Zheng He

Zheng He (1371-1433) was a Chinese admiral, diplomat and explorer of the early Ming dynasty. Born into a Muslim family in Yunnan and captured as a boy to serve as a court eunuch, he rose to become a trusted commander under the Yongle Emperor, who placed him in charge of a series of seven massive maritime expeditions between 1405 and 1433. His fleets, vastly larger than any in Europe at the time, sailed across the Indian Ocean as far as East Africa and the Arabian Peninsula, extending China's political and commercial influence and collecting tribute from dozens of states. The voyages ended after his death amid a shift in Ming court policy away from overseas expansion.