Zheng He: Leader of the Ming Dynasty’s Treasure Voyages

After finally overthrowing the Mongolian Yuan Dynasty (1271–1368), ending close to a century under foreign rule, the first emperors of China’s Ming Dynasty (1368 – 1644) wanted to demonstrate the power of Ming China and initiated military campaigns against Mongolians to the north and west. The third Ming emperor, Zhu Di, or the Yongle Emperor, in particular, took this philosophy a step further by personally leading military campaigns against the Mongolians. However, one of his most ambitious projects was the revival of China’s traditional tribute system whereby neighbouring countries agreed to recognise the superiority of China with the gifting of regular tribute gifts in exchange for military posts and trade treaties.