Great Wall – China
The Great Wall of China is an accomplishment of epic
proportions. As one of the few man-made
structures clearly visible from space, you’re only see the tip of the iceberg
when you visit the Wall.
History
The construction of the wall dates back to the First Emperor
of the Qin Dynasty. The Qin represented
the first major unification of feudal states in China between 221 BC and 206
BC. Due to their rapid expansion, the
threat of invasion from northern nomadic tribes like the Mongolians became a
significant problem. In order to stem
the tide of raids and property theft, the Emperor embarked on what would be one
of the largest construction projects of all time spanning 15 centuries. The Wall was not designed to keep people
out. It was actually built to prevent horses
from being brought in by invaders.
Since it is theoretically impossible to prevent people from scaling the
walls, it could only be ensured that they wouldn’t be able to travel readily
once inside China.
Such an ambitious project could not be completed in a single
lifetime. Indeed, the Great Wall was
constructed during four distinct periods in Chinese history. The initial construction was done by the Qin
starting in 208 BC shortly before the fall of the Dynasty to the Han
Dynasty. The Hans picked up where the
Qin left off in a new spate of construction.
No additional work was done until the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms Period
spanning 1138 CE – 1198 CE. The final (and
most comprehensive) work was completed by the powerful Ming Dynasty starting in
1368 CE.
Description
You can visit the tourist-designated portions of the Great
Wall, which are generally in better condition than the ’wild’ portions of the
wall. The height of the wall varies due
to different phases of construction, but the average is about 25 feet. Dotted along the 2500 mile length of the
wall are a series of watchtowers rising up to 40 feet in height every 600 feet
in the eastern portions of the wall. There
are also numerous barracks and storehouses that once housed regular defensive
army units. The watchtowers make up a
defensive fighting station with heavily fortified stairways and halls designed
to give a serious advantage for overwhelmed defenders.
For tourists, many ancient weapons have been reproduced and
can be seen at the top of the wall along the parapet. The tourist portions of the wall are usually built out of
quarried limestone. Other portions of
the wall are built from granite, fired brick, or even wood. There’s a saying in Chinese that goes ”You’re
not a man until you’ve stood on the Great Wall.” Whether or not you hold this belief, you should still visit a
portion of the wall before you finish your time on Earth!
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