Zheng He 郑和 zhèng hé was a famous
Chinese seafarer of the 15th Century. He was born in Kunyang, a town
in the Chinese province of Yunnan. As a child, he was inspired to
travel and go on expeditions.
In 1368 CE, the Han Chinese who
desperately wantedChinaback
from the Mongols finally wrestled power back from the Northern and
Central Asian invaders. Thus, began the MingDynasty,
after the fall of the Yuan (Mongol)Dynastywhich
had reigned for almost a hundred years. The remaining Mongols turned
rebels and some moved westward. Some of the rebels hid out in the
south-western province of Yunnan.
in 1381 CE, General Fu Youde and
General Lan Yushuahi with hordes of Ming soldiers were dispatched by
the first Ming Emperor Zhu Yuanzhang to wipe out the remnant Mongol
rebels in Yunnan. The military engagements were, however,
multi-pronged; as they included capturing boys and young men to beef
up the human resource of the Ming Palace.
These male captives became members of
the Palace Eunuchs. (During the MingDynastyand
otherChinese
Dynastiesas well,
eunuchs were important personnel of the Palace as they often
entrusted with many government positions. The positions included,
but were not limited to, guardians of harems, court officials and
servants. Some eunuchs were even made advisers to the Emperor.
Eunuchs were favored because they could not have families of their
own. Castrated, they were unable to father children.
Ten years after he was born in
Kunyang, Ma He (later to be known as Zheng He) was captured by an
army of Ming soldiers who were bent on getting rid of Mongol rebels
in the area. Whisked to the Grand Palace in Beiping (later to be
known as Beijing) some 2000 kilometers away, Ma He was assigned to
work for the Prince of Yan, Zhu Di. Like many other male captives,
Ma He was castrated. However, he did not yield to the forced
deformity that was bestowed upon him.
Instead, he worked diligently and
intelligently. Ma He was determined to succeed. He had the courage,
strength and looks. He was even reputed to be almost seven feet
tall! Soon, he gained the favor of Zhu Di and rose above all
eunuchs.
Emperor Zhu Yuanzhang passed away and
was succeeded by Emperor Jianwen. In 1399 CE, civil war erupted with
the Battle of Jingnan. Zhu Di fought against the second Ming Emperor
Jianwen to gain control of Nanjing, the capital of the MingDynasty.
Ma He fought well for Zhu Di. He was fearless and gallant. In 1402,
Zhu Di's army with Ma He's strategic leadership captured Nanjing.
Zhu Di became the third Ming Emperor.
As a reward, he bestowed Ma He the title "Zheng"; hence the name we
used today to refer to this great voyager: Zheng He.
Zheng He continued to be invaluable
service to Emperor Zhu Di. Zheng He was so revered that he was also
given the name "Sanbao" (meaning: The Three Treasures of The Three
Jewels).
In 1405 CE, Zheng He was honored with
the responsibility to lead 27,800 crew members in 62 seafaring
vessels to voyage from Nanjing to the South China Sea and the Indian
Ocean. That was to be the first of seven of Zheng He's renowned
voyages.
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Pelaut
Cina terkemuka pada kurun ke-15. Laksamana Zheng He 郑和 zhèng hé
mengetuai angkatan laut Cina dalam tujuh pelayaran di antara
tahun 1405 dan 1433.