About the Maritime Silk Road
The MaritimeSilk Road history started from the Han Dynasty. Inorder to revive the ancient Maritime Silk Road, the initiative that China andcountries along the ancient Maritime Silk Road would build together a newMaritime Silk Road of the 21st Century was proposed by China.
--Maritime Silk Road Introduction
The Maritime SilkRoad was a conduit for trade and cultural exchange between China'ssouth-eastern coastal areas and foreign countries. There were two major routes:the East China Sea Silk Route and the South China Sea Silk Route.
Starting fromQuanzhou Fujian Province, the Maritime Silk Road was the earliest voyage routethat was formed in the Qin and Han dynasties, developed from the Three KingdomsPeriod to the Sui Dynasty, flourished in the Tang and Song dynasties, and fellinto decline in the Ming and Qing dynasties.
Through theMaritime Silk Road, silks, china, tea, and brass and iron were the four maincategories exported to foreign countries; while spices, flowers and plants, andrare treasures for the court were brought to China. Therefore, the MaritimeSilk Road was also known as "the Maritime China road" or "theMaritime spices road".
--Maritime Silk Road History
TheMaritime Silk Road, like its overland counterpart, had its origins during theHan Dynasty (202 BC-220 AD). Although vast seas separate the four corners ofthe Earth, with advances in shipbuilding and navigational technologies,maritime transport came to provide unprecedented access to the most distantdestinations.
It is known thatthe bulk of the raw and processed silk transported along the overland Silk Roadduring the Han Dynasty was produced primarily along China's southern coast andin the coastal Wu, Wei, Qi, and Lu regions (present-day Shandong Province).Since ancient times, these areas have been thriving centers of shipbuilding aswell as silk production. They were thus able to supply both commodities forexport and the means to transport them across the sea. It was this combinationthat provided the social and material conditions necessary for the developmentof maritime trade during the Han Dynasty.
--East China Sea Route
Avisitor looks at Quanzhou-style lanterns during an exhibition on intangiblecultural heritages along the ancient Maritime Silk Road in Quanzhou, southeastChina's Fujian Province, Nov. 23, 2019. (Xinhua/Wei Peiquan)
Kaiyuan Temple inQuanzhou, the starting place of Maritime Silk Road. The East China Sea Routeenjoys a long history of about 3,000 years. It was during the Zhou Dynasty thatJi Zi, a court official, was sent on a journey east, setting off from ShangdongPeninsula's Bohai Gulf and navigating his way across the Yellow Sea, which ledto the introduction of sericiculture (silkworm farming), filature and silkspinning into Korea.
When Emperor QinShi Huang united China, many Chinese fled to Korea and took with them silkwormsand breeding technology. This sped up the development of silk spinning inKorea. These new skills and the technologies were subsequently introduced intoJapan during the Han Dynasty. Since the Tang Dynasty, the silks produced byJiangsu and Zhejiang Provinces were directly shipped to Japan. Many Japaneseenvoys and monks were also able to travel to Chang'an (now Xi'an) along thissea route.
--South China Sea Route
Guangzhou representedthe starting-point of the South China Sea Route, which extended across theIndian Ocean and then on to various countries situated around the Persian Gulf.The types goods dispatched for trade consisted mainly of silk, china and tea,while imported merchandise included a variety of spices, flowers and grasses –hence it being commonly referred to as the sea's 'China Road' and the sea's'Flavor Road' .
The route was firstused in the Qin and Han Dynasties, and increased in popularity from the ThreeKingdoms Period (220-280) to the Sui Dynasty (581-618). Up until the TangDynasty Anshi Rebellions (755-762), this route was viewed as a secondaryalternative to the Silk Road, However in the latter half of the eighth century,owing to the scourge of wars in the vast Western Regions, trade volumes alongthe Maritime Silk Road boomed as those on its overland counterpart steadilydeclined.
Delicate SilkTechnologic advances in shipbuilding and navigation led to the opening of newsea-lanes to the Southeast Asia, Malacca, areas in the Indian Ocean and thePersian Gulf. Guangzhou became the first great harbor in China around the timeof the Tang and Song Dynasties, although it was later substituted by Quanzhouin the Yuan Dynasty (1271-1368) as the most important trade port.
The NavalExpedition to the West by Zheng He in the early part of the Ming Dynastydemonstrated the great importance of the Silk Road and was to represent thepeak of its popularity. The governments of the Ming and Qing Dynasties issued aban on maritime trade, contributing to massive decline in its use. As the OpiumWar broke out in 1840, the Silk Road on the Sea totally disappeared.
--21st Century Maritime Silk Road under Belt and Road
Aerialphoto taken on Sept. 1, 2019 shows the panoramic view of Male, capital ofMaldives. The 2-km-long China-Maldives Friendship Bridge is an iconic projectof the Maldives and China in co-building the 21st Century Maritime SilkRoad.(Xinhua/Wang Mingliang)
In order to revivethe ancient Maritime Silk Road and bring more benefits to the relevantcountries and peoples, the initiative that China and countries along theancient Maritime Silk Road would build together a new Maritime Silk Road of the21st Century was proposed by China.
Such an initiativedraws inspiration both from history and from latest developments in the 21stcentury. The aim is to inject strong impetus in enhancing political mutualtrust, deepening economic cooperation, and promoting cultural as well aspeople-to-people exchanges among relevant countries through joint cooperation,common development and regional integration. All countries along the MaritimeSilk Road are welcome to plan, develop and benefit together from theinitiative.
Since theinitiative was first raised, many countries have actively supported and engagedthemselves in the development of the orthe Silk Road Economic Belt (the "Belt and Road" for short) or both.
On Oct. 24, 2014,twenty-first Asian countries signed the Memorandum of Understanding onEstablishing the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) in Beijing, aimingto finance and facilitate infrastructure constructions for Asian countriesalong the "Belt and Road".
The MOU specifiesthat the authorized capital of AIIB is 100 billion U.S. dollars and the initialsubscribed capital is expected to be around 50 billion dollars. The paid-inratio will be 20 percent.
The 21 countriesare Bangladesh, Brunei, Cambodia, China, India, Kazakhstan, Kuwait, Laos,Malaysia, Mongolia, Myanmar, Nepal, Oman, Pakistan, the Philippines, Qatar,Singapore, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Uzbekistan and Vietnam.
At the APEC Summit2014 held in Beijing in November, 2014, China announced to contribute US$40billion to set up a Silk Road Fund to provide investment and financial supportto carry out infrastructure, resources, industrial and financial cooperationand other projects related to connectivity for countries along the "Beltand Road".
With more supportfrom other countries and wider coverage across the region, the 21stCentury Maritime Silk Road has become aninitiative not for one country but for all countries who welcome and supportthe initiative and are working together closely with each other for economicand social advancement as well as for the welfare of their peoples. The 21stCentury Maritime Silk Road has always been and will still be open to allcountries along the road.
AboutXinhua Silk Road
Xinhua Silk Road(en.imsilkroad.com) is the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) portal.China's silkroad economic belt and the 21st century maritime silk road website, includesBRI Policy, BRI Trade,BRI Investment,Belt and Road weekly,Know Belt andRoad,and the integrated information services for the Belt and Road Initiative(BRI).
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