Page 182 - Encyclopedia Of World History Vol IV
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polo, marco 1483












            Nicollo and Maffeo were instructed to gather a letter  to Persia by sea. Reluctantly, Khubilai agreed and allowed
            from the pope, one hundred Christian scholars as well as  the Polos to depart, asking that they deliver messages of
            a flask of oil from the lamp from the Holy Sepulchre in  friendship to the pope and the kings of Europe. Depart-
            Jerusalem, and then to return to Kanbalu.When the Polo  ing in 1292 from the port of Xiamen (Amoy), the Polos
            brothers finally arrived back in Europe in 1269, however,  traveled past the islands of Sumatra, Java, and along the
            they discovered that Pope Clement IV had died the pre-  coast of India before reaching Persia two years later.The
            vious year and had yet to be replaced. Unable to secure  following year, they finally arrived back in Venice after
            the required papal letter or ecclesiastic scholars until a  being away from home for almost twenty years.
            new pope was named, Nicollo and Maffeo left Rome and  In early 1298, just three years after his return to Venice,
            returned to Venice, where they spent two years awaiting  Marco Polo found himself serving as a “Gentleman-
            the election of a new head of the Church. Unable to wait  Commander” or advisor aboard a war galley in his city’s
            any longer and fearing that Khubilai would be angered  navy. At this time Venice was engaged in a war with its
            by their lengthy delay, the Polos, this time accompanied  rival Genoa over trading rights in the eastern Mediter-
            by young Marco, set out on a return voyage to the court  ranean. On 7 September 1298, Marco Polo was captured,
            of the Mongol ruler. After a brief interruption following  along with the entire Venetian fleet, by the Genoese
            the eventual election of Pope Gregory X, the Polos,  navy. He was then imprisoned in a Genoese jail where he
            along with a flask of holy oil and a mere two Christian  spent the next several months regaling his fellow pris-
            missionaries left the safety of the Mediterranean world in  oner, Rusticello, with his tales of adventure and the
            1271 to begin their journey across central Asia.    riches of the Khan’s empire. Within a year the war
              Although the missionaries abandoned the party in  between Venice and Genoa was concluded, and Marco
            Armenia, the Polos did return to Khubilai’s summer  Polo returned home a second time.
            palace at Shandu after a difficult journey through Persia,  Back in Venice, Marco married a woman named
            Afghanistan,Turkistan, and eventuallyTibet and the west-  Donata, with whom he would have three daughters: Fan-
            ern reaches of China.The Khan was impressed by young  tina, Bellala, and Moreta. Little else is known of his life
            Marco and over the course of the next twenty years  from this point onward, except that he continued to
            appointed him to several official positions within his gov-  engage in trade and that he presented a French noble-
            ernment, including the post of governor of the city of  man with a copy of his Travels in 1307. Marco’s fame as
            Yangzhou between 1282 and 1285. While in China      a traveler spread during his lifetime, although not many
            Marco also visited the southern regions of Khubilai’s em-  people believed his accounts of the riches of China, the
            pire along the Burmese border and much of southern  sophistication of Asian culture and technology, or the
            China; he also had a lengthy stay in Hangzhou (Kinsai),  size of the Khan’s empire. Most Europeans simply could
            the former capital of the Southern Song dynasty. During  not believe his tales of paper money, burning black rocks
            their time in China, the Polos prospered, but by the late  (coal), or cities with populations the size of Western
            1280s, they were eager to return home and petitioned the  nations. So incredible were the details in the Travels that
            Khan for permission to leave. In the Travels Marco  Marco Polo was often referred to as “Marco of the Mil-
            claimed that Khubilai had become attached to hisVenet-  lions,” in reference to the number of lies he must have
            ian advisors and at first refused their request. At last an  been telling.
            opportunity arose that provided the Polos with a reason  In a controversial book published in 1996, the histo-
            to serve Khubilai one last time. The Khan of Persia had  rian Frances Wood argues that Marco Polo was indeed
            lost his wife and had requested that another princess from  lying and that it is doubtful that he traveled anywhere
            the same Mongol family be sent to marry him. Since the  near China. Along with other critics of Polo’s account,
            overland route was extremely dangerous, the Polos volun-  Wood notes that Marco failed to mention the Great Wall,
            teered to serve as ships pilots and to escort the princess  tea drinking, the Chinese written script, or the bound feet
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