Marco Polo

Marco Polo

​Marco Polo was a merchant and explorer who traveled throughout the Far East and China for much of his life. This part of the world was a mystery to most of Europe, so Marco Polo's stories of his adventures and experiences helped Europeans to learn more about it. 

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​Let's learn more about Marco Polo...

Marco Polo was born in Venice, Italy, in 1254. At this time, Venice was a very wealthy trading city and Marco's father was a merchant. Growing up, Marco's father traveled a lot and Marco dreamed of doing the same. When he was 17 years old, Marco decided to travel to China with his father and uncle.

Multiple Select

Marco Polo was...

CHOOSE TWO ANSWERS!

• A writer 

• A merchant

• An explorer

• An emperor

Multiple Choice

Why were Europeans curious about the Far East?

• They did not know much about it.

• They knew how wealthy and beautiful it was.

​The Silk Road was a trade route that stretched from eastern Europe to northern China. It linked major cities and trading posts. It was called Silk Road because silk cloth was a major export good from China. Not many people traveled the entire route. Trading was mostly done between cities. Products would make their way slowly from one end to the other, trading hands along the way. Marco and his companions wanted to travel all the way to China on the Silk Road. They planned to bring goods directly to Venice.

Marco's father and uncle had already traveled to China before and had met the Emperor, Kublai Khan. They had promised the Emperor that they would return. Marco was excited to take this adventure with them.

It took the men 3 years to travel to China on Silk Road. Along the way, Marco visited many great cities and important places, including the holy city of Jerusalem, the mountains of the Hindu Kush, and the Gobi Desert. He met a lot of different types of people and had many exciting adventures.

Multiple Choice

The Silk Road was a ________ that connected Europe and Asia.

• waterway

• trade route

• kingdom

• shortcut

Multiple Choice

Marco, his father, and his uncle wanted to travel the Silk Road all the way to _________. 

• Venice

• China

• Africa

Marco loved living in China. He was fascinated by the wealth and luxury of the Chinese cities and of Kublai Khan's court. It was nothing like Europe. The capital city, Kinsay, was large, but very well-organized and clean. Wide roads and huge buildings and structures were beyond anything he had ever seen in Europe. Everything from the food, to the people, to the animals, were new and interesting to Marco.

Marco lived in China for many years and learned to speak the language. He traveled throughout China as a messenger and a spy for Kublai Khan. During his travels, Marco learned about different cultures, foods, cities, and peoples. He saw many places and things that no one from Europe had seen or heard of before.

Multiple Choice

Who was Kublai Khan? 

• The Emperor of India

• The King of Italy

• The Pope

• The Emperor of China

​Marco lived and traveled in the Far East for 20 years. In 1295, Marco, along with his father and uncle, decided to head home to Venice. A few years after returning home, Venice fought a war with the city of Genoa. Marco was captured and arrested. During his time in captivity, Marco told detailed stories of his adventures in China. A writer named Rustichello wrote these stories down and published a book called The Travels of Marco Polo.

The Travels of Marco Polo became a very popular book. It was translated into many different languages and read throughout Europe. After the fall of Kublai Khan, the Ming Dynasty took over China. The new leaders were very wary of foreigners and little information about China was available. This made Marco's book even more valuable and popular.

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Multiple Choice

Marco told of his adventures while he was...

• In prison.

• In China.

• Sick in bed.

Questions:

• ​How long was the Silk Road?

• ​How large was the Mongol Empire?

• ​How did Kublai Khan learn about European culture?

• ​Who guarded Kublai Khan's kingdom?

• ​What animals did Marco Polo describe in his book?

• ​How did Kublai Khan show tolerance for other cultures?

• ​Is Marco Polo's book fact or fiction?

Multiple Choice

According to the video, the Silk Road was ________ miles long. 

• 1 million

• 400

• 4,000

• 10,000

Multiple Choice

The Mongol Empire covered about _______ of the entire continent of Asia.

• 1/2

• 1/5

• all

Multiple Choice

Kublai Khan told Marco's father and uncle to bring back scholars to teach him about...

• The Mongol Empire.

• The Ming Dynasty.

• The Silk Road.

• European culture.

Multiple Choice

Which of these animals did Marco NOT write about?

• tigers

• monkeys

• rhinos

• crocodiles

Multiple Choice

Which statement is TRUE about Kublai Khan's palace?

• It was guarded by 12,000 knights.

• It was made of marble and gold.

• Both of these.

Multiple Choice

TRUE or FALSE?

Kublai Khan was tolerant of different cultures.

• TRUE

• FALSE

Multiple Choice

People believe that Marco Polo's book was...

• completely TRUE.

• completely MADE UP.

• a mixure of fact and fiction.