultanate of Egypt * – Kingdom of Mandara * – Kingdom of Manipur * – Maya Empire * Duchy of Modena, Modena – Duchy of Modena * Moldavia – Principality of Moldavia * – Mong Mao * – Sultanate of Morocco * – Kingdom of Mrauk U * – Khanate of Mughalistan * – Kingdom of Munster * – Kingdom of Mutapa * Grand Duchy of Moscow, Muscovy – Grand Duchy of Moscow * Kingdom of Mysore, Mysore – Kingdom of Mysore * – Kingdom of Wakaner

N

* – Kingdom of Najd * Kingdom of Naples, Naples – Kingdom of Naples * Kingdom of Navarre, Navarre – Kingdom of Navarre * – Kingdom of Nepal

O

* – Sultanate of Oman * – Kingdom of Orissa * – Ottoman Empire, with vassals: ** Crimean Khanate, Crimea – Crimean Khanate ** Wallachia – Principality of Wallachia * – Oyo Empire

P

* Papal States – States of the Church * – Kingdom of Patan * – Kingdom of Pegu * Kingdom of Poland (1385–1569), Poland – Kingdom of Poland * Kingdom of Portugal, Portugal – Kingdom of Portugal * Pskov Republic, Pskov – Pskov Feudal Republic

Q

* – Federation of Qara Koyunlu * Qasim Khanate, Qasim – Qasim Khanate

R

* Republic of Ragusa, Ragusa – Republic of Ragusa * – Kingdom of Rajputna * Ryazan Principality, Ryazan – Principality of Ryazan * Ryūkyū Kingdom, Ryūkyū – Ryūkyū Kingdom

S

* Bishopric of Ösel-Wiek, Saaremaa – Bishopric of Saaremaa-Wiek * Marquisate of Saluzzo, Saluzzo – Marquisate of Saluzzo * – Principality of Samtskhe * – Most Serene Republic of San Marino * County of Santa Fiora * – Duchy of Savoy * – Kingdom of Scotland * – Kingdom of Shan * – Tribe of Shawnee * – Khanate of Sibir * Republic of Siena, Siena – Republic of Siena * – Sultanate of Sind * – Songhai Empire * Spain – Spain, a loose union between: ** Crown of Aragon, Aragon – Crown of Aragon, consisting of: *** Kingdom of Aragon, Aragon – Kingdom of Aragon *** Principality of Catalonia, Catalonia – Principality of Catalonia *** Kingdom of Majorca, Majorca – Kingdom of Majorca *** Kingdom of Sicily, Sicily – Kingdom of Sicily *** Kingdom of Valencia, Valencia – Kingdom of Valencia ** Crown of Castile, Castile and León – Crown of Castile, consisting of: *** Kingdom of Castile, Castile – Kingdom of Castile *** Kingdom of León, León – Kingdom of León * Kingdom of Kotte, Sri Lanka – Kotte Kingdom * – Kingdom of Sukhothai * – Sulu Sultanate * – Swahili Tribe * Sweden - Kingdom of Sweden * Old Swiss Confederacy, Switzerland - Swiss Confederacy

T

* Bishopric of Dorpat, Tartu – Bishopric of Tartu * – Kingdom of Taungu * Monastic state of the Teutonic Knights, Teutonic Knights – Monastic State of the Teutonic Knights * – Kingdom of Texcoco * – Tibet * Timurid dynasty, Timurid Empire * – Kingdom of Travancore * – Kingdom of Tripoli * Hafsid dynasty, Tunisia - Kingdom of Tunisia *Tuscany - Republic of Tuscany * Tír Eoghain, Tyrone - Kingdom of Tyrone

U

* – Earldom of Ulster

V

* – Most Serene Republic of Venice * – Vijayanagara Empire

W

* – Principality of Wallachia * – Wattasid Sultanate * Duchy of Württemberg, Württemberg - Duchy of Württemberg * Bishopric of Würzburg, Würzburg - Bishopric of Würzburg

Y

* – Kingdom of Yemen

Z

* – Zapotec tribe * Principality of Zeta, Zeta – Principality of Zeta

Notes

{{Lists of sovereign states by year , expanded=CE Lists of sovereign states by year, 1495