Zheng He
Zheng He was a famous chinese sailor in the late 14th and the early 15th century. He has sailed to lots of countries and brought things back which has made China a better place.
Zheng He was born in 1371 in Kunyang, Yunnan, China. His family was a poor muslim family, he was the second son. Zheng He was born with the name Ma He. His name “Ma” means horse.
His Dad was killed in 1381 when Zheng He was only 10. He was taken by the Ming Dynasty’s general, General Fu Youde. When Zheng He was 14, he was assigned as Prince Zhu Di servant who was 25. General Fu Youde’s military assistant at the time was Zhu Di. A couple of years later Ma He and Zhu Di became great friends. They went to all of Zhu Di’s missions from the military together. He also learnt the history and arts of war from Zhu Di. In 1390, he was part of the war against the Mongols.
Ma He was an Eunuch but Ma He wasn’t like the other Eunuchs because he is really big and heavily built so he was really good in the military. He had a military reputation for being a brilliant soldier who was brave. He also had a large commanding presence. Ma He was really loyal to Prince Zhu Di so when Zhu Di seized the throne, he fought loyally for him so Zhu Di trusted him. 1402 was the year when Prince of Yan made Ma He a commander of the military when they went to raid Nanjing. In 1404 Ma He’s name turned to Zheng He because the Emperor appointed the name to him. He got promoted to head Eunuch after he was renamed. This rank is the same as the fourth official ranking.
Zhu Di built a vessel that can hold lots of people and can be used as a trade ship, warship and support boats. He called this fleet of ships the Treasure Fleet. The Emperor promoted Zheng He to Rank 3 so Zheng He could be the commander of this fleet of ships. The greatest voyage at that time in the world was made by Zheng He. Zheng He proved to be an fantastic commander and leader over the next 30 years. He represented the Emperor by travelling all over the world to new countries. Zheng He’s first voyage had 317 ships which held 27,870 people altogether including different people like sailors, clerks, interpreters, soldiers, artisans, medical men and meteorologists. This fleet went along China’s coastline, Java(Modern Day Vietnam) and Sumatra(Modern Day Indonesia). On the way back, it passed the Strait of Malacca and India. 1407 was the year Zheng He and his fleet arrived back in China. The Emperor ordered six more voyages with the Treasure Fleet because the first voyage was very successful. These six voyages happened during the next 30 years. The second voyage was in 1407 straight after he arrived back. In 1409, 1413, 1417, 1421 and 1431 was the years he went on his other voyages.
In 1421, Zheng He was 60 years old but would still go on voyages. This was his seventh and last voyage where he went to the Persian Gulf, the Red Sea and Africa. He died when he was sailing back to China in 1433. He was buried the Muslim custom in the Indian Ocean. He also has a tomb which was honoured to him in Nanjing. The end of Zheng He was also the end of the unprecedented maritime expansion in the 14th and 15th centuries.
