China Turned Away From Overseas Expansion In The 15th Century - Assignment Example

24 November CHINA TURNED AWAY FROM OVERSEAS EXPANSION IN THE 15TH CENTURY In the 15th Century, China has been considered as the highly developed civilization in the world. However, due to its unwillingness to engage in maritime expansionism caused its expected downfall. As accounted for in history, the European age of discovery and invasion was made possible through the “wind-power sail by adventurous seamen including Vasco de Gama, Christopher Columbus and James Cook, who explored the countries of India, America, Tahiti and Australia” (Glasgow 71).

It is noteworthy to mention that it in the case of China, it was “during the time of Admiral Cheng Ho during the year 1404-1433, when China undertook seven official long-distance overseas expeditions consisting of several hundreds of ships and tens of thousands of sailors” Glasgow 71). It was at this moment when China’s trade prowess flourished based on the number of their victorious expeditions. It was accounted in history books that the Chinese “swelled the emperor’s coffers with precious stones, such as pearls, coral, ivory, gemstones and rare woods, and added his private zoo consisting of lions, leopards, ostrich, zebras, oryx and even a giraffe” (Glasgow 71).

However, this became the last successful expedition for China, as history tells us that the construction of sea-going vessels was prohibited by the “imperial edict, and another order outlawed ships with more than two masts. The ships and vessels of Cheng Ho were never allowed to sail again. Such order was influenced mainly by “Confucian conservatism, which signified mandarin bureaucracy’s disfavor of warfare, trade and commerce which led China to turn its back on overseas expansion, which paved the way for Europe to seize and conquer the civilized world” (Glasgow 71).

References: Glasgow, R.D. The Concept of Water. R. Glasgow Publishing, 2009. Print.