But through it all, Polo reveled in the adventure. The Polos' journey took place on land, and they were forced to cut through challenging and sometimes harsh territory. Unable to recruit the 100 priests that Kublai Khan had requested, they left with only two, who, after getting a taste of the hard journey ahead of them, soon turned back for home. In 1271, Polo set out with his father and uncle, Niccolo and Maffeo Polo, for Asia, where they would remain until 1295. A sophisticated culture outside the reaches of the Vatican seemed unfathomable, and yet that's exactly what the Polo brothers described to confounded Venetians when they arrived home. Khan's Empire, the largest the world had ever seen, was largely a mystery to those living within the borders of the Holy Roman Empire. During their stay with the leader, Khan had expressed his interest in Christianity and asked the Polo brothers to visit again with 100 priests and a collection of holy water. In 1269, the two men returned to Venice and immediately started making plans for their return to Khan's court. Niccolo and Maffeo’s journeys brought them into present-day China, where they joined a diplomatic mission to the court of Kublai Khan, the Mongol leader whose grandfather, Genghis Khan, had conquered Northeast Asia. Polo's mother died when he was young, and his father and uncle, successful jewel merchants Niccolo and Maffeo Polo, were in Asia for much of Polo's youth. Although he was born to a wealthy Venetian merchant family, much of Polo’s childhood was spent parentless, and he was raised by an extended family. Around 1292, he left China, acting as escort along the way to a Mongol princess who was being sent to Persia. Polo traveled extensively with his family, journeying from Europe to Asia from 1271 to 1295 and remaining in China for 17 of those years. It seems his birthplace will remain a mystery for now, and while his nationality may be susceptible to the various changes in politics and national boundaries over the centuries, we’re fortunate Marco Polo didn’t let these man-made borders stand in his way during his lifetime.Marco Polo was a Venetian explorer known for the book The Travels of Marco Polo, which describes his voyage to and experiences in Asia. The journalist argues that even if Polo was born on the island of Korčula, he was born a Venetian, and trying to reclaim his birth as Croatian would be an ‘historical extravagance’. A flurry of headlines ensued with an Italian journalist writing an article cheekily accusing ‘Zagreb’ of ‘kidnapping’ Il Milione, (Marco’s Italian nickname). ![]() Controversially, during the ceremony, he publicly claimed Marco Polo to be Dalmatian, and a Croatian. The issue has long been debated, and hit the news in 2011 when a museum dedicated to Marco Polo in Yangzhou, China, was opened by the former president of Croatia, Stjepan Mesić, rather than an Italian dignitary. ![]() In theory it seems feasible that Marco’s mother gave birth in Korčula and moved with her son to Venice during the 15 years in between, but there is simply no evidence. We also know that his father and uncle only met Marco for the first time at the age of around 15 when they returned to Venice from their travels in Asia, having left when his mother was pregnant. Sadly we have very few facts about Marco’s childhood, but we do know that his father, along with his uncle Maffeo, were successful merchants, trading silk and jewels along the Silk Road through Asia. If Marco had been born on the Island, which was under Venetian rule at the time, his nationality would indeed have been recorded as Venetian, even though he wasn’t actually born in Venice. Other records also show that Marco’s father Nicolo Pilic (another variant of Polo) was from Sibenik in Dalmatia, and later moved to Venice. The house in question was once owned by the Depolo family, and it is claimed that Depolo, a Dalmatian name, is a variant of Polo. But is it really Marco Polo’s birthplace, and if so would that make him Croatian rather than Italian? With its dramatic tower overlooking the roofs of Korčula old town and the sparkling Pelješac Channel, this charming house would certainly make a fitting start to a remarkable life. ![]() So why is there a small house in Korčula, Croatia, claiming to be where Marco Polo was born? The fact that Marco Polo was Venetian is widely accepted, indeed both the Wikipedia and Encyclopaedia Britannica entries cite Venice as his birthplace.
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