Author Gavin Menzies believes a fleet of Chinese explorers reached the Americas before Christopher Columbus, but he's been repeatedly challenged to defend this claim. Check out this podcast from HowStuffWorks to learn more about revisionist history.
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Welcome to stuff you missed in history class from Hasta for Stockholm com.
Eleven welcomed the Pike ass time, editor candy syndrome by staff writer, James Elles, pay, you Jane, do you remember a couple pie cat scan when we talk about rosy the river I do and the topic of revisionist history came up. Let's roll and help you blood sort of misinterpreted were rosy. Was an
Think about revisionist history, man, you have the freedom to go back and correct these misconceptions about the past, alarmist you're doing it and
scholarly and often
and well researched sort of way better and to my knowledge, one of the most constantly revised stories is the discover
if you can even call it that even that word has been revised of Amerika, and I know when I was little, I was taught the hall in fourteen
the ninety two Columbus yelled, the ocean blue. He wanted to prove to everyone that the world is ya, know us not flat, and he may very well have done that invite. I also learned that he found America and then I learned later at that. That's not exactly true! This does radio people jump on that story. Allied saying you know
he didn't discover eight. There are plenty of people there. Obviously, so you can't use the word discover
very and three egotistical thing to do
it just because you know you from a different civilization near imposing your your laws in your coltrane another land that you ve discovered. It is re really you ve visited yeah yeah, it's very eurocentric with which a lot of people
the past fifty years or so really jumping on their way. We wish either they gonna take them
emphasis away from Europe and be like. We should have a worldly perspective on things, yes at Columbus, just because you had cuter breaches and from the other explorers out there doesn't mean you get acclaim, America and we know
for a very, very true fact that people from Asia
a return: America long before Columbus, we're talking some ten thousand years ago when they cross the bearing Land Bridge from Siberia into what is
modern Day Alaska. Yet I think that's it was originally populated right bites. There's a skull
named Gavin Menzies, who wrote a book back in two thousand three, I think called fourteen twenty one. The year China discovered America in this
cause a huge flash. First of all, I was a: u is hugely popular and got like the best seller, less nothing like that by
it wasn't well received by a lot of these, so called respected historian for having anthropologists archaeologists historians and with more linguists all these people, who would be there.
Involved and studying the way their culture attaches itself to land in the way tat people interact and how trade occurs. All these different pieces of evidence.
End of all in a non tangible that will prove a culture had been assumed.
Into another as re and according to Menzies theory. Oh,
size. They, the Chinese, actually arrived in America explored it.
Seven decades before Columbus, even set foot there
I'm sorry, goes that this chinese Admiral Amazon, he I believe it's pronounced nature by. He is well known that this guy went on extensive trips and he explored a lot of the world but is not accepted that he actually went all the way to America. Menzies claims that he in fact did- and we should mention that you know this guy in his own- he
the great explorer, and he had these ships need. Chinese ships were called junks and died. They were gargantuan, they worry. They dwarf this
that actually Columbus sailed on well and human
are the main dynasty and your had what I got a twenty eight thousand persons flee right, yeah, that's what are you so that ships had to be pretty big, doing monitored all of their sailors and just like sailors from the western hemisphere, how their own thoughts and theories about the sea and they had their? You know mythical call
Atlanta. These chinese sailors had there
DE as about the sea and exploration two and one of the things they believed unwise for sale.
And I'm not sure from getting that pronunciation quite right, but please forgive me for saying was, as Mozilla
the caller, legendary LAN really analogous to lend us and then a couple,
years ago, a Baptist missionary named Doktor Hindon and Harris found a map of what he thinks wise
who sang, and he noted that it looked a whole thy like North America and, what's more at the map, noted all of these Jake
second topographic likenesses between North America
sang at even showed something like the Grand Canyon and people started to wonder at will.
With the Chinese, have such an increase
forget knowledge of North Amerika had been there is written Harris tried to write about this end in advertise it to people, make it known and knowledge people jumped on board with his with his ideas.
Till Menzies came along and he really loaded and actually Menzies is a kind of immature historian. Who really has naval experience. He was in the British Royal Navy and
so really be experience it. He calls upon two to claim
can that he can make these interpretations because he's claims that he can read these maps better than like normal historians. Can he can meet, read the maps in the charts and there is actually another map called the fourteen eighteen map. I believe
Oceans and seven continents accurately, and they believe that this you
beyond a doubt that, like the Chinese, knew much more than we thought they did, and I think that this, for
eighteen map even shows formation, cite Potomac River, exactly withers, first about the shocking and the continents or the right size and there in the right locations and
He's is claiming that not only did the Chinese explore the world first, but also the Europeans use chinese maps to guide them to the new world Roy figure. That is its really bothering alot of historians that he's making these claims to, because you know that
based their their lives, studying things they then Menzies is calling all falsehoods in so many
pointing this in the insane ay ay. I know I'm getting out of critics, but late. Look at me. Look at what there's taken. It is one of the problems. The fourteen eighteen math at the critics.
The rule is that
I now as far as it
it did on the map is sort of a man like it has a lobby shape, it's not really true to form, and it's not
his eyes and the linen
did is clearly as it should be remembered. Her in fact drew this map of the world.
We think that if they had made this discovery, they would have really polite of emphasis on their own land. Yea they get a new anything. They would know that that were very well and also another. Another point day
The point is that the map is based on the fact that the world is round and distortions are pretty confident that the Chinese did not know this at that time say with all these
glaring loopholes and the theory. Why on earth would Menzies continue to pursue his studies, and the answer is that there are a lot of really strange coincidence is going on. There are a lot of native american folk stories that support the fact that the Chinese were there. I think that even one of them, the ink and rulers had alleging that he communicated with the chinese admiral, who taught him how to govern his land. We
the native Americans had horses and, while for awhile historians, presume that the horses came from Europeans, some people version that they came from. The Chinese
now because we know that chinese soldiers use horses very, very religiously.
Cavalry as are the story, is that that the Spaniards brought our horses over
first time to America mean giving
aside that that his horses were actually brought over originally, but when extinct, like thousands and thousands of years ago,
Now they think earlier Menzies think that China, China, was actually the first one to bring it over. After that and what's more inefficient,
North wised archaeologists have found chinese coins and a different places, and then somewhere else in the midwest they found
The american government that has it
three hundred years, all as far as they can data, but it has turnest beads on its people are wondering what were these things come from the chinese warrant here, working with these people? One of the story is that I find really interesting is a different take on the story. I was told in history class, which we had to do with the as Emperor Montezuma
story was everyone knows that Cortez went to meet Montezuma and
the emperor mistook him for a god, and I that's how Cortez was able to sort of infiltrate, but
Menzies, actually postulates Day die the Montezuma actually mistook Cortez for his grandfather. Returning from the east, as if you were familiar with eastern people at a time and.
Interpretations. They certainly seemed
water. But when you look at another,
common factors that are just missing from the Chinese coming to America. First story: you have to
and say now that they can't possibly be like. We know that when the north came, the Vikings came, they were
they're about a thousand years before Columbus came seventy years for this
These would have been there and weakens
today, if another in ruins outposts that they belt. So if the Chinese came where that you know that the standing
facts in the ruins of structures that they would show the people how to build, and vice versa and widen the Chinese. Take back things like
old and corn and tomatoes like big European, the european fleet.
Dead when they came back to Europe from the new world. There's no smoking gun that really Munsey Menzies can point to. Another thing is that some historians nobly Robertson way on has pointed out that I did
He could not have nourish the horses that they supposedly brought over on their ships. Apparently horses
a certain amount of water, obviously- and they were surrounded by by salt water. They didn't have the disability zation processes that would have been appropriate to feed all these sources. Water, water everywhere now drop to drink. How about that and
actually one historian and particular Doktor Jeff Way here so riled up about the glaring inaccuracy in authenticity of Monday's account that he is filed. A complaint
against the UK publishers who publish Menzies Buck and I'm air quote. Even they can't see them. He caught him in these history back and you can do
can feel the derision unjust, rolling off description, he re very upset about any make some some start clean seas, his leg. Oh look at this map even claims that, when the maps the Menzies uses the evidence with is a fake
it there. It was made for Menzies,
wild, and we all know how to do that. You sort a role ground, coffee and anyone who looks really up into can all together. I actually points evidence that, like this map was drawn based on Jesuit maps of the seventeenth century, because it makes the same mistakes that mistakes that California, with an island, etc, etc. That China is at the centre of the world attacked, was translated into Chinese from Jesuit Bright fell very ago bite. If you want
talk about another smoking gun. I guess you could say to our genes phrase again
when the main dynasty eventually collapsed, the dying
gee? That's overcame at once
very often evidence that had ever existed from the dynasty, one we're have our father accomplishments, everything they had done. They were establishing a new rule in order in yeah. You can ever prove it meant is wrong, because all is evidence is destroyed,
and critics actually point to Menzies arrogance and in this area saying he's measures according to the saying there's not one chance in a million that I'm wrong in so you sort of sticking in the face of these respected historians, even understand how Hell upset taken
over this year and pretty amazing. He rushed right there.
Rights whether or not it is true. We may never know bites. It is testament to the fact that history isn't a stale and
A final Ized topic of study, its constantly changing and residual history really points to that and not to talk signing thought it. Nothing. Now that you can be an amateur historian and go out there and fabricate Manhattan make up your theories about who found what first, but that this is a field of setting
open to you know the new and rising and the yellow Iep on the Piazza popular too, because one thing about Menzies fame is that he was able to create a website around it, and people would respond
their own evidence there, like Hulu there there's a John ferried office
to where I live in engaging Y know, unlike people's coming in and an amazing
actually writing a sequel are he did write a sequel base, unlike evidence that he got submitted from fans have at tat well and speaking of submitting evidence from fans? If you ever have an idea for one of our history, pine tasks or how to history. Question that you want to know. I had an email me and Jane untie cast. It helped affords dot com just that history in the subject line and will be happy to tackle some of your queries and then the entrance to satisfy your desire to learn more about China, and some famous chinese rulers out there be sure to check out how stuff works duck for more on this and thousands of other topics that how stuff works, dot, com. What does know what you think send an email to podcast Housetop work.
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Transcript generated on 2020-02-07.