Yongle Emperor

Zhu Di, Prince of Yan, launched a rebellion against his nephew the Jianwen Emperor. After three years of civil war, Zhu Di captured Nanjing and usurped the throne, becoming the Yongle Emperor.

Yongle commissioned Admiral Zheng He to lead a series of maritime expeditions across the Indian Ocean. The treasure fleets visited Southeast Asia, India, the Middle East, and East Africa, projecting Ming power and establishing tributary relations.

Yongle sent Ming armies to invade Annam (northern Vietnam) after a succession dispute. The Ming annexed the region as the province of Jiaozhi, but faced prolonged resistance from Vietnamese forces.

Yongle ordered the compilation of the Yongle Encyclopedia, a massive collection of Chinese knowledge. The work comprised over 11,000 volumes and 370 million characters, covering history, philosophy, science, and literature.

Yongle personally led five military campaigns into the Mongolian steppe against the remnants of the Yuan dynasty. These expeditions aimed to neutralize the Mongol threat to the northern border and assert Ming dominance.

Yongle formally moved the Ming capital from Nanjing to Beijing. He ordered the construction of the Forbidden City and expanded the city's defenses, shifting the political center of China northward.