Yongle Emperor

Hello. My name is Zhu Di, and I lived a long, long time ago in a country called China. When I grew up and became an emperor, which is like a king, people called me the Yongle Emperor. It was my family’s time to rule the land, and I was the third emperor of our Ming Dynasty. It was a very important job to take care of so many people and to lead them.

I had a very big idea. I wanted to build a brand new city for everyone. I called my new city Beijing. Inside this city, I built a giant, beautiful home for myself and my family. It was called the Forbidden City. I started building it in the year 1406. It was a secret city with bright red walls and shiny golden roofs that looked just like the sun. It was so big and beautiful, and it was a special place for me to live and rule from.

I also loved exploring the world. I wanted to see what was beyond our country. So, I sent giant ships to sail across the big, blue ocean. These ships were bigger than any anyone had ever seen before. My good friend, a brave sailor named Zheng He, was the leader of these adventures. Around the year 1405, he began sailing on the ships. We called them treasure ships because they went to visit new places, make new friends, and see all the wonderful things in the world.

I lived to be 64 years old and was an emperor for many years. Today, people from all over the world can still visit the amazing Forbidden City that I built in Beijing. I hope my story reminds you that with big ideas and a little help from your friends, you can build wonderful things and explore the amazing world around you.