The Yongle Emperor launched the first state-sponsored “treasure fleet” expedition under Admiral Zheng He, inaugurating a program of long-range naval diplomacy and maritime security in the South China Sea and Indian Ocean.
During the first voyage, Zheng He’s forces defeated the pirate leader Chen Zuyi at Palembang (Sumatra), a key action framed in sources as protecting the Malacca Strait sea-lanes and asserting Ming coercive power abroad.
Zheng He’s second expedition sailed along established routes toward South Asia; accounts emphasize armed presence, diplomacy, and coercion where needed (including conflict on Sri Lanka).
The third voyage extended the reach of Ming maritime diplomacy, with Zheng He sailing beyond India’s main ports and connecting with networks leading to the Persian Gulf region.
The fourth expedition expanded operations to Hormuz and sent detachments toward the Arabian coast/Red Sea, demonstrating Ming capability for sustained, long-distance naval deployments and escorted diplomatic missions.
The fifth voyage revisited earlier routes including the Persian Gulf and East African ports, reinforcing tributary-diplomatic ties and signaling continued Ming interest in the security of Indian Ocean passages.
A sixth expedition was launched largely to convey envoys home, continuing Ming naval escort and presence across Southeast Asia and the wider Indian Ocean network.
After the Yongle Emperor’s death, court priorities shifted and the large-scale state expeditions were suspended, weakening the institutional basis for permanent Ming blue-water operations.
The final treasure voyage sailed under the Xuande Emperor, reasserting Ming naval diplomacy across Southeast Asia, South Asia, and westward routes into the Red Sea and East Africa spheres.
Zheng He died during the return phase of the seventh voyage (commonly placed at Calicut in spring 1433). The fleet returned to China, and no further comparable state expeditions were dispatched.
Facing intensifying coastal disorder and smuggling, the Ming created and filled an enhanced coastal-defense post: Zhu Wan became Grand Coordinator of Zhejiang with concurrent authority over Zhejiang–Fujian coastal defense, reflecting renewed attention to southern maritime security.
Zhu Wan was impeached for unauthorized executions; he was dismissed and later committed suicide. Sources describe his fall as followed by a reversion of his coastal policies and dispersal of forces, contributing to a maritime security vacuum.
Hu Zongxian rose to top-level coastal command structures during the Jiajing-era wokou crisis, becoming Supreme Commander for key southeastern regions (Zhejiang/Fujian and the Southern Metropolitan region), coordinating major counter-piracy and coastal-defense efforts.
Wang Zhi—one of the most prominent wokou-affiliated maritime powerbrokers—was captured during negotiations and executed by the Ming. Rather than instantly ending raids, sources note continued violence by associated bands afterward.
With the Longqing Emperor’s accession, the court adopted a more open maritime stance and pursued administrative and military measures to stabilize the southeast coast, contrasting with the preceding Jiajing-era restrictions.
The Ming government relaxed maritime prohibitions and designated Yuegang (Moon Port) in Fujian as a legal outlet for private overseas trade—an effort closely tied in scholarship to reducing incentives for smuggling and piracy while enabling taxation and regulation.
The large-scale coastal conflicts known as the Jiajing wokou raids are commonly dated from the 1540s through 1567; by this endpoint, sustained campaigns and policy change reduced the intensity of raids along China’s southeast littoral.
After legalization centered on Yuegang, Ming commanders continued clearing remaining pirate forces in the region; sources note Yu Dayou’s suppression campaigns in the area soon after the 1567 policy shift.
Ming Naval Expeditions and Southern Maritime Security Operations (1405–1570s)
