Zheng He: The Greatest Explorer Of The World

772 Words2 Pages

English : Mr. Dubard Memde Cassandra & Pawa Michelle The Introduction: If this name don’t tell you something , seems to you like you have never already heard that somewhere, we can definitely say you why . Zheng He is one of the biggest explorer of the world but unfortunately he is to one of the lesser known. SO WHO WAS HE ?: He was a famous Chinese maritime explorer. He went around the world 600 years ago, has allowed China to acquire and friendly international relations, commercial and forwarded through all these trips the image of China, powerful and impressive. He held the position of commercial and political emissary of Emperor Yongle , he traveled the seas for over 28 years (1405-1433), with its 27,000 men aboard 200 ships, over 50,000 kilometers and visited over 30 …show more content…

After 3 years Zhu Di ascended the throne under the name Ming Yongle . In 1403, Yongle planned construction of a fleet to deepen their knowledge of the world. The governance of the fleet was given to his good friend Zheng He. Two years later, sixty boat had been built. The final armada had roughly 300 boats. Of 1404-1433, Zheng He made seven expeditions and each expedition lasted more or less 2 years. He died in 1433(in the 10th year of the reign of Emperor Xuande Ming) at the age of 62 and was buried in the Bull's Head Hill (Niushou) in the southern suburbs of the present city of Nanjing in Jiangsu Province.. HIS EXPEDITIONS AND DISCOVERIES: 1) The first expedition (1405 - 1407): counted 62 vessels and 27,800 officers and crew. He had to intervene in a case of succession to the famous Javanese kingdom of Majapahit, as well as Palembang in Sumatra to resolve a conflict between the indigenous power and the local Chinese

Show More
Related

  • Should We Celebrate Zheng He Essay

    551 Words  | 2 Pages

    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

    Read More

  • Compare And Contrast Zheng He And Prince Henry

    626 Words  | 2 Pages

    Zheng got government-outfitted fleets and fully sponsored resources from the Ming dynasty ruler Yongle. The same as Henry got monopolies and broad-based supports from the King Duarte I, Portuguese merchants, the Catholic Church and loyal peasants. However, the initiation behind them were different. On one hand, Zheng was a eunuch been ordered by the emperor to take voyages. He was just an official executor under the emperor’s will of consolidating his imperial power and displayed the great Chinese power. On the other hand, Henry was a prince who enjoyed more power. Unlike Zheng as a servant had lots of limitations on his actions and no independence in making decisions, Henry as a dominator had the domination to do anything he wanted. He was motivated by his own will that allowed him to do things in a more open-minded way. For example, he established navigational schools and funded private navigations, instead of personally lead those voyages as Zheng did. While Zheng have not religious reasons for sailing, Henry had strong religious aims of finding military allies to outflank the Moors by sea. In short, they had different motivations on began

    Read More

  • Emperor Shi Huangdi Essay

    745 Words  | 2 Pages

    Shi Huangdi now able to unite the warring states, explored ways to establish a stable, and long lasting dynasty. The improvements he made to a now unified China, changed they way the world looked upon the country.

    Read More

  • Comparison Essay

    1007 Words  | 3 Pages

    Due to their contrasting but also similar views of economic expansion, the Portuguese and the Chinese had different structures and values of their societies. Both societies were very involved in trading and exploration, however they had different reasons for exploration. The Portuguese and Prince Henry wanted to reach Asian lands by sailing down the coast of Afric...

    Read More

  • Empress Wu and Buddhism: A Symbiotic Relationship

    2294 Words  | 5 Pages

    ...ntly influenced more than just the expansion of the Chinese economy, it has brought in new ideas and cultures from foreign countries that have an everlasting impact on China as a whole.

    Read More

  • Are Zheng He’s Voyages Deserving of Celebration?

    935 Words  | 2 Pages

    ...aders 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? In my opinion, I feel that we should acknowledge what he did, and continue to try to learn about the voyages. Just the fleet that he sailed across the world was remarkable; 255 huge ships, 27,500 people, and an astounding doctor-to-patient ratio of 1 to 151. Should Zheng He’s voyages be celebrated? Definitely not, he did not capitalize on the resources available to him. He cared too much about animals that weren't very beneficial, and essentially wasted precious time and money. We need to celebrate people that maximized the potential of their opportunities and actually got close, or achieved something truly great and useful.

    Read More

  • The Political Importance of Zheng He’s Voyages

    913 Words  | 2 Pages

    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.

    Read More

  • what if china discovered america?

    1268 Words  | 3 Pages

    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.

    Read More

  • Herodotus and Sima Qian: Great Historians

    1811 Words  | 4 Pages

    History writing has evolved much over time with the contributions of many people. In the modern sense, it can be traced back to ancient Greece and China, where historians Herodotus and Sima Qian began keeping records of human existence. Although they were not literally the first people to write history, together they are named the first great historians of the Western world and the East because of their individual innovations and extensive work that has long affected history writing up until this day. There is much to debate when it comes to the greatness of these ancient historians, and although some believe they were both important and successful in what their works, The Histories and The Records of a Historian, accomplished, others believe the total opposite. Thomas R. Martin, the author of Herodotus and Sima Qian: The First Great Historians of Greece and China, argues that the two men were indeed vital to the progression of history writing over time. In my opinion, Herodotus and Sima Qian made huge advancements in history writing, and their titles as the first great historians of the Western world and the East are very fitting.

    Read More

  • Zheng He Dbq

    736 Words  | 2 Pages

    Not only did he explore a variety of lands he also brought things back creating trade routes throughout Asia, Africa, and the Middle East. As Zheng He returned from his voyages he brought back goods and much tribute. We can see how Zheng He explored many lands as shown on the map in document A. We can also see that his voyages were long and did go up to 19000 miles’ roundtrip per voyage (doc A). This evidence proves that Zheng He must’ve been a good leader in order to successfully carry out 7 of these voyages and bringing back tributes like “local products, pepper, horses, and money” (doc D). This shows how the voyages actually benefited the emperor and proves that we would be celebrating something that included

    Read More

  • Hist 161

    1211 Words  | 3 Pages

    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.

    Read More

  • When China Ruled the Seas by Levathes

    759 Words  | 2 Pages

    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.

    Read More

  • Book Review on When China Ruled the Seas

    905 Words  | 2 Pages

    The chief purpose of the fleet was diplomacy. Zhu Di's intent to make known his rise to the dragon throne to the rest of the world was to make it known in the best possible way. He intended to use a fleet of massive treasure ships to do this. The ships in his fleet were a little over four hundred feet in length and could carry around three thousand tons. They were filled with the empire's finest porcelains, lacquer ware, and silk. They were definitely the largest ships that the majority of the people at that time had ever seen. This intimidated other countries, which Zhu Di liked because he wanted to have the “four corners of the earth” stoop down to China as being a middle kingdom. The amazing size and wealth that the fleet represented would make most rulers consider beginning trade with China. These “Treasure ships” were filled with expensive goods and were taken to trading ports all around the Indian Ocean. These ships would also occasionally intervene in the affairs of other nations in order to obtain the best trade conditions for China from these other nations.

    Read More

  • Compare And Contrast Marco Polo And Zheng He

    930 Words  | 2 Pages

    Zheng transported and controlled fleets; the largest group of naval vessels under one commander, organized for specific tactical or other purposes, and Marco polo traveled by ship; however, Zheng He’s fleet was able to carry around 400 sailors due to shipbuilding industry be at it’s height during his exploration. That shows the stronger the industry the more money backing his explorations by the Yongle emperor. However, Marco Polo did achieve great success in his studies and travels; even though, his empire where he was from wasn’t as skilled as the Chinese. Zheng He and Marco had a close relationship with a king or emperor. First, Marco Polo and his brother traveled to the Mongol Empire and he served on Kublai Khan’s court. Marco and his brother remained loyal to Khan and served again and brought his son with him. His relationship with Kublai gave Marco paved the way and opened Chinese trade to the rest of the world, and paved the way for more modern explorers such as Christopher Columbus. Zheng He had a quite interesting relationship with the Yongle emperor. The yongle emperor appointed Zheng He to command the treasure fleet. Zheng He was close with The emperor because the new Yongle emperor’s family adopted Zheng he into their family before the new Yongle emperor took the throne. Zheng He established long lasting ties with the places within Asia and

    Read More

  • Li Bai's Influence

    889 Words  | 2 Pages

    ..., Li Bai was able to exert great influence over people in his own time. Indeed, he still continues to influence people even today.

    Read More

More about Zheng He: The Greatest Explorer Of The World

Open Document