January 19, 1431
Zheng He set sail for the last time
The picture shows the treasure ship in the ZhengHe Treasure Ship Relic Park in Nanjing
On this day, 588 years ago, on January 19, 1431 (December 6, 1430 in the lunar calendar), Zheng He set sail for the last time.
On January 19, 1431, Zheng He, an outstanding navigator of the Ming Dynasty on the mainland, led more than 20,000 people from Xiaguan, Nanjing, for the seventh voyage to the "Western Ocean". Later, due to the wind at sea, he went to Fujian to shelter from the wind, and did not officially set sail until the end of the same year. This was Zheng He's last voyage. Zheng He, Ming Dynasty navigator and diplomat, originally surnamed Ma, name He, nickname Sanbao, also known as Sanbao, Yunnan Kunyang (now Kunyang Subdistrict, Jinning) Baoshan Township Zhidai Village. With the support of the emperor, he led the fleet to the West seven times. The fleet was large, organized entirely according to maritime navigation and military organization, and at that time it was a powerful maritime mobile formation in the world. Many foreign scholars call Zheng He's fleet a task force, and Zheng He is a naval commander or naval commander. After a comprehensive analysis of the world history of this period, Dr. Joseph Needham of the United Kingdom came to the following conclusion: "The Ming navy may have been superior in history to any Asian country, even any European country of the same era, so that all European countries united, can be said to be incomparable with the Ming navy." ”
On January 19, 1431, Zheng He led a fleet of ships from Longjiang Pass (present-day Xiaguan, Nanjing) for the seventh trip. Zheng He died of overwork in early April 1433 in Guri on the west coast of India, and the fleet was returned to Nanjing on July 22, 1433, led by the eunuch Wang Jinghong. This time, there are 27,550 people on the record.
Zheng He's voyage to the West made outstanding contributions to promoting friendly exchanges between China and the peoples of Southeast Asia, India, Arabia and East Africa, and it was a reflection and symbol of the political, economic and comprehensive national strength of the Ming Dynasty. Many countries sent people with local specialties such as elephants, rhinos, giraffes, lions, gems, corals, peppers and spices to the capital with Zheng He's fleet, demanding the development of friendly relations with China. Zheng He's voyage to the West and his visit to more than 30 countries and regions in Asia and Africa were not only an unprecedented feat in the ancient maritime history of the mainland, but also the largest in the history of world navigation at that time. It has strengthened political, economic, cultural and friendly exchanges between The peoples of China and other Asian and African countries.