Islamic Empires

Project description
The Ming Dynasty was at the peak of its time, including economy, politic and diplomacy under the rule of the emperor Yongle. The emperor wanted to show the power of the country and decided to let Zheng He to led the crew to travel around the nearby countries. As said in the document “The Emperor, approving their loyalty and sincerity, has ordered us…. to go and confer presents on them, in order to make manifest the transforming power of the (imperial) virtue and to treat distant people with kindness”. Zheng He and his crew took many precious treasures during each of the trip and gave them to every king he met during the trips. Silk and ceramics are the most popular trading gifts to the other countries. They are the unique artifacts produced only in China and showed the great and powerful artifacts of the dynasty to the other countries. The emperor Yongle didn’t gave his treasures to other countries for free, the kings in nearby countries also sent envoys with tribute for the emperor Yongle as well, Bengal even tribute a giraffe to Zheng He; in fact it was a way of spreading culture and a type of foreign policy at that time. As Zheng He and his crew succeed their first few voyages, they decided to travel further and explore different cultures, so in the last few voyages they visited the Africa. It was the longest voyage at that time in the world! It also showed that the dynasty was very strong and powerful out on the sea. The Ming Dynasty has approved its power during the voyages led by Zheng He and built strong relationship to other countries including both trading, foreign policy, and culture.
Be sure to follow the various links on the left side of the page, including for example, the “Guide to the Palace,” the “Imperial Treasury,” “Portraits of the Sultan,” and “Various Sections of the Topkapi Palace.”
Visit: Topkapi Palace: http://www.ee.bilkent.edu.tr/~history/topkapi.html