A background essay on the Ming Dynasty, its powerful trade networks and diplomatic missions as far as Africa and the Red Sea, and the domestic tensions that ultimately changed the course of world ...

Zhu Yuanzhang, the founding emperor of the Ming Dynasty, established his capital in Nanjing (Chinese for southern capital). He ate mostly food cooked with the flavors of South China during his ...

Cheese isn’t a type of food you would associate with China, but the craft dates back to the Ming Dynasty. In this town of Shunde, it’s made with two simple ingredients: Buffalo milk and vinegar.

Yu Qian (1398-1457) was a famous politician and military straight of the Ming Dynasty. In 1449, he repulsed the invasion of the Oyrats (a general name used during the Ming Dynasty for the ...