Marco Polo's Influence On The World

Marco Polo was a renowned explorer in the medieval era and he wrote the work in which most of our past understanding of the regions is remembered today. He was born in 1252 in Venice and later deceased in Venice at the age of 70 in 1352. The reason he so is so famous and remembered today is because he reached the farthest on his 24 year journey down the silk road reaching extents of China and Mongolian empire. To begin with Marco Polo was born into a wealthy family who was known for their travels and spread of merchantability already and a young Marco Polo would begin his journey as early as 14-16 Years old. Though his date of birth is unknown and the exact location his family was a big name in the Venice community making it only seem fitting. This paper is going to correlate to the book found in the franciscan library at Saint Bonaventure, “Did Marco Polo Really Go to China” by Dr. Wood; she does a scholarly review questioning whether or not Mr. Polo really carried out the things he said to have done and has he actually visited the regions in which he said he's went too. Before we begin though we cannot fully disprove the veracity of the journey in which Mr. polo took because other explorers have also left out important historical happenings when discovering new regions and cultures. Born in 1254 in Venetian Republic, Marco Polo headed to Asia with his merchant father (weapons trader supposedly as we will later touch on) . He would spend the next 24 years exploring

2. Skeptics question the authenticity of Marco Polo’s account, citing his omission of such things as the great wall, tea, and calligraphy. How important is the veracity of the narrative to our overall assessment of its value to history.

Nowadays the wide array of transportation means and infrastructures at our disposal has made it relatively easy for us to travel from one country to another; even when those countries are thousands of miles away from each other. However, during the 13th and 14th centuries, travelling was not that easy. Yet, two men, the Italian tradesman Marco Polo and the Moroccan Jurist Ibn Battuta became famous for having managed to perform extremely long distance journeys away from their home country. At the end of their long travels, both men shared their experiences with the world via the books, The Travels of Marco Polo and The Travels of Ibn Battuta. An analysis of those two texts reveals two things. On one hand, Marco Polo remained a cultural

Marco Polo, who was possibly the most famous European to visit China while under Mongol rule, left Venice in 1271 and did not return until 1295. Khubilai Khan was a grandson of Chinggis Khan and eventually became the fifth Great Khan of the Mongol Empire.This analysis will discuss what Marco Polo experienced while visiting China concerning Khubailai’s views on Christianity and other religions.

Had they not experienced this kind of exposure, they would be unfamiliar with Polo’s culture, and would not assimilate him into their culture the way that they did. Conversely, Polo encountered many different regions on his travels, giving him an open world view. Had he not, the merchant would have seen the Chinese in a negative, prejudiced light, but the trade routes allowed him to be more liberal. The Mongols appeared as another tolerant empire  during the Post-Classical Era. The Mongols were a group of nomads, united by Genghis Khan with a goal of conquest. By 1225, they had united most of central Asia. From the mid 13th century to the mid 14th century, the Mongols experienced a time of prosperity known as the Pax Mongolica. Abu’l Ghazi, a Muslim historian, described this peace as so vast that “a man might have journeyed from the land of sunrise to the land of sunset with a golden platter upon his head without suffering the least violence from anyone” (2). The Mongols, while vicious in conquering, imposed such a concord that from one of the empire to the other without befalling violence, even whilst carrying an item as precious as gold. Through

Next is the evidence provided by the works from their methodology. For The Travels of Marco Polo, the evidence for Polo’s conclusions are his own experiences while in China. Therefore, Polo’s work provided Europe a more unfiltered and objective view of China in all its extravagance to Polo and later the Europeans. This unfiltered view point meant that Polo was inaccurate in some of his information. When describing Kublai Khan’s palace, Polo remarked how large the walls are and how extravagant and magnificent it was. The palace itself was in fact just an enclosed royal park used as an encampment. Polo’s observations and vocabulary used to describe the palace showed that European’s viewed China and what they did in awe, even when the Chinese were acting similar to the Europeans in many aspects.

Marco Polo's Travels formulated in Europe of the fourteenth and fifteenth century a new perception of the Eastern world, a world just as advanced and sophisticated as that of the West. Yet, another two centuries were needed for a significant change to take place; this was Christopher Columbus' voyage. For Christopher Columbus, Marco Polo's travelogue was a valuable and solid resource that contained the necessary details of the East. The geographical descriptions in his writing generated a basis for Columbus' scientific calculations for his expedition and the explicit depictions of the luxury of Cipangu and Cathay, flawed though they were, created a strong motivation for Columbus. In the 12th of May 1492, Christopher Columbus, accompanied

Although Marco Polo started out as a humble merchant from Venice, he eventually developed a reputation as one of the world’s greatest explorers (“Marco Polo”). He was much more than just a trader however, providing the Western world with detailed accounts of the foreign society that was Medieval China under the Mongol conquest. These accounts would later become invaluable to historians for centuries to come.

Jack Weatherford’s Genghis Khan and the Making of the Modern World provides a refreshing and insightful perspective on the Mongol Empire and their impact on history. Weatherford ardently dispels stereotypes often associated with Genghis Khan and the Mongols while highlighting their significant achievements that immensely induced them and the modern world. As Weatherford explained the history of Temujin, I found myself admiring how he overcame various hardships and created a destiny for himself. He not only created an empire, “he built a new and unique system based on individual merit, loyalty, and achievement.” (Weatherford xix)

After about a three and a half year journey, Marco noted that the Polos arrived in the court of Kublai Khan, the conqueror of China. The Great Khan ruled a vast empire of prosperous cities that had richer goods, services, and technology than any place in Europe that Marco had ever seen (Freedman 6). Kublai Khan was the grandson of the infamous Genghis Khan, the fearless Mongol who swept across Asia and the Middle East generations earlier. When the Polos arrived in Shangdu (the capitol of Kublai Khan’s empire), the Mongol empire stretched from China, to Russia and Iraq; the empire was at the pinnacle of its existence (Polo 26). Marco stated that he soon rose to a position of power in Kublai Khan’s court, because Mublai Khan was pleased by Marco’s knowledge and logic. Marco endeavored on confidential missions to “learn about all kinds of different matters in the countries he visited, in order to satisfy the curiosity of the Great Khan” (Hart 35). The Polos accumulated great wealth in jewels and gold, thanks to the generosity of Kublai Khan; however, they eventually grew homesick and began their

“I have not told half of what I saw for I knew I would not be believed” - Marco Polo. People also believe that Marco was not the first European to travel Asia. They also said that Marco never made it to Asia or China. Marco never admitted into telling a single lie. The quote means Marco did not tell half of what he had seen because he knew he would not be believed.

     Kublai Khan greeted the Polo’s warmly and invited them to stay in his court. The Polo’s became great favorites of the Khan, and Kublai eventually made Marco one of his most trusted emissaries. On these points Marco has been accused of gross exaggeration, and the actual status of the Polo’s at the court of Khan’s is much disputed. For political reasons the Khan was in the habit of appointing foreigners to administer conquered lands, particularly China, where the tenacity of the Chinese bureaucracy was legendary. The Khan could also observe for himself that young Marco was a good Candidate. Finally, Marco reported back so successfully from his first mission, informing the Khan not only on business details but also on colorful customs and other interesting trivia. (Marco Polo in China)

People inhabited towns and cities along the Silk Road because of the trade and steady resources. The soil was ideal for their agriculture products, cotton being a popular product. The inhabitants would sell their products to travelers. People also sold temporary housing for

At a time just before the Age of Exploration when very few had the ability or even desire to explore the unknown, a muslim man was doing the opposite of that.Often referred to as “ The Marco Polo of the Muslim world” Ibn Battuta was a great scholar, writer, as well as an extensive traveler. Unlike Marco polo Ibn Battuta traveled a total of 75,000 miles which was far greater than his european counterpart. During his travels he traversed much of the Dar al Islam as well as territory such as modern day Indonesia. Abu abd Allah Muhammad Ibn abd Allah Al-lawati At-tanji Ibn Battuta was born in Tangier Morocco on February 24th, 1304. His family consisted of scholars and judges in the islamic legal system. As a young boy Ibn battuta followed in the footsteps of his ancestors and received a juristic and literary education.

Kublai Khan accepted Marco Polo to live in his empire, and he made Polo and his uncle closer to his crew by giving them position in the leader’s court. Marco's immersion into the Chinese culture resulted in him mastering four languages.