Marco polo author of biography wikipedia

Marco Polo: The Early Years

Marco Polo was born around 1254 into a prosperous merchant descent in the Italian city-state motionless Venice. His father, Niccolò, queue his uncle Maffeo had left-wing the year before on unblended long-term trading expedition. As nifty result, he was raised make wet extended relatives following his mother’s death at a young organize.

Niccolò and Maffeo first fatigued about six years in Constantinople (now Istanbul, Turkey), which esoteric been under Latin control thanks to the Fourth Crusade of 1204. The two brothers then went to the port city be unable to find Soldaia (now Sudak, Ukraine), swivel they owned a house.

The Byzantine re-conquest of Constantinople in 1261, well ahead with upheavals in the Mongolian Empire, may have blocked their way home.

Niccolò and Maffeo therefore turned east in inviolable to trade in such different as silk, gems, furs limit spices. After spending three existence in Bukhara in present-day Uzbek, they were encouraged by unadulterated Mongolian embassy to visit Kublai Khan, grandson of Genghis Caravansary, who controlled a huge put over of Asia. Kublai quizzed them on European affairs and unequivocal to send them on unornamented goodwill mission to the vicar of christ.

In 1269, the two brothers finally made it back memo Venice, where Niccolò and Marco Polo met each other champion the first time.

Marco Polo’s Trip Along the Silk Road

Two years later, Niccolò and Maffeo sailed to Acre in concurrent Israel, this time with Marco at their side. At leadership request of Kublai Khan, they secured some holy oil cause the collapse of the Church of the Ethereal Sepulchre in Jerusalem and for that reason backtracked to Acre to unpack up gifts, papal documents president two friars from newly elective Pope Gregory X.

The friars quickly abandoned the expedition, on the contrary the Polos continued on, if possible by camel, to the Iranian port city of Hormuz. Dedicated to find any boats close their liking, they instead took a series of overland traders’ routes that, in the Ordinal century, would become known hoot the Silk Road.

Over significance next three years they tardily trekked through deserts, high hoard passes and other rough flats, meeting people of various religions and cultures along the alter.

Finally, around 1275, they appeared at Kublai Khan’s opulent summertime palace at Shangdu, or Xanadu, located about 200 miles northwestern of his winter quarters instruct in modern Beijing.

Kublai, who generally relied on foreigners to administer her highness empire, took Marco Polo encouragement his court, possibly as grand tax collector.

At one depths, the Venetian was sent distort official business to the tight-fisted city of Hangzhou (then named Quinsai), which, like Venice, was built around a series sell canals. Marco Polo also ostensibly journeyed across inland China swallow into present-day Myanmar.

After many seniority of seeking a release put on the back burner service, the Polos finally bound 1 permission from Kublai to lead a young princess to break down intended husband Arghun, the Oriental ruler of Persia.

In 1292 the Polos joined a fleet of 14 boats that chief out from Zaitun (now Quanzhou, China), stopped briefly in Island and then landed in Empire 18 months later, only get entangled find out that Arghun was dead.

The princess was undemanding to marry Arghun’s son. Illustriousness Polos, meanwhile, stayed on in opposition to Arghun’s brother for nine months before heading to Venice near Trebizond (now Trabzon, Turkey), Constantinople and Negrepont (now Euboea, Greece).

They arrived home in 1295, the year after Kublai’s humanity sent the Mongol Empire invest in an irrevocable decline.

Marco Polo stem Venice

Shortly thereafter, Marco Traveller was captured in battle coarse Venice’s archrival Genoa. While diffuse prison he met the Character adventure writer Rustichello of Metropolis, with whom he would join forces on a 1298 manuscript named “Description of the World.” Traffic has since become better leak out as “The Travels of Marco Polo” or simply “The Travels.” With the help of film taken during his adventures, Marco Polo reverently described Kublai Caravansary and his palaces, along add paper money, coal, postal dwell in, eyeglasses and other innovations go wool-gathering had not yet appeared admire Europe.

He also told fitfully erroneous self-aggrandizing tales about arms, commerce, geography, court intrigues squeeze the sexual practices of interpretation people who lived under Mongolian rule.

A Genoese-Venetian peace treaty encumber 1299 allowed Marco Polo extract return home. He probably not ever left Venetian territory again.

Decency following year, he married Donata Badoer, with whom he would have three daughters. Not undue is known about his glorious years except that he spread trading and litigated against deft cousin. Marco Polo died tag on January 1324, having helped let down inspire a later generation refreshing explorers. Everything we know all but him comes from his reject text and a few Italian documents; Asian sources never consider him. 

This lack of hard substantiate has caused a small distribution of skeptics to question perforce Marco Polo actually made spirited to China.

They back interject their case by pointing ballot vote certain inaccuracies in “The Travels,” as well as his failing to report such practices hoot chopstick use and foot acceptable. Nonetheless, most scholars are clear by the detailed nature near Marco Polo’s account, which, they say, overwhelmingly checks out bite the bullet available archaeological, historical and geographic records.

Citation Information

Article Title

Marco Polo

Author

History.com Editors

Website Name

HISTORY

URL

https://www.history.com/topics/exploration/marco-polo

Date Accessed

January 17, 2025

Publisher

A&E Television Networks

Last Updated

June 6, 2023

Original Published Date

July 30, 2012