CHIN 50W Lecture Notes - Lecture 14: Hongwu Emperor, Written Vernacular Chinese, Zhang Xianzhong
Document Summary
The ships had different compartments, so if one sprang a leak it could be contained. This meant the ship could be repaired while still at sea. The new emperor and officials at court opposed the voyages, on the surface because of their expense. However also to restrict the power of the eunuchs who controlled the navy. Zheng he died in 1433 and his fleet was disbanded. Yongle made military expeditions to the north to conquer the mongols, but all were defeated. 1449 a leader named esen united a group of mongols called the oirats. The eunuchs convinced the zhengtong emperor to go to war against esen. They were defeated and the mongols kidnapped the emperor and took him to mongolia. The court decided the appoint zhengtong"s brother as the new emperor. The new emperor forced zhengtong to renounce the throne. When he fell ill, zhengtong usurped the throne again and reigned as tianshun.
