The so-called Age of Discovery actually opened the era when the great powers conquered the world and made the world their colonies. Zheng He's voyage to the West began in 1405 and ended in 1433, more than half a century before the Age of Western Navigation.
The West was only opened at the end of the 15th century and the beginning of the 16th century, why did the Ming Dynasty at that time not open the Era of Great Navigation in advance?
Obviously, the material conditions were ripe, Zhu Di had already been called emperor at that time, and the Ming Dynasty was peaceful, didn't the Ming rulers consider conquering the world through great navigation?
01 Zheng He's purpose in the Western Ocean and the Great Voyage to the West was completely different.
After Zhu Di laid the foundation of the world, many people still felt that he was usurping the throne. He did usurp the throne, but he had to correct the thinking of everyone at the time. To this end, he launched Zheng He's operation to go to the West.
The real purpose of Zheng He's voyage to the West, in fact, we cannot investigate clearly now, because the real secret will always be hidden in the hearts of Zhu Di and Zheng He. However, it can be roughly guessed that there may be several purposes.
First, to create a peaceful and prosperous world for all nations to come to the dynasty. Zhu Di hoped to turn the Ming Dynasty, especially this period under his own rule, into a peaceful and prosperous era of the Han and Tang Dynasties.
It is particularly important to reshape the scene of the coming of all nations during the Tang Taizong period.
Second, demonstrate the legitimate right of inheritance. Zhu Di was the son of Zhu Yuanzhang and was fully qualified to inherit the throne. But the Western countries still don't know what is going on,
Zheng He went out this time to tell everyone that Emperor Jianwen had stepped down and Zhu Di had gone ashore.
Third, find the whereabouts of The Jianwen Emperor Zhu Yunjiao. After the Battle of Jingnan, a large fire burned the Nanjing Imperial Palace, but Zhu Yunjiao himself disappeared.
Some people said that he went to the West, so Zhu Di sent Zheng He to the West to find Zhu Yunjiao's whereabouts.
All three purposes may exist at the same time, or only one or two of them may exist. Anyway, Zhu Di had money in his hands and some people had technology, naturally in order to achieve the goal, he did not break his hand.
And what is the purpose of the Great Voyage of the West? At that time, the European countries were in the Renaissance, but the western countries had very few territorial resources, and they were eager to communicate with the eastern powers.
Three years sent the lieutenant Zheng He to make his country. The next year, the Western King and the Eastern King formed an army, and the Eastern King was defeated and the kingdom was destroyed. The envoys of the Appropriate Dynasty passed through the Land of the Eastern Kingdom, and the pawns entered the city, and the people of the Western Kingdom killed them, and all one hundred and seventy people. The king of the West was afraid and sent emissaries to apologize for their sins. The emperor gave him a severe rebuke and ordered him to lose sixty thousand taels of gold to redeem him. Six years later, Zheng He was sent to make his country. The King of the West offered gold for ten thousand taels, and the ceremonial officials lost enough, so please send them to prison. The emperor said: "Fall from the distant people, and want them to fear sin, ning li qi jinye?" "Donate it." Since then, it has paid a tribute to the year, or a tribute to the inter-year, or a tribute to the age of one year. The lieutenants Wu Bin and Zheng He successively made their countries. --- History of the Ming Dynasty
The purpose of trade exchange, resource plunder, land occupation, the opening up of a new kingdom, and so on, is the real purpose of the Western countries to start the great voyage.
They are pragmatic, and a trip out is expensive and needs to rely on donations from the Hao clan to do it. To that end, they must return with sufficient returns to investors so that the next voyage can be adequately funded.
02 At that time, the Ming Dynasty was economically developed, rich in resources, and an agrarian society, and there was no need to expand abroad.
Compared with the small territory and lack of resources in the Western countries, the Ming Dynasty did not worry about this aspect at all. Because the Ming Dynasty is rich in land and has a fairly sufficient labor force, it can completely guarantee the operation of the entire country.
The nameless treasures taken are incalculable, and China's waste is not worth it. Since the return of virtue, those who have arrived in the distance are not as good as those who are eternally happy, and they are old and dead. Since the peace, all those who will order the sea watch, do not praise and exaggerate, so it is said that the three eunuchs went to the West to celebrate the clouds for the early Ming Dynasty. --- History of the Ming Dynasty
Foreign trade activities actually had no substantial effect on the Ming Dynasty. For this reason, the Ming Dynasty did not need to start the era of great navigation, even if they went out, it was also a road to poverty alleviation, not a road to plunder.
The Ming Dynasty was reluctant to start the era of great navigation, specifically, for several reasons. In fact, each point was related to the national conditions of the Ming Dynasty at that time.
First, the economy of the Ming Dynasty was developed, and there was no need to waste energy to go out and engage in trade.
Zheng He went to the West for a trip, most of which were loss-making transactions, so the Ming Dynasty felt that it could not be crossed at all.
Second, the Ming Dynasty was dominated by an agrarian economy, with enough grain production to be eaten by the people of the whole country, and the territory was too large and there were many cultivated lands.
There is absolutely no need for them to go overseas to find any new bases.
Third, the Resources of the Ming Dynasty were very rich. At that time, there was no need for resources such as oil, so whenever there was a need for resources, the Ming Dynasty itself could exploit them.
And the amount is so abundant that there is no need to go out and look for it.
It can be seen from this that the Ming Dynasty chose to end the navigation mission after Zheng He went to the West and no longer open the era of great navigation, which had its own important practical conditions.
During the Zhu Di period, he once tried to make great voyages, and Zheng He's voyage to the West was the best proof. However, after sprinkling a lot of money out, it was not able to return the corresponding return, which made the Ming rulers very distressed. For this reason, Emperor Xuanzong Zhu Zhanji had no choice but to stop Zheng He's activities in the Western Ocean.
03 The arrival of the closed national policy ended the beginning of this era.
In 1433, the year zheng he went to the west to end. Emperor Mingxuanzong Zhu Zhanji abandoned the plan for the next voyage, which in his view was a completely thankless activity.
There were objective reasons why his grandfather and father were keen on this, but Zhu Zhanji had to look at this matter calmly
After all, even if the stupid son of the landlord's family is stupid, he must know that the landlord's family does not have much surplus grain to sprinkle like this.
On the one hand, Emperor Xuanzong announced the prohibition of the sea, and on the other hand, he began to continue the work of his grandfather and father and continue to build the Great Wall
。 This series of measures tells us that the Ming Dynasty has begun to close the country.
Many people think that the Qing Dynasty is the beginning of the closed country, in fact, from the ming Xuanzong period, the Ming Dynasty has begun to close the country.
Since there is no benefit to going out, and people outside still want to come in and get some benefits, why not lock the door?
After that, the Ming Dynasty encountered the powerful invaders of the Wokou, so they imposed stricter sea prohibitions and completely imposed a sea blockade, and from then on they became a completely closed country.
During this period, the great voyages of the West had begun to bear fruit, and they plundered a large number of resources and manpower from all over the world, thus strengthening their economic strength and being able to dominate the world in the future.
If the traitors and powerful people, the military and the people, etc., build a large ship with more than three masts, they will take the prohibited goods into the sea, go to the Fan country to buy and sell, sneak through pirates, conspire together, and rob good people for their guides. He built the previous sea vessels, sold them to those who sought profits, and compared them with those who should be forbidden to go to the sea, so they violated the law of military intelligence, beheaded the leader, and charged the army for the subordinates. --- The Law of Great Ming
However, the Ming Dynasty was reluctant to look at these things, and they seemed to feel that these countries were not worried enough to threaten their huge empire. On the contrary, it was the northern rivals and wokou who worried them even more.
Summary: The Age of Discovery made the West, and the East was once lonely.
In fact, not only did the Ming Dynasty close the country, but later after Japan unified the world with Toyonari Hideyoshi, the Tokugawa shogunate also implemented a long-term policy of closing the country.
It can be said that the eastern powers at that time all adopted this ruling measure, why is this? Because ordinary people gradually became wise, feudal rule could no longer steadily fish and flesh the people.
Only by sealing off the whole country and adopting a high-pressure policy, so that the people can only work hard in order to survive, and finally reap a little reward, they have no time to think, no opportunity to go out and see.
In the end, the purpose of the feudal rulers was indeed achieved, but the eastern powers were also far behind by the Western powers.
Japan and the Qing Dynasty were successively bombarded by artillery, and the More than two hundred years of rule of the Tokugawa shogunate and the Manchu Qing government came to an end. The patronage of the Westerners in the Age of Discovery caused the Great Powers of the East to be lonely for a time during that period.
Resources:
History of the Ming Dynasty
The Great Law of The Great Ming