Zheng He Research Paper

Zheng He, a Chinese explorer, was born in 1371 in the Yunan Province of southwestern China (background essay). When Zheng He was ten years old, his father was killed right in front of him by the Ming Dynasty’s army (background essay). He was then taken prisoner, castrated, and forced to become part of the eunuchs (background essay). As he grew older, Emperor Yongle began to trust him more and more (background essay). The Emperor trusted him to travel by ship and lead a crew down the coast of China and across the ocean to eventually land in India in 1405 (background essay). This was one of the seven voyages he would take (background essay). When asked if Zheng He’s voyages should be celebrated, three factors must be taken into account: skill, scale and significance. Skill is the measure of one’s ability to do something. Scale is the measure of actions taken to preform something. Significance is the meaning of an event. The voyages of Zheng He should not be celebrated because there was no new land discovered, the cost of the trips were expensive and wasteful, and the reasons for the voyages mainly purposed Zheng He himself and Emperor Yongle.

Why we don’t Celebrate the Voyages of Zheng He. Did you know that in 1381 of Ma He’s childhood, Ma He (Zheng He) was the only Mongol to be held in China before he was taken prisoner to the Ming Dynasty? This meant that he had to join the armies by thousands of eunuchs who were held in part by the government.

2. His goal was to reach the East (East Indies) by sailing west, thus bypassing the around-Africa route that Portugal monopolized.

trade after seeing the success of the other countries during his travels. Document 7 explains

In the years between 1403 and 1433, a Chinese ship commander by the name of Zheng He made several grand voyages. His voyages had such a large effect on foreigners that they sent gifts to the emperor at that time. This made Zheng He one of the greatest sailors at the time in China because of all the treasure he was bringing back with him. Therefore, should the voyages of Zheng He be celebrated today? Although some would argue that his voyages had no purpose, Zheng He’s expeditions should gain recognition, since he had many gigantic ships, got free gifts, and had made safer sea routes.

 made writings of detailed descriptions of the area he went----> he saw Americas as new continents

Although Zheng He was great, Magellan was a better captain overall. Magellan was a Spanish explorer who was the first European to see the Pacific Ocean. He set sail on a voyage that was supposed to go around the World, but Magellan was killed before he made it. Although he did not make it around the world, he had the skills to get all the way to the Philippines. Zheng He was a Chinese admiral who led seven voyages. He was also a great captain, but he did not almost make it around the world. Instead, he stayed in the same area and stopped in the same places multiple times.

Should Zheng He be recognized for his travels to the east coast of Africa and the southern parts of Asia? Culture, country-to-country relationships, and trade seemed very important to Emperor Yongle, who decided that Zheng He was to explore the world for China. In document A, a map is shown, displaying his travels to east Africa and southern Asia. His furthest travels include India, Iran, Kenya, and Somalia. Along the way, he traded with these countries, including local products and animals.

The chart under the map on Document A shows that after every stop, they sailed all the way back to Nanjing, China. According to Document A, the two longest explorations consisted of 19,000 miles roundtrip. I feel that these incredibly long voyages were a waste of time and money; they should have just continued to sail through to the next city. Zheng He sailed to a city, gathered whatever he wanted to, and then sailed back only to pass the city he left. This is incredibly ineffective, and illogical in my opinion because this wasted time and money. Referring back to my thesis, Zheng He was definitely not utilizing the maximum potential of his opportunity.

He wrote about his adventures, the people he met, the food he ate, and how many days he stayed

A third reason is he was very greedy. One way he was greedy is while they were on their journey, they conquered 2 million square miles and named 11 city-states after himself and none after his men. Also, when his men stopped him in India he reluctantly turned back even though he didn’t want to. If they kept going they probably would’ve conquered most of Asia.

There were also numerous explorers that traveled overseas finding new trade routes: Henry the navigator, Vasco De Gama, and Bartolomeu Dias.

Columbus decided that he should start converting Indians to Christianity on his third voyage. He also had his authority of governing taken away by the crown. So when he went to the colony the new governor arrest him and sent him back to Spain. Columbus had a fourth voyage. He was assigned the task of finding a sea route to Asia. He believed that with his new knowledge of the Indies, he could find the Asian continent. Columbus failed once again. All of Columbus’ documents show us that he failed at his tasks but brought Europeans to the Americas.

He was able to be transported back and forth many times to work on the project all within a short amount of time. This especially seemed incorrect because the usual mode of transportation at this time was by water on a ship, but there

Christopher Columbus is a very important person in our country's history. He found the "New World," the one we live in today. He started the society that makes us who we are today, the society that allowed our ancestors to come to America and start the life that we live now. This whole world owes their lives to him. Columbus should always be remembered as a very important and very good person in history.