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May 12, 1360
Yonglo becomes Ming Emperor
Zhu Di's Early Life: Zhu Di was born on May 2, 1360 to the future founder of the Ming Dynasty, Zhu Yuanzhang, and an unknown mother. Although officially the boy's mother was the future Empress Ma, rumors persist that his true biological mother was a Korean or Mongolian consort of Zhu Yuanzhang. Some scholars even speculate that Zhu Di was actually the son of Toghun Temur, the last Yuan Emperor; they note that Zhu Di "inherited" some concubines from the defeated Mongol ruler, one of whom might -
Mar 6, 1394
Prince Henry of Portugal is born
Started a Navigation School. -
Jul 11, 1405
Zheng He captains his first voyage
Between 1405 and 1433, Ming China sent out seven gigantic naval expeditions under the command of Zheng He the great eunuch admiral. These expeditions traveled along the Indian Ocean trade routes as far as Arabia and the coast of East Africa, but in 1433, the government suddenly called them off. Scholars have wondered for centuries, "What prompted the end of the Treasure Fleet?" In part, the sense of surprise and even bewilderment that the Ming government's decision elicits in western observers -
Mar 12, 1488
B. Dias reaches Cape of Good Hope
Bartolomeu Dias, a nobleman of the Portuguese royal household, was a Portuguese explorer. He sailed around the southernmost tip of Africa in 1488, the first European known to have done so. Wikipedia Born: 1451, Algarve Died: May 29, 1500, Cape of Good Hope Nationality: Portuguese Siblings: Diogo Dias -
Jan 2, 1492
Ferdinand & Isabella end war with Muslims
The Spanish Inquisition: AD 1478-1834 In 1478 the pope, Sixtus IV, allows Ferdinand and Isabella to establish a special branch of the Inquisition in Spain. There is believed to be a danger to the church from Jews masquerading as Christians. Such Jews are referred to as marranos ('swine'). Their conversion is the result of anti-Semitic violence during the previous century. To escape the likelihood of death at the hands of Christian mobs, many Jews (probably about 100,000) accept baptism. But a -
Jan 8, 1494
Spain & Portugal agree to Treaty of Tordesillas
The Treaty of Tordesillas was agreed upon by the Spanish and the Portuguese to clear up confusion on newly claimed land in the New World. The early 1400s brought about great advances in European exploration. In order make trade more efficient, Portugal attempted to find a direct water route to the India and China. By using a direct water route, Arab merchants, who owned land trade routes, were not able to make a profit off of the European trade merchants. After Columbus discovered the New World. -
Jan 8, 1502
Vasco da Gama lands in India
D. Vasco da Gama, 1st Count of Vidigueira, was a Portuguese explorer, one of the most successful in the Age of Discovery and the commander of the first ships to sail directly from Europe to India. Wikipedia Born: 1469, Sines Died: December 24, 1524, Kochi Spouse: Catarina de Ataíde (m. 1501) Buried: Jerónimos Monastery Children: Estêvão da Gama, Cristovão da Gama, More Parents: Estêvão da Gama, Isabel Sodré -
English East India Company is founded
16001874, company chartered by Queen Elizabeth I for trade with Asia. The original object of the group of merchants involved was to break the Dutch monopoly of the spice trade with the East Indies. However, after 1623, when the English traders at Amboina were massacred by the Dutch, the company admitted defeat in that endeavor and concentrated its activities in India. It had established its first factory at Machilipatnam in 1611, and it gradually acquired unequaled trade privileges from the Mug -
Dutch East India Company is founded
Dutch East India Company 1602–1798, chartered by the States-General of the Netherlands to expand trade and assure close relations between the government and its colonial enterprises in Asia. The company was granted a monopoly on Dutch trade E of the Cape of Good Hope and W of the Strait of Magellan. From its headquarters at Batavia (founded 1619) the company subdued local rulers, drove the British and Portuguese from Indonesia, Malaya, and Ceylon (Sri Lanka), and arrogated to itself the fabulous
