Marco Polo`s experience

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5: Venice

In 1271, when Marco Polo was 17, Pope Gregory the X sent letters and gifts to the Polos asking that they be delivered to the Great Khan. Nicolo and Maffeo Polo, Marco’s father and uncle, had recently returned from a trading journey on which they met Kublai Khan. He requested that the Pope send missionaries to teach Christianity to his people. Marco accompanied his father and uncle when they set out for Mongolia.

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6: Jerusalem

While visiting the court of Kublai Khan on a trading journey, Marco Polo’s father and uncle were directed by Kublai Khan to travel to Jerusalem and return with the oil that burned in the sepulcher of God. They went home to Venice first where they acquired the items to be delivered from the Pope. This ended up taking longer than anticipated when the Pope died. The Polos waited for a new Pope to be appointed and then set out for Jerusalem as they had promised Kublai Khan. Marco Polo joined the expedition. After obtaining the sacred oil, Marco Polo accompanied his father and uncle back to the court of Kublai Khan in Mongolia.

7: Beijing, China

In 1274 the travelers reached Cathay, China. Marco Polo arrived in the capital Daidu (Beijing) where his father and uncle renewed their acquaintance with Kublai Khan and presented him with the papal letters and sacred oil. They were given important positions in his court. Marco studied Chinese.

8: Hangzhou, China

The Polos spent the next 17 years in China. Kublai Khan took a liking to young Marco Polo and sent him on a diplomatic mission throughout the empire. In 1288, Marco was appointed governor of the city of Yangzhou for a term of 3 years.

9: Ilkhanate, Persia

In 1291, Kublai Khan sent the Polos to escort a Mongolian Princess to her betrothed in Persia. They traveled by sea from the Chinese port city of Quanzhou to Sumatra, Sri Lanka, India and finally to Persia. They stayed to celebrate the wedding and then headed to the Black Sea to make their way back to Venice.

10: Venice

The Polos returned to Venice in 1295. Marco Polo was made captain of a ship which joined in the battle between Venice and Genoa. Marco was captured and imprisoned in 1298. While in prison Marco Polo dictated to a fellow prisoner the details of his journey to China. The resulting book became a huge success in Europe. After his release from prison, Marco Polo returned to Venice where he married and had three children. He died at the age of 70.