Study On Envoys To Annam In The Rule Of Hongwu Emperor 1368-1398

The first envoy to Annam was in 1359 when Zhu Yuanzhang(朱元璋) was busing with battles for the power of the country. After Ming dynasty was set up, Zhu Yuanzhang first sent Liu Dijian(刘 迪简) to go to Annam with an imperial edict to proclaim the establishment of Ming dynasty in the name of a united authority. Liu Dijian died when he reached Nanning. Zhu sent Yiji to go to Annam again in the same year, which was took as a beginning of both envoys and diplomacy between Ming Dynasty and Annam. In the 31 years between 1368 tol398, Ming Dynasty had sent envoys to Annam 22 times. There were 24 envoys whose names were recorded in the historical books. Now we know 13 of them in detail. They had much learning, and faithful virtue. Their duties were to make known publicly, or to invest with rank, or to offer sacrifices, or to mediate civil disputes between Annam and Champa. They got rewards or punishment, on the basis on the level of bringing to success and faithful virtue or not.They went south west in a ship through Changjiang River, turned into the Po'yang Lake in Jiangxi Province, was through Mei Ridge, and through Guangdong Province and Guangxi Province, and then reached Longzhou in October. He continued traveling to arrived at Shiqiao River and Fuliang River through Wenlan or the west of Pingjia She, and then reached Shenglong(HA Noi), the east capital of Annam. They traveled over 7000 li.They made everlasting merit to the relationship between China and Annam on establishing diplomatic relations between Ming dynasty and Annam, on mediating civil disputes between Annam and Champa, on cultural exchange and economic interchange, on defend state sovereignty, and so on.