The document summarizes the voyages of the Chinese admiral Zheng He and his treasure fleet between 1405-1433. It describes Zheng He's background as a Muslim eunuch who rose to prominence in the Chinese court. As admiral, Zheng He led seven voyages with over 300 ships, establishing Chinese tributary systems and trade networks throughout Southeast Asia, India, the Middle East, and East Africa. However, the voyages were ended after Zheng He's death in 1433 due to isolationist policies promoted by Confucian scholars.

1. Zheng He and the Treasure Fleet Voyages...

3. Artifacts, particularly ceramics, and archaeological evidence, primarily shipwrecks, indicate the presence of strong maritime ties throughout Southeast Asia. There was extensive commerce from the eastern coast of China, to Korea, Japan and Australia . Chinese maritime activities appear to have gained their footing near the end of the Song Dynasty (960-1279 A.D.).

4. But it was the subsequent Mongol emperors (the Yuan dynasty of c. 1271-1368) who commissioned the first imperial treasure fleets and founded trading posts in Sumatra, Ceylon, and southern India. When Marco Polo made his famous journey to the Mongol court, he described four-masted junks with 60 individual cabins for merchants, watertight bulkheads, and crews of up to 300.

5. The Emperor, Wan Shengzi, was noted for his open-door trade policies with foreign nations. As a result, Chinese port cities grew in size and importance. Shipbuilding in the southern Fujian province was well established by the time of the Ming Dynasty (1368 to 1644 A.D.). The Port City of Guangzhou

6. But the real peak in Chinese maritime prowess is symbolized in the extraordinary tale of one man: Admiral Zheng He . During his 28 year naval career, Admiral Zheng visited 37 countries, traveled around the tip of Africa into the Atlantic Ocean and commanded a single fleet whose numbers surpassed the combined fleets of all Europe.

7. Zheng He I was born in 1371 to poor Muslim parents in Southwest China. I was captured as a young boy by the Chinese Army and castrated to become a Eunuch. Nonetheless, I dedicated myself to my studies, learning several languages and philosophy. My Name is Zheng He and this is my story!

9. The Treasure Fleet Now, as Admiral of our fleet, you must sail to “the countries beyond the horizon,” all the way to the end of the earth. Your mission is to display the might of Chinese power and collect tribute from the "barbarians beyond the seas." I accepted Emperor Yongle’s mission and in 1405 began my first expedition!

10. No nation on earth had ever sent such a fleet onto the ocean. It included 62 large ships, some 600 feet long, larger than any other on the seas. Hundreds of smaller vessels accompanied them. A Chinese historian described them; "The ships which sail the Southern Sea are like houses. When their sails are spread they are like great clouds in the sky."

11. The flagship of the fleet was a nine-masted vessel measuring 440 feet. In comparison, Columbus’ St. Maria was eighty-five feet.

12. My voyages became an example of the power and greatness of the Chinese civilization. Click Here for A Closer look! We established many maritime inventions, including central rudders, watertight compartments, various new types of sails, paddle wheels and even armor plated boats. All these developments made long distance navigation possible.

13. The Treasure Fleet Voyages My First naval expedition lasted two years (1405-1407) and comprised of 317 ships with 27,870 men. My first port of call was in Champa (Vietnam). I saw many Chinese who had emigrated from the coastal provinces since the time of the Tang Dynasty and had already spread Confucian ideals. Champa’s ruler willingly offered tribute for the Chinese emperor. These are my ships, as depicted in a Chinese woodblock print in the early 17 th century.

14. While voyaging to India, the ships encountered a ferocious hurricane. Zheng He prayed to the Taoist Goddess known as the Celestial Spouse. In response, a "divine light" shone at the tips of the mast, and the storm subsided. This heavenly sign -- perhaps the static electrical phenomenon known as St. Elmo's fire -- led Zheng He and his crew to believe that his missions were under special divine protection. FUN FACT!

15. By the time I returned to China, I sailed to Java, Sri Lanka and Calicut, I battled and captured pirates, and I established massive warehouses in the Straits of Malacca. At each civilization I visited, I was to present gifts from the emperor and to exact tribute for the glory of the Ming. This is a painting depicting my return to China

16. One of my greatest Voyages was my fourth in 1413-1415. With 63 ships I reached Hormuz in the Persian Gulf. Many artisans strung together exquisite pearls and merchants dealt in precious stones and metals.

17. While I lingered in the city to amass treasure for the emperor, I sent Yang Min to Bengal. He returned to China with a _______ that the Bengali King received from the ruler of Malindi. When the _______ arrived at the court in Nanjing, the scholars identified it as the fabled unicorn, an animal that symbolized an age of exceptional peace and prosperity. As the fleet laid treasures from Arabia and India at the feet of the emperor, this omen must surely have seemed fitting. Giraffe Giraffe

18. When foreign ambassadors came to the Chinese court, they "kowtowed" as they approached the emperor. (The required process of "kowtow" was to kneel three times and bow one's head to the floor three times at each kneeling.) In return for tribute from other countries, the emperor sent gifts and special seals that confirmed their rulers' authority. These foreign kings were officially made part of the Ming Dynasty. FUN FACT!

19. From 1405-1433, I made seven voyages reaching Southeast Asia, Sumatra, Java, Ceylon, India, Persia, Arabia, Egypt, and East Africa.

20. Unfortunately, Emperor Yongle died in 1424, ending all naval expeditions until 1431. Then, during my seventh and final voyage in 1431-33, I died returning from Sri Lanka. A stamp depicting the many voyages of my Treasure fleet.

21. After Zheng He died, the Treasure Fleets were dismantled and banned from being used. Government sponsored voyages ceased and all official records of Zheng He’s travels were destroyed. Why do you think the Chinese decided to isolate themselves and discontinue the Treasure Fleet voyages?

22. Chinese influence on the world ceased, thus opening the door for the rise of European superpowers. By the year 1500, Columbus had discovered the New World and Vasco da Gama, the Portuguese sailor, had entered the Indian Ocean and laid the groundwork for an era of Asian colonization by European naval powers

23. FUN FACT! Today, Zheng he is honored throughout the world including this statue in Singapore and Chinese gold coin.

24. Zheng He’s story has recently drawn much popular attention because of a new book published in 2002 by Gavin Menzies, a British former submariner. 1421: The Year China Discovered America . The book claims, among other things, that Zheng He “discovered” America and circumnavigated the earth much earlier than the Europeans. Did the Ming Empire actually reach the West? New Findings? Wow! If this Theory is true, it will rewrite history!

25. WRITE A POSTCARD Imagine that you are Zheng He on one of his seven voyages. Write a postcard to Emperor Yongle describing your travels. Provide details about the voyage (conditions of the vessels, impressions of places visited, attitudes toward those encountered, etc.) Remember, this is only a postcard so you do not need to be verbose – just make sure you have accurate facts and thoughts.

29. Footbinding Footbinding was introduced in the 11 th century and spread from the ranks of the wealthy to those of more modest means and even to much of the peasantry. Girls as young as 3 or 4 would have their feet bound tightly with bandages, folding all the toes except the big one under the sole to make the foot slender and pointed. After a couple of years, the big toe and heel were brought together, bending the arch, causing constant pain and hindering free movement. The sight of a woman teetering on her little points moving her hips from side to side 'like a tender young willow in a breeze' to balance herself was believed to be attractive. The ideal length was three inches.

30. When I was nine they started to bind my feet again and they had to draw the bindings tighter than usual. My feet hurt so much that for two years I had to crawl on my hands and knees. Sometimes at night they hurt so much I could not sleep. I stuck my feet under my mother and she lay on them so they hurt less and I could sleep. But by the time I was eleven my feet did not hurt and by the time I was thirteen they were finished. The toes were turned under so that I could see them on the inner and under side of the foot. They had come up around. Two fingers could be inserted in the cleft between the front of the foot and the heel. My feet were very small indeed. "They did not begin to bind my feet until I was seven because I loved so much to run and play. Then I became very ill and they had to take the bindings off my feet again. I had the 'heavenly blossoms' and was ill for two years and my face is very pockmarked. In my childhood everyone had the illness and few escaped some marking.

31. Why foot binding? One theory is that women who had their feet bound were less independent and more able to be controlled. In Chinese society it is said that women are ruled by their fathers, then their husbands and finally, by their sons. This was a way to ensure that women did not travel away from that control because literally the pain was too great and debilitating to allow them the freedom to be free. Another theory is that the smaller the woman's feet the more desirable she would be in marriage. Families needed the security of a daughter marrying "well" to ensure the families place in society. Foot binding was a way to gain this security. A third theory is that foot binding was a way to show status. If a family had a daughter whose foot was bound then they were perceived by their neighbors to be able to have a capable and working member of their family not work. This implied success for the family.

32. The Treasure Fleet What would you need if you were preparing a journey into unknown territory? How would you plan on meeting those crucial needs? Click Here for Film Clip Go Back