Start of Ming Treasure Voyages

Date: July 11, 1405 • Location: Hidaybu, Yemen

This milestone marked the outbreak and beginning of this historic period, which spanned 1405–1433.

Marking the start of the Ming treasure voyages, a Chinese expeditionary fleet led by Zheng He set sail for foreign regions of the South China Sea and the Indian Ocean.

Ming China's treasure fleet undertook maritime expeditions between 1405 and 1433. The Yongle Emperor ordered the construction of the fleet in 1403. The grand project resulted in seven far-reaching ocean voyages to the coastal territories and islands of the South China Sea and Indian Ocean. Admiral Zheng He was commissioned to command the fleet for the expeditions. Six of the voyages occurred during the Yongle Emperor's reign and the seventh voyage occurred during the Xuande Emperor's reign. The first three voyages reached up to Calicut on India's Malabar Coast, while the fourth voyage went as far as Hormuz in the Persian Gulf. In the last three voyages, the fleet traveled up to the Arabian Peninsula and East Africa.