Zheng He Analysis
Zheng He is a name of which many don’t hear a lot around, much less know who he is. Zheng He is, however, one of the greatest ocean explorers in the 15th century, and can be named side to side with Ferdinand Magellan and Christopher Columbus. Zheng He’s 7 voyages to the Indian Ocean strengthened trade between the Ming Dynasty and its neighbouring countries in the Middle East and India, and brought back exotic souvenirs and gifts to the Yongle Emperor, which were tributes from the neighbouring countries. Zheng He’s name is just not heard often because he did not find a new continent, nor did he become a first in some navigation attainment, but he made significant contributions to the trade within the Indian Ocean countries, and corrected
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inaccurate sailing chart data dated from the Song Dynasty. His contributions to the nautical community could not be ignored, and we now know that he made noteworthy benefaction to both the trades and the cultures within the Indian Ocean region.
Zheng He was one of the Yongle Emperor’s favourite protégées. In fact, Yongle trusted Zheng He so much that he left the task of fabricating the tributary system to Zheng He. The tributary system is where the neighbouring countries present tributes of precious and luxurious gifts to the Ming Dynasty to show their respect and reverence. Zheng He’s objective for his expeditions included collecting and enforcing the tributary system, but it was only a secondary factor behind the true reason. He needed to flaunt and display their’s prestigious amount of power to the other countries. He needed to awe the ‘barbaric states of the ocean’ and make the bow down in fascination. This was in order to remind the countries that the Ming was the center of the world, and remind them why they needed to pay tribute to the almighty Ming Dynasty. That was Zheng He’s primary and most salient objective when he went overseas. Getting to the countries, however, was not easy, as the sailing charts from the Song Dynasty were often inaccurate. Being placed in media res in the middle of the ocean and trying to sail to the
important ports is not a facile task, but Zheng He managed to do it, and also raised the prestige of the Ming Dynasty on the way by defeating a band of notorious pirates from Guangdong, whom were terrorizing the coasts of China. The Indian Ocean countries all gave Zheng He’s fleet praise for their conduct and bravery against the pirates, thus raising their reputation amongst the countries tenfold. Once Zheng He got to India, he defeated whoever that is uncooperative with the tributary system, both as an order from the Yongle Emperor and also a warning towards the other countries. Along with his armies, Zheng He also carried merchants on his boat, and the merchants engaged in some quid pro quo with the Indian merchants, trading the luxurious silk and porcelain for exotic goods such as animals and spices. Zheng He’s fleet would first beleaguer the trade post, then send the merchants onto the land. Zheng He’s other objective, is to bring back the exotic goods and spices to the Ming Dynasty. When the naval tributary system was still inchoate, the Emperor had wanted Zheng He to convey as much non-native bounty as possible back to the palace. That has been another of Zheng He’s objectives. He bought many merchants to commerce and engage in quid pro quo with the native merchants. From the native merchants they bought back exotic beasts, luscious spices, and glimmering gold and silver. Those are the two main objectives that Zheng He wanted to achieve during the course of this voyages. Surprisingly, the two objectives are interconnected and related to one another. The reason for that is realizable after some pondering; if the Ming Dynasty does not gain its prestige, then the countries wouldn’t pay them tribute anymore! Therefore the main reason for Zheng He to sail on his expeditions is to gain prestige in order to get tribute. Without prestige, the neighbouring countries would not pay China tribute anymore, and disremember that the mighty Ming Dynasty was in the center of the world. China would hold no place of power in their mind anymore, and the neighbouring countries might actually start attacking the Ming Dynasty instead. After trying to figure out a conclusion to this long-standing problem, the Ming Dynasty decided to occasionally flaunt the power of the Ming Dynasty, but also not to intimidate the neighbouring countries so that the become a figure inspiring fear. So in order to do that, the Ming Dynasty sent Zheng He to display the sheer amount of firepower that the Ming Dynasty had, just by displaying boats. The bigger the boats are, the more effect it has on the natives, and also the more boats there are, the better the turnout would be. Therefore Zheng He’s fleet must be big and powerful to intimidate the countries involved in the tributary system. This actuality of Zheng He trying to raise the prestige of the Ming Dynasty is what I believe to be his objective of his voyages. Thus, I believe that the objective of Zheng He’s voyages could be summarized in two parts. One, to increase the friendliness of trade between the Ming and its neighboring countries so the Ming can boost its economy, and its most predominant reason being trying to raise China’s prestige amongst the Indian Ocean countries.
Such a strenuous voyage required much effort in the advancement in technology, so the Ming Dynasty spent a great deal of their national income into building great ships to make such voyage possible. The main scientific influence behind this voyage would definitely be the gargantuan ships that belonged to Zheng He’s fleet. Out of all the ships that went on the voyage, the 400 feet long and 170 feet wide baochuan was the technological behemoth of the fleet. The baochuan is the apex of 14th and 15th century naval technology. It includes 9 masts, each rigged with square sails that could maximize the efficiency of the ship’s kinetic energy by adjusting the series and the positions of the sails. The baochuan, or treasure boats, were the most important player that influenced Zheng He’s voyage. They provided room to store the tributes and goods that they collected, and it also adds into the intimidation factor towards the other countries. Therefore, the propelling fuel for Zheng He’s voyage is the treasure boats that he acquired. Not only were the treasure boats used though. Many other pieces of technology and naval mechanization were also applied during the course of Zheng He’s voyages. For example, the machuan (horse boats), the liangchuan (grain boat), and the zhanchuan (battle junk) are also advanced ships for that time. The horse boats are 340 feet by 138 feet, which is 2/3 the size of the treasure ships. The grain boats are also not less that the horse boats in size, measuring 257 feet by 115 feet. This reveals the purpose behind building each of these boats at a certain size. Even though the actual reasons of such size of the boats are not sure, but from this article, I can infer that Zheng He built them judging to their importance. Zheng He follows orders from the Yongle Emperor to bring back tribute, so that would be his priority, so he built his boats as big as the technology allowed back then so he could fit more tribute and goods inside. The horse boats carried horses and exotic animals that also serves as goods. The second most important item to Zheng He’s fleet would be the fodder for his armies and crew, so the grain ships are the third biggest in size. The size of the boats greatly affects the voyage because it needs strict calculation for how much items it could carry, and how long could the items last. The designs of the boats also has to cope with the waterline and the displacement of the water. This demonstrates the apex of technology at that time. This would be one of the most propelling factors about the expeditions because the advanced design of the ships created room for both speed and storage. Without the ships, Zheng He would never had made it that far, nor increase the trade. Therefore, the ships that Zheng He utilized are the most influential aspect amongst all the scientific aspects that either boosted or hindered him in his journey.
After the 7th voyage, the expeditions to the Indian Oceans stopped due to political and imperial reasons. The main cause of the termination of the voyages are split into many reasons. One of which being that Zheng He’s patron, the Yongle Emperor, passed away, and left the throne to his son, Hongxi Emperor. The Hongxi Emperor did not appreciate the amount of money that was used on building the ships, and told Zheng He to make his last voyage. During the reign of the Xuande Emperor, Zheng He made his last journey to the Indian Ocean. It was his last expedition because 1. It was the Emperor’s orders, but more importantly, Zheng He DIED during his last voyage, and was buried at sea at what would nowadays be India. That would technically be the most important reason for Zheng He to stop his expeditions, but that was a spontaneous scenario, and would not be considered to be the legit political reason. The political reason that influenced Zheng He into stopping his voyages would be the orders of the Xuande Emperor. After Zheng He’s 6th voyage, his patron, the Yongle Emperor died of natural causes, and his successor, the Hongxi Emperor, was discontent with the amount of money that was put into the voyages, so he decided to put them to a stop. He announced that Zheng He would make one last voyage to the Indian Ocean, and that would put a conclusion to the expeditions to the Indian Ocean. The reason for the Hongxi Emperor to make that decision is because that he is worried about the Manchu powers in the north, and plans to use the country’s money on defense and tactical warfare. Meanwhile, another factor has crept into the termination of Zheng He’s voyages. During the Ming Dynasty, Confucianism was the main religion believed by most civilians. The Confucians believed that Zheng He’s voyages are a waste of resources on both sides, and trespassed long-standing Confucian principles. The Xuande Emperor respected the Confucians’ ideas, and also took into consideration the “皇明祖训”, which was a list of dynastic foundational documents laid down by the Hongwu Emperor. It especially says: “Some far-off countries pay their tribute to me at much expense and through great difficulties, all of which are by no means my own wish. Messages should be forwarded to them to reduce their tribute so as to avoid high and unnecessary expenses on both sides.” Taking both of the factors into perspective, the Xuande Emperor believed that his father, the Hongxi Emperor was correct, and terminated the voyages, and tried to erase all the records of Zheng He’s voyages. That was the primary reason for the voyages’ termination. The seventh voyage was impacted the most by political and cultural reasons, since it was the last expedition, and was terminated under the Emperor’s orders. Thus, I think that political reasons are the most influential towards Zheng He’s last expedition.
inaccurate sailing chart data dated from the Song Dynasty. His contributions to the nautical community could not be ignored, and we now know that he made noteworthy benefaction to both the trades and the cultures within the Indian Ocean region.
Zheng He was one of the Yongle Emperor’s favourite protégées. In fact, Yongle trusted Zheng He so much that he left the task of fabricating the tributary system to Zheng He. The tributary system is where the neighbouring countries present tributes of precious and luxurious gifts to the Ming Dynasty to show their respect and reverence. Zheng He’s objective for his expeditions included collecting and enforcing the tributary system, but it was only a secondary factor behind the true reason. He needed to flaunt and display their’s prestigious amount of power to the other countries. He needed to awe the ‘barbaric states of the ocean’ and make the bow down in fascination. This was in order to remind the countries that the Ming was the center of the world, and remind them why they needed to pay tribute to the almighty Ming Dynasty. That was Zheng He’s primary and most salient objective when he went overseas. Getting to the countries, however, was not easy, as the sailing charts from the Song Dynasty were often inaccurate. Being placed in media res in the middle of the ocean and trying to sail to the
important ports is not a facile task, but Zheng He managed to do it, and also raised the prestige of the Ming Dynasty on the way by defeating a band of notorious pirates from Guangdong, whom were terrorizing the coasts of China. The Indian Ocean countries all gave Zheng He’s fleet praise for their conduct and bravery against the pirates, thus raising their reputation amongst the countries tenfold. Once Zheng He got to India, he defeated whoever that is uncooperative with the tributary system, both as an order from the Yongle Emperor and also a warning towards the other countries. Along with his armies, Zheng He also carried merchants on his boat, and the merchants engaged in some quid pro quo with the Indian merchants, trading the luxurious silk and porcelain for exotic goods such as animals and spices. Zheng He’s fleet would first beleaguer the trade post, then send the merchants onto the land. Zheng He’s other objective, is to bring back the exotic goods and spices to the Ming Dynasty. When the naval tributary system was still inchoate, the Emperor had wanted Zheng He to convey as much non-native bounty as possible back to the palace. That has been another of Zheng He’s objectives. He bought many merchants to commerce and engage in quid pro quo with the native merchants. From the native merchants they bought back exotic beasts, luscious spices, and glimmering gold and silver. Those are the two main objectives that Zheng He wanted to achieve during the course of this voyages. Surprisingly, the two objectives are interconnected and related to one another. The reason for that is realizable after some pondering; if the Ming Dynasty does not gain its prestige, then the countries wouldn’t pay them tribute anymore! Therefore the main reason for Zheng He to sail on his expeditions is to gain prestige in order to get tribute. Without prestige, the neighbouring countries would not pay China tribute anymore, and disremember that the mighty Ming Dynasty was in the center of the world. China would hold no place of power in their mind anymore, and the neighbouring countries might actually start attacking the Ming Dynasty instead. After trying to figure out a conclusion to this long-standing problem, the Ming Dynasty decided to occasionally flaunt the power of the Ming Dynasty, but also not to intimidate the neighbouring countries so that the become a figure inspiring fear. So in order to do that, the Ming Dynasty sent Zheng He to display the sheer amount of firepower that the Ming Dynasty had, just by displaying boats. The bigger the boats are, the more effect it has on the natives, and also the more boats there are, the better the turnout would be. Therefore Zheng He’s fleet must be big and powerful to intimidate the countries involved in the tributary system. This actuality of Zheng He trying to raise the prestige of the Ming Dynasty is what I believe to be his objective of his voyages. Thus, I believe that the objective of Zheng He’s voyages could be summarized in two parts. One, to increase the friendliness of trade between the Ming and its neighboring countries so the Ming can boost its economy, and its most predominant reason being trying to raise China’s prestige amongst the Indian Ocean countries.
Such a strenuous voyage required much effort in the advancement in technology, so the Ming Dynasty spent a great deal of their national income into building great ships to make such voyage possible. The main scientific influence behind this voyage would definitely be the gargantuan ships that belonged to Zheng He’s fleet. Out of all the ships that went on the voyage, the 400 feet long and 170 feet wide baochuan was the technological behemoth of the fleet. The baochuan is the apex of 14th and 15th century naval technology. It includes 9 masts, each rigged with square sails that could maximize the efficiency of the ship’s kinetic energy by adjusting the series and the positions of the sails. The baochuan, or treasure boats, were the most important player that influenced Zheng He’s voyage. They provided room to store the tributes and goods that they collected, and it also adds into the intimidation factor towards the other countries. Therefore, the propelling fuel for Zheng He’s voyage is the treasure boats that he acquired. Not only were the treasure boats used though. Many other pieces of technology and naval mechanization were also applied during the course of Zheng He’s voyages. For example, the machuan (horse boats), the liangchuan (grain boat), and the zhanchuan (battle junk) are also advanced ships for that time. The horse boats are 340 feet by 138 feet, which is 2/3 the size of the treasure ships. The grain boats are also not less that the horse boats in size, measuring 257 feet by 115 feet. This reveals the purpose behind building each of these boats at a certain size. Even though the actual reasons of such size of the boats are not sure, but from this article, I can infer that Zheng He built them judging to their importance. Zheng He follows orders from the Yongle Emperor to bring back tribute, so that would be his priority, so he built his boats as big as the technology allowed back then so he could fit more tribute and goods inside. The horse boats carried horses and exotic animals that also serves as goods. The second most important item to Zheng He’s fleet would be the fodder for his armies and crew, so the grain ships are the third biggest in size. The size of the boats greatly affects the voyage because it needs strict calculation for how much items it could carry, and how long could the items last. The designs of the boats also has to cope with the waterline and the displacement of the water. This demonstrates the apex of technology at that time. This would be one of the most propelling factors about the expeditions because the advanced design of the ships created room for both speed and storage. Without the ships, Zheng He would never had made it that far, nor increase the trade. Therefore, the ships that Zheng He utilized are the most influential aspect amongst all the scientific aspects that either boosted or hindered him in his journey.
After the 7th voyage, the expeditions to the Indian Oceans stopped due to political and imperial reasons. The main cause of the termination of the voyages are split into many reasons. One of which being that Zheng He’s patron, the Yongle Emperor, passed away, and left the throne to his son, Hongxi Emperor. The Hongxi Emperor did not appreciate the amount of money that was used on building the ships, and told Zheng He to make his last voyage. During the reign of the Xuande Emperor, Zheng He made his last journey to the Indian Ocean. It was his last expedition because 1. It was the Emperor’s orders, but more importantly, Zheng He DIED during his last voyage, and was buried at sea at what would nowadays be India. That would technically be the most important reason for Zheng He to stop his expeditions, but that was a spontaneous scenario, and would not be considered to be the legit political reason. The political reason that influenced Zheng He into stopping his voyages would be the orders of the Xuande Emperor. After Zheng He’s 6th voyage, his patron, the Yongle Emperor died of natural causes, and his successor, the Hongxi Emperor, was discontent with the amount of money that was put into the voyages, so he decided to put them to a stop. He announced that Zheng He would make one last voyage to the Indian Ocean, and that would put a conclusion to the expeditions to the Indian Ocean. The reason for the Hongxi Emperor to make that decision is because that he is worried about the Manchu powers in the north, and plans to use the country’s money on defense and tactical warfare. Meanwhile, another factor has crept into the termination of Zheng He’s voyages. During the Ming Dynasty, Confucianism was the main religion believed by most civilians. The Confucians believed that Zheng He’s voyages are a waste of resources on both sides, and trespassed long-standing Confucian principles. The Xuande Emperor respected the Confucians’ ideas, and also took into consideration the “皇明祖训”, which was a list of dynastic foundational documents laid down by the Hongwu Emperor. It especially says: “Some far-off countries pay their tribute to me at much expense and through great difficulties, all of which are by no means my own wish. Messages should be forwarded to them to reduce their tribute so as to avoid high and unnecessary expenses on both sides.” Taking both of the factors into perspective, the Xuande Emperor believed that his father, the Hongxi Emperor was correct, and terminated the voyages, and tried to erase all the records of Zheng He’s voyages. That was the primary reason for the voyages’ termination. The seventh voyage was impacted the most by political and cultural reasons, since it was the last expedition, and was terminated under the Emperor’s orders. Thus, I think that political reasons are the most influential towards Zheng He’s last expedition.