Weapons Used Aboard Ming Chinese Ships and Some Thoughts on the Armament of Zheng He’s Fleet

2019 ◽  
Vol 1 (2) ◽  
pp. 192-224
Author(s):  
Elke Papelitzky
Keyword(s):  
Indian Ocean ◽  
Long Range ◽  
Ming Dynasty ◽  
New Technology ◽  
General Information ◽  
Naval Warfare ◽  
Archaeological Data ◽  
The Indian Ocean ◽  
The Ming Dynasty

Abstract Zheng He’s fleet fought several battles during his seven voyages to the Indian Ocean. The ships thus had to be equipped with powerful weapons. Unfortunately, the sources directly related to Zheng He’s voyages do not mention in detail the armament of Zheng He’s ships. More general information on the armament of Ming ships is, however, abundant. By examining military writings such as Qi Jiguang’s Jixiao xinshu and Mao Yuanyi’s Wubeizhi, as well as archaeological data in the form of weapons excavated from shipwrecks, this article aims to trace the development of the equipment on ships during the Ming dynasty. The article shows that ships carried a patchwork of gunpowder and non-gunpowder weapons composed of old technology alongside new technology. The use of non-gunpowder weapons also developed during the mid-Ming, with weapons specialized for naval warfare appearing and javelins replacing bows as the primary non-gunpowder weapons for long-range attacks. The article also reviews the few sources available about the weapons used on Zheng He’s fleet.

From Zanzibar to Zaytun: Iranian Merchants across the Indian Ocean Basin

2018 ◽  
Vol 22 (2) ◽  
pp. 139-154
Author(s):  
Richard Foltz
Keyword(s):  
Popular Culture ◽  
Indian Ocean ◽  
Ocean Basin ◽  
16Th Century ◽  
Maritime Trade ◽  
Archaeological Data ◽  
Indian Ocean Trade ◽  
The Indian Ocean

The role of Iranian merchants in the maritime trade of the Indian Ocean basin from antiquity up to the 16th century is often underestimated. From scholarly histories to popular culture the “Muslim sailor” is typically portrayed as being an Arab. In fact, from pre-Islamic times the principal actors in Indian Ocean trade were predominantly Persian, as attested by the archaeological data, local written records, and the names of places and individuals.

Zheng He's Expeditions to the Western Ocean and His Navigation Technology

1992 ◽  
Vol 45 (3) ◽  
pp. 329-343 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sun Guangqi
Keyword(s):  
Indian Ocean ◽  
Fifteenth Century ◽  
Ming Dynasty ◽  
Western Pacific Ocean ◽  
African Countries ◽  
The World ◽  
Age Of Discovery ◽  
The Indian Ocean ◽  
The Western Pacific ◽  
Made In

Zheng He was the greatest navigator in China's history and he conducted major oceanic voyages, before the western ‘Age of Discovery’, at a time when the Portuguese under Prince Henry were just beginning to feel their way down the coast of Africa. Under the orders of Emperor Yongle and then Emperor Xuande in the Ming Dynasty, Zheng He led a fleet which was the greatest in the world in the fifteenth century and made, in all, seven expeditions to the Western Ocean from 1405 to 1433. His fleet sailed across most of the sea areas of the Western Pacific Ocean and the Indian Ocean, and visited more than thirty Asian and African countries and regions. This paper will mainly discuss the extraordinary achievements of Zheng He's expeditions and their navigational technology, and will also briefly evaluate their role in navigational history.

scholarly journals Zheng He Remains in Africa

2020 ◽  
Vol 37 (1) ◽  
pp. 57-73
Author(s):  
Ying-Kit Chan
Keyword(s):  
Indian Ocean ◽  
Southeast Asia ◽  
Central Asia ◽  
Ming Dynasty ◽  
Maritime Archaeology ◽  
Chinese Government ◽  
Belt And Road Initiative ◽  
Belt And Road ◽  
The Indian Ocean ◽  
Chinese Intellectuals

In recent years, China has sought to extend its Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) from Central Asia and Southeast Asia to Africa. This article argues that Chinese officials, aided by Chinese maritime archaeologists, journalists and researchers, have used discourses of heritage and history as a form of soft padding to justify China's infrastructure projects in Africa. Zheng He, a Ming dynasty admiral, who had allegedly visited East Africa in four of his seven famous voyages across the Indian Ocean, is particularly important in China's narrative of its historical relations with Africa. The details of Zheng He's engagement with Africa remain contested by historians, especially those in Western academia. The Chinese government thus supports 'sub-initiatives' of heritage and history construction, namely maritime archaeology, travel journalism and student fellowships, to substantiate the legacy of Zheng He in Africa. By suggesting that China and Africa also share the legacy of having been exploited, humiliated and victimized by European colonial powers, Chinese intellectuals have fashioned the BRI into an anti-imperialist discourse for acceptance by their African counterparts.

The Oceans Become Global

2021 ◽  
pp. 16-38
Author(s):  
David Bosco
Keyword(s):  
Indian Ocean ◽  
Long Range ◽  
15Th Century ◽  
Ocean Governance ◽  
Hugo Grotius ◽  
The Indian Ocean ◽  
Inherent Nature ◽  
The Right ◽  
Do So

Aspects of ocean governance have ancient roots, including early anti-piracy campaigns and basic rules for maritime commerce. Sovereign rulers periodically attempted to control ocean space but usually lacked the means to do so. As Spain and Portugal mastered the art of long-range seafaring in the 15th century, however, they attempted to divide the world’s oceans between them, an effort that still stands as one of the most ambitious attempts to divide up the oceans. During that period, Portugal tried to exclude outsiders from the Indian Ocean and asserted the right to control all shipping in the area. Portuguese claims prompted objections from other European powers and set the stage for the Dutch lawyer Hugo Grotius to articulate the doctrine of a “free sea,” based on what he saw as the inherent nature of the oceans. While it faced several rebuttals, Grotius’s conception of the oceans mostly prevailed.

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