China’s earliest voyage fleet?

Fudong Crossed Japan

In 219 BC, Qin Shihuang visited Langya on the coast of Shandong (now southeast of Zhucheng). Xu Fu from Qi and some people wrote to Qin Shihuang, claiming that there were three in the sea The sacred mountain asked Qin Shihuang to send boys and girls to go with him to seek the elixir of immortality. Qin Shihuang listened to his words and sent thousands of boys and girls to sail with him. After several years and a lot of expenses, I still didn't get the magic medicine. In 210 BC, when Qin Shihuang visited Langya again, Xu Fu was afraid of being blamed, so he fabricated a lie, saying that the Penglai medicine was hindered by the presence of giant mackerel fish in the sea, and that he had to send archers who were good at using repeating crossbows to eliminate the difficulties. This time Qin Shihuang sent Xu Fu to lead 3,000 boys and girls to the sea, loaded with grain seeds and various skills. Xu Fu sailed to Wakayama, Honshu, Japan. After arriving at Oshima in Kitakyushu, Xu Fu and his fleet entered the Seto Inland Sea and reached as far as the Kii Peninsula.

Xu Fu’s route to Japan may have started from the Shandong Peninsula, passed through the mouth of the Bohai Sea, arrived at the Liaodong Peninsula, and then along the offshore waters of the Korean Peninsula to the Tsushima Strait, passing through Okinawa Island and entering Kitakyushu, Japan. Xu Fu led a huge fleet to sail along the coast and take a detour to reach Japan, which shows that the ancient Chinese people's technology and knowledge of long sea voyages have matured. There are still Xu Fu's ancient tombs, ancient temples and Xu Fu's inscriptions near Shingu Town in Wakayama Prefecture, Japan, to commemorate his achievements in leading men and women, carrying seeds and farming tools, to cultivate and cultivate, and to raise future generations.

Zheng He was born in 1371. His original surname was Ma, his given name was He, and his courtesy name was Sanbao. He was born in Hedai Village, Baoshan Township, Jinning County, Kunyang Prefecture, Yunnan Province in 1433, to a Hui family in Hedai Village, whose ancestors came from the Western Regions. Hara is now Bukhara, the Republic of Uzbekistan. The outstanding statesman of the early Yuan Dynasty, Xianyang King Saidianchi Gansiding Wumaer, was the sixth generation ancestor of Zheng He. The Zheng family is very respected by people in the local area. When Zheng He was 19 years old, he was selected to serve in Prince Yan's Mansion in Beijing. From then on, he followed the ambitious King of Yan, Zhu Di, and gradually gained Zhu Di's trust. Especially from 1399 to 1402, Zhu Di fought for the throne with his nephew Emperor Jianwen and carried out the "Battle of Jingnan". Zheng He made great contributions and helped Zhu Di ascend the throne. Zheng He was promoted to eunuch. In 1404, on the first day of the first lunar month of the second year of Yongle, Zhu Di personally gave the surname "Zheng" to Zheng He in recognition of his achievements. From then on, he changed his name to Zheng He, and was known as the "Three Treasures Eunuch" in history. During Zheng He's seventh voyage to the West, he died in Guri on the west coast of India in early April of the eighth year of Xuande (1433) due to overwork.

Zheng He was an outstanding figure in China's history of foreign exchanges. Zheng He's voyages to the West were an important event in the navigation history of China and the world. He is also internationally recognized as a world historical and cultural celebrity. (The statue on the left is located in Zheng He Square, Yongle, Fujian.)

The huge fleet led by Zheng He consisted of more than 100 large and small ships and more than 27,800 people. From 1405, the third year of Yongle in the Ming Dynasty, to 1433, the eighth year of Xuande, he made seven voyages to the Western Ocean, which lasted 28 years. He sailed to Southeast Asia, the Indian Ocean, and as far as the Red Sea and the east coast of Africa, visiting more than 30 countries and regions. Its long voyage, long duration, large number of ships, large tonnage, large crew, tight organization, advanced shipbuilding and navigation technology were all the best in the world at that time. It was a feat in the history of Chinese and foreign navigation and was far away in Europe. The pioneer of the great voyage that people call "the great geographical discovery".

The first time: June 15, the third year of Yongle, July 11, 1405. Zhu Di, the founder of the Ming Dynasty, issued an edict, ordering Zheng He to organize a fleet to sail to the West. He and Wang Jinghong led the fleet, which set sail from Nanjing Longjiang Port, passed through Liujiahe, Taicang, Jiangsu Province, and sailed to Taiping Port, Changle County, Fujian Province to anchor, waiting for the arrival of the northeast monsoon. In winter, Zheng He led his fleet on an ocean voyage from Wuhumen at the mouth of the Minjiang River in Fujian, passing through the South China Sea, first arriving at Champa in present-day Quy Nhon, Vietnam, then to Java in present-day Java Island in Indonesia, Malacca, Old Port, and Aru in present-day Malaysia. The above four places of Sumatra, Sumatra, and South Wuli are all on the Indonesian island of Sumatra today. Entering the Indian Ocean from Nanwuri, we reached Mount Ceylon, present-day Sri Lanka, and then reached Little Glan, present-day Kuelung, India, Kochi, present-day Cochin, India, and Guri, present-day Calicut, India. Zheng He erected a monument in Guli to commemorate it. The inscription says, "His country is more than one hundred thousand miles away from China. The people are friendly and prosperous, and the prosperity is the same. The stone carved here will be remembered forever." This is the earliest monument erected by Zheng He abroad. . Zheng He's fleet returned to China on October 2, 1407, the second day of September in the fifth year of Yongle.

The second time was September 13, the fifth year of Yongle, October 13, 1407. After Zheng He returned to China, he immediately made preparations for his second voyage, mainly to send foreign envoys back to China. The countries visited during this trip included Champa, Boni (now Brunei), Siam (now Thailand), Chenla (now Cambodia), Java, Manchuria, Ceylon, Kochi, Kuri, etc. When they arrived in Ceylon, Zheng He's fleet donated gold, silver, silk, sesame oil, etc. to relevant Buddhist temples. On February 15, 1409, the first day of the second lunar month in the seventh year of Yongle, Zheng He and Wang Jinghong set up the "Stele of Giving to the Buddhist Temple in Mount Xilan" to record the things they gave. This monument is now in the Colombo Museum. Zheng He's fleet returned to China in the summer of 1409, the seventh year of Yongle.

The third fleet sailed from Liujiagang, Taicang, in October 1409, the seventh year of Yongle. In November, it anchored at Taiping Port, Changle, Fujian to wait for the wind. In December of the same year, it sailed overseas from Wuhumen, Fujian. After ten days and nights with favorable winds, they arrived at Champa, and then sent a fleet to sail directly from Champa to Siam. Zheng He's fleet left Champa and went to Chenla, and then followed the wind to Java, Temasek (now Singapore), and Manchuria. Zheng He built warehouses in Mancajia, and the money, grain and goods needed for his voyages to the West were stored in these warehouses for use. The ships of Zheng He's fleet that went to various countries gathered here when they returned, loaded up their cargo, and waited for the south wind to sail back home. Zheng He's fleet sailed from Mansika, passing through Aru, Sumatas, and Nanwuli to Ceylon. In Ceylon, Zheng He sent another fleet to Kaile (now the east coast of the southern tip of the Indian Peninsula), Abbadan and Ganbari. Zheng He personally led the fleet to Xiaogelan and Kezhi, and finally arrived in Guli. He returned to China on June 16, the ninth year of Yongle, July 6, 1411.

The fourth time, November 15, the 10th year of Yongle, December 18, 1412, the imperial court ordered Zheng He to conduct a larger voyage. The winter voyage started in 1413, the eleventh year of Yongle. First arrived at Champa, and then led a large fleet to sail to Java, Old Port, Mancajia, Aru, and Sumatra. From here Zheng He sent another fleet to Liushan, now the Maldives Islands. The large fleet sailed from Sumatra to Ceylon. In Ceylon, Zheng He once again sent a sub-fleet to Gayle, and the large fleet sailed to Guri, and then sailed directly from Guri to Khrumos, which is now Qeshm Island in Bandar Abbas Port at the mouth of the Persian Gulf in Iran. This is an important city for commercial exchanges between the East and the West. Zheng He's fleet set sail back to China from then on, passing through the country of Liushan. Later, Zheng He's fleet used Tuoshan State as a stopping point on its way across the Indian Ocean to East Africa. Zheng He's fleet returned to China on July 8, the thirteenth year of Yongle, August 12, 1415. On this voyage, Zheng He's fleet crossed the Indian Ocean and reached the Persian Gulf.

The fifth time, December 10, the 14th year of Yongle, December 28, 1416, the imperial court ordered Zheng He to send the envoys of the "Nineteen Kingdoms" back to the country. Zheng He's fleet made a winter voyage in May 1417, the 15th year of Yongle's reign. It first arrived at Champa, then Java, Pahang, Old Port, Mancha, Sumatra, South Wuli, Ceylon, and Saliwan Nijin. The eastern coast of the southern tip of the Indian peninsula, Kochi and Guri. When the fleet arrived in Ceylon, Zheng He sent a fleet to Liushan, and then sailed westward from Liushan to Mogadishu, now Somalia, and Malin, now Malindi, Kenya on the east coast of Africa. . After the large fleet arrived in Guri, it was divided into two groups. One fleet sailed to Zuffar, Adan and Assa in the Arabian Peninsula, which is now the Democratic Republic of Yemen, and the other fleet went directly to Khrumos. July 17, Yongle's seventeenth year, August 8, 1419, Zheng He's fleet returned to China.

The sixth time, March 3, 1421, the 30th day of the first lunar month of the 19th year of Yongle, Ming Chengzu ordered Zheng He to send the envoys of the Sixteen Kingdoms back to their country. In order to catch the northeast monsoon, Zheng He led his fleet to set off quickly, reaching countries and regions such as Champa, Siam, Khrumos, Adan, Zufar, Cisa, Buchawa, Mugu Dushu, and Zhubu. In present-day Somalia, Juba River, Malin, Guri, Kochi, Kayile, Ceylon Mountain, Liushan, South Wuli, Sumatra, Aru, Mansika, Gambari, Manbasa in present-day Kenya. Mombasa. August 18, the 20th year of Yongle's reign, September 3, 1422, Zheng He's fleet returned to China, accompanied by envoys from Siam, Sumatra, Adang and other countries.

The seventh time, June 9, the fifth year of Xuande, June 29, 1430, Ming Xuanzong Zhu Zhanji ordered Zheng He to go to the West again. On the sixth day of the twelfth lunar month of the same year, the fleet set sail from Longwan, now Xiaguan, Nanjing, and assembled at Liujiagang on February 3. In Liujiagang, Zheng He and others erected the "Stone Carvings of Tongfan's Achievements in Tianfei Palace in Liujiagang, Loudong". The fleet arrived at Taiping Port in Changle, Fujian, and a stone tablet "The Legend of the Heavenly Consort" was erected at the Sanfeng Pagoda Temple in Nanshan.

Both monuments record their six voyages. On December 9, the sixth year of Xuande's reign, the fleet set sail from Wuhumen. This voyage passed through Champa, Sulumayik, Sumatra, Guri, and Chubu in Java, then went south to the southern tip of Africa and approached the Mozambique Strait, and then returned. When the fleet sailed near Guri, Zheng He fell ill due to overwork and died in Guri on the west coast of India in early April of 1433, the eighth year of Xuande. Zheng He's fleet was led by the envoy eunuch Wang Jinghong and returned to Taicang Liujiagang via Sumen Daci, Mancijia and other places. On the sixth day of July in the eighth year of Xuande (July 22, 1433), Zheng He's fleet arrived in Nanjing.

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