Commanded seven Ming treasure-fleet voyages across the Indian Ocean, reaching Arabia and East Africa.
7 voyages 42 dated stops
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Route data is compiled in chronological order from Wikipedia's voyage articles (CC BY-SA), cross-checked against primary source narratives and historical records. Waypoints mark approximate port, bay, and landfall locations — not survey-grade ship positions — and should be verified against detailed historical charts and logs before being treated as authoritative. Coordinates for remote stops and open-ocean legs are estimated and approximate.
Demonstrate Ming imperial prestige, extract tribute from Southeast Asian kingdoms, and open trade relations to India.
Zheng He's first voyage was the largest fleet the world had ever seen. Departing from Liujiagang near Suzhou in summer 1405, it called at Champa (Vietnam), Java, Palembang (defeating pirate Chen Zuyi), Malacca, Ceylon, and Calicut. At Calicut the admiral presented gifts and received tribute. On Ceylon, the king Alagonakkara attacked the Chinese and was captured — the first time a distant monarch had been deposed by a Chinese expedition.
On accuracy: Ports of call from Ma Huan's Yingya Shenglan and the Yongle Emperor's edicts. Exact routes between ports estimated; open-ocean paths approximate.
02 · 1407–1409
Second Treasure Voyage
~50 ships · 5 stops
Escort foreign envoys home and consolidate the tributary network from the first voyage.
The second voyage primarily escorted home the many foreign envoys who had accompanied Zheng He back to Nanjing. It returned to the ports established on the first voyage — Champa, Java, Siam, Malacca, Calicut — consolidating the Ming tributary network. Cochin was visited for the first time.
On accuracy: Limited records survive; ports approximated from imperial edicts and Ma Huan's later compilation.
03 · 1409–1411
Third Treasure Voyage
~48 ships · 5 stops
Assert Ming authority in Ceylon; extend Indian contacts.
The third voyage extended the Indian Ocean network. A secondary squadron under Yin Qing visited Hormuz for the first time, marking the first Chinese contact with the Persian Gulf. Zheng He defeated King Alagonakkara of Ceylon again, bringing him and his court to Nanjing as tribute payers.
On accuracy: Hormuz contact via secondary squadron only. Ceylon campaign details from Ma Huan.
04 · 1413–1415
Fourth Treasure Voyage
63 ships · 6 stops
Reach the Persian Gulf and Arabian Peninsula; first Chinese contact with East Africa.
The fourth voyage was Zheng He's first personal visit to Hormuz and the Arabian Peninsula. He called at Aden (Yemen) and Mogadishu and Malindi (Somalia/Kenya) — the first Chinese fleet to reach East Africa. The Sultan of Malindi sent a giraffe to Nanjing, identified with the mythological qilin and celebrated as a sign of Heaven's approval.
On accuracy: East African landfalls confirmed by the giraffe tribute and diplomatic letters in the Ming Shilu. Mogadishu and Malindi from Fei Xin.
05 · 1417–1419
Fifth Treasure Voyage
~50 ships · 5 stops
Escort home the foreign ambassadors who had come to Nanjing; extend East Africa contacts.
The fifth voyage again escorted foreign delegations home, this time from as far as East Africa and Arabia. Zheng He returned to all established ports, consolidating China's maritime sphere which now stretched 12,000 km from China to the Swahili ports of East Africa.
On accuracy: Route follows the established pattern; specific waypoints from the Ming Shilu and Fei Xin's Xingcha Shenglan.
06 · 1421–1422
Sixth Treasure Voyage
~40 ships · 4 stops
Escort remaining foreign envoys home; reinforce the tributary network.
The sixth voyage escorted back envoys collected on the fifth voyage. The Yongle Emperor — Zheng He's greatest patron — died in 1424 while the fleet was at sea. His successor Hongxi immediately suspended the voyages and ordered Zheng He to remain in Nanjing as garrison commander. The great voyages were over — for now.
On accuracy: Sixth voyage poorly documented in the Ming Shilu; exact ports uncertain. Yongle's death and suspension of voyages historically confirmed.
07 · 1431–1433
Seventh Treasure Voyage — The Last
100+ ships; ~27,500 crew · 9 stops
Restore the tributary network after a 10-year hiatus; reach Hormuz and East Africa for the final time.
The seventh and final voyage was launched after a decade-long ban. It visited all established ports and pushed further — a sub-squadron reached Jeddah, 90 km from Mecca. Zheng He died during the return, probably at Calicut, in 1433. After his death, conservative Confucian officials dismantled the treasure fleet programme and destroyed the logbooks; China turned decisively inward.
On accuracy: Best-documented voyage due to the Liujiagong stele (1431) and Changle stele (1432) left by Zheng He himself. His death during the return is widely accepted; exact location uncertain.
Sculpture in Zheng He Park, Kunyang, featuring a young Zheng He with his father Ma HajjiUser:Vmenkov · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Wikimedia Commons
Zheng He (Wade-Giles: Chêng Ho; 1371–1433/1435) was a Chinese admiral and diplomat from the early Ming dynasty. His extensive explorations along the Indian Ocean led to a major increase in China's political and commercial influence. He was born into a Muslim family as Ma He and later adopted the surname Zheng conferred onto him by the Yongle Emperor (r. 1402–1424). He is also widely known in Chinese culture by the alias San Bao (三宝/三保), also spelled Sam Po, which in names of Southeast Asian temples can refer either to him or to the Three Jewels of Buddhism.
Between 1405 and 1433, Zheng commanded seven treasure voyages across Asia under the commission of the Yongle Emperor and the succeeding Xuande Emperor (r. 1425–1435). According to legend, Zheng's largest ships were almost twice as long as any wooden ship ever recorded, and carried hundreds of sailors on four decks. As emphasised by Tansen Sen, the powerful Ming navy brought a new militaristic presence to the Indian Ocean. It also encouraged state-controlled trade networks extending from China all the way to the Swahili coast of Africa.
A favorite of the Yongle Emperor, whom Zheng assisted in the Jingnan campaign that overthrew the previous Jianwen Emperor in 1402, Zheng He rose to the top of the Ming imperial hierarchy and served as commander of the southern capital Nanjing.
Voyages of Zheng HeSY · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia CommonsThe Kangnido map (1402) predates Zheng's voyages and suggests that he had quite detailed geographical information on much of East Asia and moderate information on the rest of the Old World.Kim Sahyung, Lee Moo, Lee Hui · Public domain · Wikimedia CommonsDetail of the Fra Mauro map relating the travels of a junk into the Atlantic Ocean in 1420. The ship also is illustrated above the text.Public domain · Wikimedia CommonsArtist's illustration of Zheng He's fleetKosov vladimir 09071967 · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons