Nowadays, the question whether Zheng He, one of the greatest navigators who set up seven voyages in July of 1405, should be celebrated has aroused widely concern among people. From my standpoint, Zheng He’s fleet should be celebrated for the sake of their technological advances, their remarkable accomplishments as well as their exalted purpose for those great discoveries.
First and foremost, the dimensions of the treasure ships were huge, as was the size of the crew and company. According to history in general, Zheng He’s expedition in 1405 was consisted of 27,800 crews and a fleet of 62 treasure ships supported by approximately 193 tenders. This scale compared to later European exploration was staggering. In addition, a treasure ship was 440 feet long and 180 feet wide. That is, bigger, both ways than a football field. Moreover, it is also challenging for some one to lead such an enormous team since both the skill and organization are required to pull off such monumental journeys. Zheng He, however, had leaded the whole fleet perfectly with the help of the advanced technology. That shows us how powerful the equipment were and his superb leadership.
…show more content…
The total miles sailed by the fleet were about 105,300 miles, which is approximately the same as circling the earth four times. More importantly, these were not just long trips to familiar places, but to the land of lions and giraffes as well as zebras. Plus, a round trip for Columbus between Spain and the West Indies was about 8000 miles, this fleet’s accomplishments well worthy of celebration. According to the statistic, fourteen different homelands had given tributes to China. This is the evidence of China’s position in world at that time. Zheng He deserves recognition from the whole
On reason we should celebrate is his fleet made incredible distances and destinations, especially for the period of time he traveled in. Zheng He traveled 105,300 total miles in his life. (DOC A) One round trip from Nanjing, his home port in China, to Calicut, one of many destinations he traveled to on his voyages, was a total of 11,600 miles. (DOC A) It took 18,500 total miles to take a round trip from Nanjing to the east of Africa, which was another one of the popular ports that he traveled to. (DOC A) The distance that was
When comparing the Chinese and Western historical development, the similar key events would have very different outcomes due to their different backgrounds. During the fifteenth century, Zheng He was commissioned to lead the “treasure ships” for seven voyages down the Western Seas. And, Prince Henry sent expeditions to explore the western coast of Africa. China and Portugal, the both ends of the Eurasian continent, almost simultaneously began marine navigations. They have shared some similar features, but there are actually major differences between the two. This paper will compare and contrast these two remarkable explorers. The focus will be on the ideas and circumstances that influenced their actions, and their importance in shaping history.
...were known to be two of the most influencial men in terms of “sailing south”. The 14th and 15th centuries in China and Portugal represented an era of expeditions and exploration. Evidence suggests that the structures and values of a society do in fact affect the way people view economic and political expansion and contact with other cultures which can be proved by ample historical evidence. Zheng He was on these expeditions to prove to others that China had indeed regained power and that they wanted to restore tribute on those who didn’t pay it. Henry the Navigator had many intentions for his expeditions. He was eager to find new resources, establish new trade routes, and to spread Christianity. Both of China’s and Portugal’s different structures and values led to the way the two societies viewed economic and political expansion and contact with other cultures.
It is thought by many that Christopher Columbus was a skilled sailor on a mission of greed. Many think that he in fact did it all for the money, honor and the status that comes with an explorer, but this is not the case entirely. Columbus was an adventurer and was enthused by the thrill of the quest of the unknown. “Columbus had a firm religious faith and a scientific curiosity, a zest for life, the felling for beauty and the striving for novelty that we associate with the advancement of learning”. He had heard of the legendary Atlantic voyages and sailors reports of land to the west of Madeira and the Azores. He believed that Japan was about 4,800 km to the west of Portugal. In 1484, Columbus wanted support for an exploratory voyage from King John II of Portugal, but he was refused. In 1485, Columbus took his son Diego and went to Spain to get some help.
Exploration has been an important action to take part of since the beginning of time. We have to explore to find out what’s out there right? We could potentially obtain so much knowledge, and so many resources. You can only obtain the maximum potential of something if your motives and ideology are correct. A great example of someone who had the potential to do so much good, and obtain so much greatness was a Chinese admiral by the name of Zheng He. Zheng He watched his father die at the hand of the Ming Dynasty, along with being castrated himself. Zheng He was forced to join thousands of eunuchs, and then rose quickly through the ranks of the military. The emperor basically assigned Zheng He the task of leading a fleet of exploration ships. They sailed this huge fleet of ships to unknown areas in hopes to make friends with other countries, and the local leaders usually offered tribute and emissaries to avoid conflict. This whole process preceded the colonialism practiced by the Europeans in years to come. The question begging to be answered here is, are Zheng He’s voyages deserving of celebration? I will be discussing my opinion on the subject and supporting with the documents provided. However; there are a few particular words I have used in this paragraph that we need to define to make sure we know what we are talking about. The Ming Dynasty was the imperial dynasty of China from the years 1368 to 1644. A eunuch is man who has been castrated. A tribute is an act, statement, or gift that is intended to show gratitude, respect, or admiration. An emissaries is a person sent on a special mission, usually as a diplomatic representative. Colonialism is the policy or practice of acquiring full or partial political control over another ...
Accompanied by 27,000 men on 62 large and 255 small ships, the Chinese eunuch Zheng He, led 7 naval expeditions to Southeast Asia, Middle East and east coast of Africa in the span of 28 years during the Ming Dynasty. The scale of Zheng He’s fleet was unprecedented in world history. The large treasure ships used during the expeditions were purported to be 440 feet long and 180 feet wide (Dreyer, p. 102). Throughout his travels, Zheng He brought Chinese tea, porcelain and silk products to foreign countries and also brought back exotic goods to the Ming court such as spices, plants and leather. Although his voyages fostered commercial trades and cultural exchange between China and foreign countries, the goal of his expeditions stemmed from the political motivation to maintain the tributary system and his voyages had important political implication of causing Neo-Confucian opposition and suspension of the expedition.
The treasure is believed to have belonged to a king who died somewhere around the year 650. Some of the items found were a sword, shield, a huge gold belt buckle, and other items. The religious belief of the people at that time was that there was an afterlife and that the dead must be buried with all of their possessions so they would be prepared for their next life. That is why there was a need for a very large ship to hold all of the items.
Boorstin’s bias against the Chinese is initially difficult to detect because, early on, he is constantly singing their praises; they are lauded for the organization of their government, their astronomical endeavors, their cartography, and other technological advances such as Su Sung’s astronomical clock. Later, however, they are portrayed as increasingly oblivious, naïve, and literally self-centered. On their otherwise-excellent maps, China was the central and largest figure, which accurately depicts what the Chinese thought other countries and their discoveries to be – insignificant. Regarding the invention of the clock, Boorstin stated that “Tradition, custom, institutions, language, a thousand little habits . . . became barriers,” which was why the “drama of the clock in the West was not reenacted in the East.” (Boorstin, 56) He believed that China’s barriers of the mind – their zealous nationalism and insistence that theirs was the best way – caused them to lag behind in discovery. One example of the degree that their egomania extended can be seen in their reaction to a giraffe being brought from Mozambique to the Imperial Court. Believing it to be a mythical animal signifying that all was perfect under heaven, it brought “an orgy of self-congratulation,” (Boorstin, 196) showing that “’the world’s curiosities had become mere symptoms of China’s virtue. So was revealed a Chinese Wall of the Mind
The Chinese navy in the early 1400’s was very powerful but unfortunately it grew weaker and weaker over time. The cause of this was that China ran into political problems which prevented future voyages.
There is a debate whether or not Marco Polo truly went to China. The side that does not believe Marco Polo traveled to China has this view because Marco Polo did not mention the Great Wall. In addition, the Chinese culture was not noted of. Being a foreigner, Marco Polo did not write about these strange things such as foot binding, calligraphy and etcetera. Not only that, but Marco Polo did not catch onto and learn the Chinese language due to the time he was there. Also, Marco Polo was not mentioned or documented about directly in the Chinese writings. However, three Venetians were written about.
In Pageant Christopher Columbus is one of the first people named as relevant to our history. He is built up as a hero, with words such as "a man of vision, energy, resourcefulness, and courage" used to describe him (Pageant p.4). We are told that he knows the world is round, but that nobody will believe him. Finally he convinces Spain's monarchs to fund him, and is given "three tiny but seaworthy ships manned...
In the book, When China Ruled the Seas, Levathes tells us about seven voyages made by junk armadas during the Chinese emperor Zhu Di's reign. 'Treasure ships' as they were called, were under the command of admiral Zheng He, these ships traded silk, porcelain, and many other fine objects of value. They sailed from India to East Africa, throughout Korea and Japan, and possibly as far as Australia. She believes that China might have been able to create a great colonial realm one hundred years before the Europeans explored and expanded, from China's navy of some three thousand ships.
In the book, When China Ruled the Seas, Levathes talks about seven voyages made by the Chinese armadas during emperor Zhu Di's reign. Admiral Zheng was in control of many “Treasure ships”. These ships traded silk, porcelain, and many other fine goods. They sailed from India to East Africa, through Korea and Japan, and might have even traveled all the way to Australia. Levathes believes that it could have been very possible for China to have been able to create a great kingdom to rule over one hundred years before the Europeans even explored and expanded, with China's giant navy of about three thousand of these large treasure ships.
...e the intellect of the times to figure out how to navigate in the oceans is just as important if not more than his discovery of a new continent. Some would argue this point but from my research, Amerigo Vespucci was truly the founder of modern navigation that brought civilization out of the dark ages to the modern era. He was truly a man of his times.
Between the 1400-1700s there were many voyages throughout the world, but only one person was the first to cross the Pacific Ocean. Ferdinand Magellan was the first European to cross the Pacific Ocean and discovered what is known today as “Strait of Magellan”. Ferdinand Magellan was born in the year 1480 in Portugal. Both of Magellan’s parents were part of the Portuguese nobility, meaning their status was high and they were well known. After his parent’s death, Magellan and his brother became servants or “pages” for Portugal’s Queen. Magellan also studied at a school for pages, Queen Leonora’s for Pages. In this school he studied astronomy, celestial navigation (using the stars for navigation), and cartography (study and making of maps). Since Magellan was a page for the Queen he learned about the race against Spain to find lands and gaining