Zheng He's voyages and why Ming China turned inward
Grade 7 Social Studies Worksheet - Building Confidence
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Zheng He's voyages (cards A to D; summaries in our words). Card A, a chart of the seven voyages: the 1st to 3rd, 1405 to 1411, reached Calicut on India's Malabar Coast; the 4th, ordered in 1412, reached Hormuz in the Persian Gulf; the 5th to 7th, to 1433, reached Arabia and East Africa, such as Mogadishu and Malindi. The fleets carried silk, porcelain and other goods and gifts. Zheng He, born in 1371, commanded all seven voyages. Card B, Ma Huan: a translator who sailed on three of the voyages wrote a book for Chinese readers about the lands he visited, The Overall Survey of the Ocean's Shores. Card C, a stone tablet set up in 1431 (some sources say 1432) in Fujian by Zheng He and other officers to give thanks for safe passage and to record the voyages. It says the fleets had visited more than thirty countries. Card D, what changed in the ports: port towns on the route saw Chinese silk and porcelain arrive, and more ports were linked into one trading network. Chinese porcelain has since been dug up in East African ports.
Why would Zheng He and other officers set up the tablet in card C, Bo asks?
- To record the voyages in a lasting public form and show the officers' service
- To warn the farmers of Fujian that foreign fleets would soon be arriving there
- To keep the voyages secret from the emperor and from the people of Fujian
- To help historians in the 2000s count the countries that the fleets visited
Which two pieces of evidence best support the claim that Chinese fleets reached East Africa, Esme asks?
- Card A alone, because a chart is enough to settle where each fleet went
- Card A names East African ports, and card D reports porcelain dug up in them
- Neither, because a chart and objects dug from the ground are not evidence
- Cards B and C, which both mention the voyages and so must mention East Africa
The first voyage began in 1405 and the last ended in 1433 (card A). How many years did the seven voyages span, Jun asks?
- 38 years, since 1433 minus 1405 is 38 after regrouping
- 28 years from the first voyage to the last, since 1433 minus 1405 is 28
- 280 years, since 1433 minus 1405 is 280 in this case
- 62 years, the age of Zheng He in 1433 when the last voyage ended
Card A says Zheng He was born in 1371 and the first voyage began in 1405. How old was he when it began, Kira asks?
- 62 years old, the age at which the last voyage ended in 1433
- 340 years old, since 1405 minus 1371 is 340 in this case
- 44 years old, since 1405 minus 1371 is 44 after regrouping
- 34 years old when it began, since 1405 minus 1371 is 34
A student writes, "Zheng He's fleets sailed to Europe." What does card A show, Luz asks?
- It shows the fleets sailed to Europe, since they reached the Persian Gulf
- It shows the fleets carried silk and porcelain, so they must have sold them in Europe
- It shows the fleets sailed to Europe on the 7th voyage, which ended in 1433
- India, the Persian Gulf, Arabia and East Africa are farthest, with no European port
How might Ma Huan and an official who stayed in China each describe the voyages, Milo asks?
- Both would describe them in the same way, since both worked for the Ming government
- Ma Huan may describe places and people he saw, while an official may stress the emperor's glory
- Ma Huan would stress the emperor's glory, while the official would describe the places seen on the voyages
- Ma Huan would describe the cost of the fleets, while the official would describe the farms
Card D says Chinese porcelain has been dug up in East African ports. Which chain links the voyages to that find, Noah asks?
- Storms washed the porcelain ashore, so the fleets did not reach the ports
- Fleets carried porcelain as goods and gifts, ports received it, and it later turned up
- Porcelain came by land from Arabia, so the voyages played no part in the find
- East African ports made the porcelain and sent it to China on the Ming fleets as goods and gifts
A student writes, "The fleets visited exactly thirty countries." Which words in card C challenge that, Pia asks?
- "in Fujian", which shows that the fleets sailed from a port in Fujian
- "more than thirty countries", which gives a floor rather than an exact count
- "set up in 1431", which shows the tablet was made before the last voyage began
- "Zheng He and other officers", which shows that the officers visited each country
Which new find would best test whether the fleets reached East Africa, Ren asks?
- A list of the names of the ships that sailed with the fleets on each voyage
- A map of the Chinese coast drawn in the 1400s that shows the ports the fleets left from
- Dated Chinese coins from the early 1400s found at a port site in East Africa
- A modern book that repeats card A's list of ports in new words for students
Card C says the fleets visited more than thirty countries. How should Zee treat that claim?
- As the voyagers' own claim, made to record their service, to check with other sources
- As the full account, since the officers who sailed knew the voyages well
- As proven, since the claim was carved in stone and so cannot be wrong
- As false, since the officers who set up the tablet had reasons to boast about their trips