The Shipbuilding and navigation in China from the early modern period to the modern era

The development of Chinese ships in early modern times went through numer-ous changes and challenges. At the beginning of the Ming Dynasty, although the number and size of ships increased, the navy adopted a defensive stance due to a broader defensive foreign policy. Understanding the historical development of ships is crucial to understanding Chinese history. This paper examines the evo-lution of Chinese ships from early modern times to the present in a chronologi-cal framework. It focuses on how China navigated from decline to revival through the lens of maritime development. The narrative spans from the pros-perity of the Ming Dynasty to the decline of the Qing Dynasty, and from the chaos of the Republic of China to the emergence of modern China as a global power. This paper emphasizes that ships symbolize these societal shifts, reflect-ing China's transformation from a weak global power to a formidable one within just a few decades.