The Great Wall of China
China's border walls were first built during the Zhou Dynasty, back in 770 BC.
Then, in 221-207 BC, the First Emperor of Qin commissioned an extension of the wall - to protect his territory from invasion by northern states.
During Han Wudi's reign, in 206 BC, the wall was lengthened into western China, to protect the Silk Road trade.
It was extended into the Yumen Pass and beyond, and this portion of the project took more than 400 years to complete.
In total, the Great Wall of China took more than 2,000 years to build - between 770 BC and 1633 AD.
However, its construction was completed in stages - spanning over several dynasties and leaderships.
The most recent portion was built during The Ming Dynasty.
In 1368, Hero General Qi Jiguang ordered for the Great Wall to be rebuilt around the country's capital of Beijing.
The project was finally completed in 1644.
Construction of the “Wan Li Chang Cheng,” or 10,000-Li-Long Wall, was one of the most ambitious building projects ever undertaken by any civilization. The famous Chinese general Meng Tian initially directed the project, and was said to have used a massive army of soldiers, convicts and commoners as workers.
Made mostly of earth and stone, the wall stretched from the China Sea port of Shanhaiguan over 3,000 miles west into Gansu province. In some strategic areas, sections of the wall overlapped for maximum security (including the Badaling stretch, north of Beijing, that was later restored during the Ming Dynasty).
From a base of 15 to 50 feet, the Great Wall rose some 15-30 feet high and was topped by ramparts 12 feet or higher; guard towers were distributed at intervals along it.
With the death of Qin Shi Huang and the fall of the Qin Dynasty, much of the Great Wall fell into disrepair. After the fall of the later Han Dynasty , a series of frontier tribes seized control in northern China. The most powerful of these was the Northern Wei Dynasty, which repaired and extended the existing wall to defend against attacks from other tribes.
Despite its long history, the Great Wall of China as it is exists today was constructed mainly during the mighty Ming Dynasty (1368-1644).
Like the Mongols, the early Ming rulers had little interest in building border fortifications, and wall building was limited before the late 15th century. In 1421, the Ming emperor Yongle proclaimed China’s new capital, Beijing, on the site of the former Mongol city of Dadu.
Under the strong hand of the Ming rulers, Chinese culture flourished, and the period saw an immense amount of construction in addition to the Great Wall, including bridges, temples and pagodas.
The construction of the Great Wall as it is known today began around 1474. After an initial phase of territorial expansion, Ming rulers took a largely defensive stance, and their reformation and extension of the Great Wall was key to this strategy.
The Ming wall extended from the Yalu River in Liaoning Province to the eastern bank of the Taolai River in Gansu Province, and winded its way from east to west through today’s Liaoning, Hebei, Tianjin, Beijing, Inner Mongolia, Shanxi, Shaanxi, Ningxia and Gansu.
Starting west of Juyong Pass, the Great Wall was split into south and north lines, respectively named the Inner and Outer Walls. Strategic “passes” (i.e., fortresses) and gates were placed along the wall; the Juyong, Daoma and Zijing passes, closest to Beijing, were named the Three Inner Passes, while further west were Yanmen, Ningwu and Piantou, the Three Outer Passes.
All six passes were heavily garrisoned during the Ming period and considered vital to the defense of the capital.
Between the 18th and 20th centuries, the Great Wall emerged as the most common emblem of China for the Western world, and a symbol both physical – as a manifestation of Chinese strength – and a psychological representation of the barrier maintained by the Chinese state to repel foreign influences and exert control over its citizens.
Today, the Great Wall is generally recognized as one of the most impressive architectural feats in human history. In 1987, UNESCO designated the Great Wall a World Heritage site, and a popular claim that emerged in the 20th century holds that it is the only manmade structure that is visible from space.
Over the years, roadways have been cut through the wall in various points, and many sections have deteriorated after centuries of neglect. The best-known section of the Great Wall of China – Badaling, located 43 miles (70 km) northwest of Beijing – was rebuilt in the late 1950s, and attracts thousands of national and foreign tourists every day.
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