The Chinese admiral Zheng He, sets sail on his first voyage to explore the Indian Ocean on July 11, 1405. He commanded the largest and most advanced fleet the world had ever seen with 317 ships and nearly 28,000 crew.
The voyages were intended to showcase the Ming Dynasty's power and culture and bring foreign treasures back to the Ming court, establish diplomatic relations, and engage in trade. Departing from Nanjing, the fleet sailed to Southeast Asia including Champa (Vietnam), Java, and Malacca, before crossing the Indian Ocean to reach the southwest coast of India, specifically Calicut and Ceylon (Sri Lanka). Zheng made a total of seven voyages. He died on the return of the seventh trip in 1433 and was buried at sea. More
Jendul, CC BY-SA 4.0 , via Wikimedia Commons (Cropped)
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