Travelling with him was a host of personnel including sailors，officials，carpenters，doctors，translators，and so on.The capabilities，preparations，and scale of the fleets were unparalleled in the world at that time.Sixty-two treasure ships held silk，ceramics，gold and silver objects，copper and steel objects，all kinds of products.The ships set sail from Liuhe Town，Taicang，Jiangsu（known as Liujia Port in olden times），they passed through Fujian and Guangdong to the central part of Vietnam，Java，Sri Lanka，Calicut，and other places.The first three voyages primarily visited Southeast Asia：Vietnam，Cambodia，Philippines，Indonesia，Singapore，Malaysia，Thailand，Burma，and Sri Lanka.Each time he arrived in a country，Zheng He would go on shore and pay his visit with the status of an official Chinese envoy.He would extend gifts.
Zheng He’s fourth voyage took him to the furthest places，the shores of the Red Sea and the eastern coastof Africa.These voyages were to have a considerableinfluence on coastal countries that he visited.They stirred up strong interest in visiting Ming-dynasty China and meeting with the emperor.The king and queen of what is now Kalimantan did come to Nanjing to visit，and were received by the Ming Emperor Chengzu，also rulers from Mali in East Africa who personally led a delegation to visit China.Unfortunately，the Mali king died in Fuzhou of illness.In the nineteenth year of the Yongle reign（1421），the envoys of 16 countries arrived in Nanjing.The primary mission of Zheng He’s sixth voyage was to return these sixteen emissaries safely to their home countries.On his seventh voyage，he specifically went to visit Mecca，the holy site of the Islam religion.On his return voyage，passing through“Guli”（now India’s Calicut），he unfortunately passed away，dying honorably in his post of captain of an ocean-going fleet.
Zheng He’s seven voyages strengthened the friendly relations of the Chinese people and the people of Asia and Africa，they displayed the fact that Chinese were building ships and had the various forms of technology necessary for such voyages.They proved that，at thattime，China occupied the premier position in the world in the field of navigation.Zheng He’s voyages were a magnificent feat，representing a high point in efforts at global navigation for that age.The people of many Asian and African countries feel lingering affection for this envoy of Chinese friendship named“sanbao.”Today，one can still find traces of his passage：there is a Sanbao City on Java in Indonesia，as well as a Sanbao Mosque，In Thailand there is a Sanbao Temple and a Sanbao Tower.
The emperor who sent Zheng He off on his voyages was intrepid and astute.Zhu Di was the fourth son of Zhu Yuanzhang，the founder of the dynasty.He seized the throne using the pretext of putting down a rebellion.In order to repress any opposition and consolidate his power，his rule was extremely severe.And yet at the same time his reign was characterized by a growing economy and he attempted to establish an open，strong，and unified kingdom.He consolidated his frontiers.After taking power，he made five expeditions into Mongolia，pursuing and attacking the remnants of the Mongol army and relieving the Ming Dynasty of its northern threat.He dredged the Grand Canal，he developed communications，he moved the capital and his military presence to Beijing，becoming the first Han-nationality emperor to establish his capital in that city.Zhu Di focused on restoring a healthy economy and on providing a livelihood for the people.He organized scholars to compile and edit the Yongle Encyclopedia，which contains more than 370 million characters’worth of information.He strengthened and consolidated his methods of rule，he established ruled over national minorities in the northeast.The merits of his reign were many，and it can be said that he presided over a country that was at the time the strongest in the world.The land area of the country under the Ming Dynasty，the area of tillable land，the number of total population，the tonnage carried by fleets，all were number one in the world.
