Admiral Zheng He (Mahmoud Shams od-Din) of China’s Ming Dynasty

Compiled By: Syed Ali Shahbaz
On July 6, 1411 AD, Admiral Zheng He (Mahmoud Shams od-Din) of China’s Ming Dynasty returned to Nanjing after his second voyage and presented the Sinhalese king, captured during the Ming–Kotte War, to the Yongle Emperor. In 1405 AD, he set sail to explore the world on the first of his seven voyages that took him to Southeast Asia, the Subcontinent, Arabia, Iran, and Africa.
He was the great-great-great-grandson of Seyyed Ajal Shams od-Din, the Iranian statesman who served in the administration of the Mongol Empire, and was appointed governor of Yunnan by the Yuan Dynasty. Born in 1371, his father and grandfather were both Hajis, who had performed pilgrimage to holy Mecca. As a 10-year boy, Mahmoud was captured by the Ming, who castrated him and gave him the Chinese name of Zheng He.
Nonetheless, his indomitable spirit made him to overcome his physical handicap to rise as a general, diplomat, courtier and admiral. He commanded a flotilla of several hundred galleys, including huge five-decked ships, on each of his voyages in the span of 28 years, and in addition to demonstrating the might of China through presents to the rulers of lands he visited, he brought back home exotic things and animals including zebras, giraffes and ostriches. During his last journey in 1433, at the age of 62, he died off the coast of Calicut (Kozhikode), southern India, and was buried at sea.