“Ming treasure voyages”
Write research proposal (3 pages) and annotated bibliography with 10 sources (2 pages), totaling 5 pages.
During the Ming Dynasty in China, Zheng He led seven maritime expeditions call “Ming treasure voyages” between 1405 and 1433.
Possible topics are:
Factors that caused the cease of the voyage in 1433.
The impact to China and the world of the cease of the voyage in 1433.
From the Portuguese Empire’s perspective, the ships it used for its expansion in 1400s around Africa and 1500s into Asia was not as great as those in “Ming treasure voyages”. Possible questions are:
How would the Portuguese compete with China Ming Dynasty if the “Ming treasure voyages” did not cease in 1433?
Since the goals of the Portuguese Empire’s expansion and China’s “Ming treasure voyages” are different, would they co-exist if the “Ming treasure voyages” did not cease in 1433?
Create a specific topic related to the above items. An important point is that this is a China history course, not a Portuguese/European history course, so the focus is China history.
