In the 1500s, after years of successful voyages, the Ming Dynasty mysteriously withdrew itselves. Maritime trade was halted except for some port cities in the south, and European traders were pushed out. But why? The Ming Dynasty was prospering. In the 1400s, seven voyages were conducted to lands as far away as Eastern Africa; however, in 1434 foreign trade had been suddenly banned. The explorer who had conducted these expeditions had only died the year prior. “By the end of the fifteenth century, imperial subjects were forbidden from either building oceangoing ships or leaving the country.” Large ships called junks were banned from being built or repaired. The navy began to weaken as the Ming dynasty moved gradually inward. There are several …show more content…
This was a way of displaying China’s power to the world. These fleets were equipped with weapons although they were hardly used except in cases when countries refused to pay tribute. It’s important to note that the end goal of these missions was not to colonise but to display China’s power and superiority. These fleets traveled across Southeast Asia, the Indian Ocean, and as far as Eastern Africa and the Cape of Good Hope. China was relatively self-sufficient. Many nobles subscribing to the idea of Zhongyuan, the idea that China was the centre of the world, felt that these expeditions were unnecessary. Confucian scholars began to criticize these missions and their importance. The building of junks was banned and for the most part no one was permitted to leave the country (although the latter was most likely not strictly enforced). After China withdrew there were repeated attempts to establish new missions. “In 1477 another powerful eunuch named Wang Zhi wished to mount an expedition. When he asked for the official records from the voyages of [Zheng He], the records were declared "lost" and his efforts were frustrated.” All records of these missions were suppressed in the Imperial Record in order to curb any other potential
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.
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.
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.
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
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 ...
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.
...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.
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.
Today we can look around ourselves and see thousands of technical innovations that make life easier; But if we take a step back and ask ourselves “How?” we will soon realize that most often, these technological advancements did not just “poof” into existence, but are usually the outcome of building upon yesterday’s technology. If we follow this cycle back into time, we can attribute almost any modern day invention to an ancient civilization during its golden age. China was no exception. China’s Song and Tang dynasties fostered scientific advances comparable to Rome’s during its Pax Romana. The most significant and impacting of these were the development of primitive gunpowder and porcelain of the Tang and paper money, and the magnetic compass of the Song Dynasties. Although these may seem very far off, if you look hard enough, you can see traces of their impacts in society today because most of the advancements today we owe to them.
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 Chinese empire had once been one of the greatest and most powerful empires in the world. Before the 19th century, China had a large population and was ruled by families or dynasties. It was considered technologically advanced as China had a history of many miraculous inventions, such as: writing, magnetic compasses, movable sails, porcelain, abacus and paper money. Although China was isolated from the rest of the world, it coped well on its own, and saw no need to begin trading with the west, (as Lord McCartney proposed in 1793), since it was a self-sufficient nation. At that particular time, the Chinese empire was still able to exclude the ‘barbarians’, thus forcing them to only trade at one port. However, China soon took a turn for the worst as important ...
The title of Ray Huang’s book 1587: A Year of No Significance: The Ming Dynasty Decline suggests that this book is a work based on a single year in which little occurred. But in reality, Huang’s look at the events of 1587 demonstrate the complex workings of the leadership during the decline of the Ming dynasty, giving the reader an insight into the societal structure, the governmental process, and the mistakes that occurred systematically to enhance the progression towards the seemingly inevitable downfall. Though nothing of historical significance occurred during the year 1587, Huang is able to demonstrate the way in which the existing culture and the smaller, more systematic elements of political leadership can be understood within the context of a seemingly unimportant period of time.
Greenberg, Michael. British Trade and the Opening of China 1800 - 42. New York: Monthly Review, 1979. Print.
With deserts and the Himalayas running along most of the border, it was extremely difficult to cross over one of the most dangerous mountain ranges in the world and a few other scorching deserts with the little transport they had during that time. The only way merchants could come into the country was the southeastern coast of China, where most of the prosperous cities resided. What led China to become conceited was because they had an abundance of goods that most of the world wanted. In the 1760-1830s, China was famous for its porcelain (rich Europeans loved it), silk, and of course, tea. Since this Eastern Powerhouse’s goods were so popular, therefore, there were only a few things that interested them to trade with.
The purpose of this paper is to tell the history of the Ming Dynasty’s impact on the Chinese Empire, and to explain why the Chinese Empire was in fact an empire.