Between 1405 and 1433, during the Ming Dynasty, the Chinese explorer Zheng He made seven long voyages with his grand fleets under the order of Emperor Zhu Di.

These expeditions reached as far as the Western Pacific and Indian Ocean, including more than thirty countries and regions, the farthest points, as far as we know, being eastern Africa and the Red Sea.

Zheng He's fleets were the largest (in terms of the number of ships and crew) and his voyages the longest (in terms of time) in ancient China.

They also made the largest series of maritime expeditions in world history before the great geographical discovery by Europeans at the end of the 15th century.

They furthered the exchanges between Chinese and foreign civilizations, and also provided subsequent generations with nautical charts and knowledge of the countries and geography along these routes.