Ming Dynasty
明朝
Maritime Expeditions of Zheng He
郑和下西洋
During the Ming period, the emperors sent seven maritime expeditions probing down into the South Seas and across the Indian Ocean.
明朝时期，皇帝共派遣了7支海上探险队去探索南海和整个印度洋。
Yongle Emperor (永乐帝) strenuously tried to extend China’s influence beyond her borders by encouraging other rulers to send ambassadors to China to present tribute.
永乐帝通过命令他国的领袖派使者前来进贡，费尽心力想要将中国的影响力延伸至版图之外。
The Chinese armies reconquered Annam and blocked Mongol expansionism, while the Chinese fleet sailed the China seas and the Indian Ocean, cruising as far as the east coast of Africa.
当中国的舰队航行在中国的海域和印度洋上，巡航远至非洲的东海岸时，中国军队夺回了安南，阻止了蒙古的扩张。
The Chinese gained a certain influence over Turkestan.
中国在土耳其斯坦获得了一定的影响力。
The maritime Asian nations sent envoys with tribute for the Chinese emperor.
海上的亚洲国家派使者带着超贡品来参见中国皇帝。
Internally, the Grand Canal was expanded to its farthest limits and proved to be a stimulus to domestic trade.
国内，大运河延伸到了它史上最远的地方，它对于贸易的刺激作用得以证明。
The most extraordinary venture, however, during this stage was the dispatch Zheng He’s (郑和）seven naval expeditions， which traversed the Indian Ocean and the Southeast Asian archipelago.
然而，在这个时期最超凡的一场冒险是郑和七下西洋，他横渡了印度洋和东南亚群岛。
An ambitious Muslim eunuch of Hui descent, a quintessential outsider in the establishment of Confucian scholar elites, Zheng He led seven expeditions from 1405 to 1433 with six of them under the auspices of Yongle.
作为一个具有野心的拥有回族血统的穆斯林太监、一个典型的游离于儒家学者精英体制之外的人，郑和在1405到1433年间七下西洋，其中六次都在永乐帝的支持下进行。
He traversed perhaps as far as the Cape of Good Hope.
他的征程远达好望角。

The first expedition in 1405 consisted of 62 ships and 28 000 men---- then the largest naval expedition in history.
1405年的第一支探险队由62艘船和28000人组成，这是历史上最庞大的一次海上探险。
Zheng He’s multi-decked ships carried up to 500 troops but also cargoes of export goods, mainly silks and porcelains, and brought back foreign luxuries such as spices and tropical woods.
郑和的多甲板舰船不仅携带了500支军队，还装载了出口货品，其中主要是丝绸和瓷器，他带回了国外的奢侈品如香料和热带森林的木材。
The economic motive for these huge ventures may have been important , and many of the ships had large private cabins for merchants.
这些大冒险的经济动机是很重要的，大部分船只上都有提供给商人的私人小屋。
But the chief aim was probably political, to enroll further states as tributaries and mark the reemergence of the Chinese Empire following nearly a century of barbarian rule.
但是探险的主要目的可能还是政治性的，它为了进一步征收其他国家为朝贡国并证明汉人王朝在经历了一个世纪蛮人的统治后的再次复兴。
The political character of Zheng He’s voyages indicates the primacy of the political elites.
郑和船队的政治特性表明了政治精英的主导地位。
Despite their formidable and unprecedented strength, Zheng He’s voyages were not intended to extend Chinese sovereignty overseas.
尽管具有强大的、前所未有的实力，郑和的舰队并没有打算拓展中国海外的版图。
Zheng He sailed from China to many places throughout South Pacific, Indian Ocean, Persian Gulf and distant Africa in seven epic voyages from 1405 to 1433，some 80 years before Columbus’s voyages.
郑和在1405到1433年建的7次远航中从中国起航到达了许多地方，包括南太平洋、印度洋、波斯湾和遥远的非洲，这比哥伦布的船队要早了约80年。
These explorations have impressed themselves deeply into the voyage history of the world.
这些探索使他们在世界航海史上留下了深深的印记。