great wall china

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The Great Wall, one of the greatest wonders of the world, was listed as a World Heritage by UNESCO in 1987. Just like a gigantic dragon, the Great Wall winds up and down across deserts, grasslands, mountains and plateaus, stretching approximately 8,851.8 kilometers (5,500 miles) from east to west of China. With a history of more than 2000 years, some of the sections are now in ruins or have disappeared. However, it is still one of the most appealing attractions all around the world owing to its architectural grandeur and historical significance.


Chinese Name: 长城/万里长城
Chinese Pinyin: Cháng Chéng/Wàn Lǐ Cháng Chéng
Length: 8,851.8 km (5,500 miles)
Construction Period: About 2,000 years from the Warring States Period (476 BC - 221 BC) to Ming Dynasty (1368-1644)



The Wall we see today was mostly built during the Ming Dynasty (1368 - 1644). It starts from Hushan in the east to Jiayuguan Pass in the west traversing Liaoning, Hebei, Beijing, Tianjin, Shanxi, Inner Mongolia, Ningxia, Shaanxi, Gansu and Qinghai. Here lists the famous sections for you to know the incredible diversity of scenery along the wall and practical travel tips.

Excitement abounds regarding the vicissitude of the Wall of the Qin, Han, and Ming Dynasties. The Great Wall was originally built in the Spring and Autumn, and Warring States Periods as a  strong  Security system  by the three states: Yan, Zhao and Qin. It went through constant extensions and repairs in later dynasties. It began as independent walls for different states when it was first built, and did not become the "Great" wall until the Qin Dynasty. Emperor Qin Shihuang succeeded in his effort to have the walls joined together to fend off the invasions from the Huns in the north. Since then, the Wall has served as a monument of the Chinese nation throughout history.

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Great Wall Structure Illustration

The history of the construction of the Great Wall of China  can be dated back to the Western Zhou Dynasty (11th century BC - 771 BC). But the wall at that time was only a line of fortresses standing to defend against attacks from the Yanyun (an ancient nomadic tribe in north China). The Period of the Warring States (476 BC - 221 BC) was an era when the seven states (Qi, Chu, Yan, Han, Zhao, Wei, Qin) were busy engaging in Great Wall construction for self-defense. Instead of one line, their walls stretched in the four directions and varied in length from several hundred miles to one or two thousand miles.

In the Qin Dynasty (221 - 206 BC) the emperor Qin Shihuang ordered his laborers to connect these scattered walls and create some new sections, thus forming a Great Wall in northern and central China in the true sense. The Ming Dynasty (1368 - 1644) further developed the defensive system of the wall and strengthened it on a larger scale. It pushed the wall construction to its highest peak.

Battlement Wall with Loopholes

The winding Great Wall is not merely a wall but instead a complete and rigorous defense security system composed of countless passes, watchtowers, garrison towns, beacon towers and blockhouses.  These fortifications were arranged in certain ways under the control of the military command system at all levels. For example, there were about 1,000,000 soldiers guarding the Ming's Great Wall. The chief military officers were stationed in garrison-towns, while lesser officials and soldiers were stationed in Guan Cheng (the defensive beachhead) and other smaller fortifications. The eleven garrisons were set up along the wall in order to guard the precinct or subsection.

The average height of the Ming Great Wall measures 33 feet and the width is about five yards. In low, flat areas the wall was built high and more defense lines were added. In the lofty mountains, the wall was a little lower in order to save the human and financial cost. Sometimes, even steep cliffs served as natural walls to thwart enemies.

Today, the Great Wall has lost its military function, but as a great ancient engineering work, its magnificent beauty and austere structure are still worthy appreciating.

Internal Structure of Beacon Tower

Being the oldest and most effective original telegram, beacon towers are the most important component of the defensive project on the Great Wall. They are built continually to pass military messages. In ancient times, if intruders approached, soldiers on the wall would create smoke in the daytime and light a fire at night to warn their troops.

Constructional Structure:The history of the beacon tower construction is earlier than the building of the Great Wall. Han Dynasty (206BC – 220AD) emphasized on the construction of beacon towers, in some sections, the successive towers even replaced the wall to form the defense system. As per the construction of the wall, they were built by using local materials according to the local conditions. In mountainous areas, they are built by laying pieces of stones and bricks. While in grassland and desert, they are of rammed-loam construction. The shape differ and are square, rectangular or round.

Constructional Type:There are mainly three types of Great Wall beacon towers. The first type is built on the wall. It is the fastest to pass military messages. If enemies came, soldiers would be maneuvered in shortest time and got ready to quickly fight. The second type is the one located inside the wall and connects the passes or garrisons. In early times, some towers even directly linked to the capital, for the convenience of alerting the court. The third is built some distance away from the wall, to watch the enemies' movements.

Defense System:

Beacon Tower in Ming Dynasty

In peaceful days, the beacon tower of Great Wall was the place where soldiers kept watch and animal dung and fire wood were saved. Soldiers raised sheep and cattle to eat and took their dung to burn, sometimes wolf dung was also used, and this is the reason why the beacon tower smoke is called "Langyan" (Wolves' smoke). While when war was coming, soldiers would light the fire wood to tell the next watch tower that dangers approached, so every watch tower would then get the message one after another until every soldier was fully alarmed and ready to fight.

 A Legend about Beacon Tower

King You was the last King of the Western Zhou Dynasty (11th century BC - 771 BC). He was a foolish and self-indulgent ruler. Baosi, the beautiful concubine whom he loved, was very solemn and never cracked a smile. King You asked people in and out of court for ideas to make her smile. However, none of their suggestions worked and the beauty still looked unhappy.

A court official named Guo Shifu then suggested that the King light the beacon towers all on Mt. Lishan. The towers had been used as warning signals against enemy attacks and to summon help. Fires or lanterns were used at night and smoke signals during the day. He assured the King that Baosi would smile when she saw that so many soldiers were fooled. The King agreed to try this plan. He took Baosi to Mt. Lishan, ordered his men to light the beacon towers and waited. When nearby rulers saw the flames in the sky, they thought the King was in danger and dispatched soldiers to his aid. King You then told them that it was only a joke. On seeing the disappointed soldiers scrambling to leave, Baosi burst into a smile. This made the king very happy. He rewarded Guo Shifu generously. The joke was repeated more than once.

But as a Chinese saying goes, "sadness usually follows extreme happiness." In 771 BC, the northern tribe of Quan Rong invaded his country. The King, as usual, commanded his soldiers to light the towers, but by this time the other rulers had wised up and ignored his call for help. The king was killed and his beauty captured. The Western Zhou Dynasty collapsed and hence the legend of Great Wall beacon tower spread.

he bodies of the wall, linking beacon towers, watch towers, and passes into a defensive line, are the main part of the Great Wall. Their heights differ depending on the local terrain. In flat areas and places of military importance, it is built quite high. While in the steep mountains and places of less important military meaning, it is built comparably lower to save financial and human resources. Generally speaking, the wall measures about 23 to 26 feet tall. The fracture surface of the wall is ladder type with the base measuring about 7.1 yards wide and the top measuring 6.3 yards wide on average, which makes it firm and very unlikely to collapse.

Constructional Materials & Methods

The Great Wall of China was built using local materials and in a manner according to the technological level of the periods. Construction was mainly rammed-earth, bricks, and stone walls. Rammed-earth wall was the earliest method of wall construction. Before the Sui Dynasty (581 - 618), workers always adopted this way. They first filled a wooden mold with clay or plaster, then compressed it by pestle until it was hardened into shape, and finally laid them piece by piece to the satisfactory height and length. In desert terrain where suitable earth was not available, sand mixed with debris and willow branch was used as a replacement. This kind is much easier to build but also easy to be destroyed by enemies and susceptible to collapsing after long periods of time.

Brick walls became popular during the Tang Dynasty (618 - 907) when the technique of brick production was fully developed. However, bricks were expensive at that time which limited its use in the construction of city gates and nearby walls. The outsides of walls were built by laying pieces of bricks while the inner walls were filled with yellow earth. Due to the increase of production levels of bricks in the Ming Dynasty (1368 - 1644), the cheap but high quality bricks were largely used. The wall was made strong enough to not only stop the intruders' steps, but also was able to resist attack from newly-invented firearms of the period. Of course, bricks must be agglutinated one by one to make the wall strong. During the Ming Dynasty, workers used lime mortar mixed with sticky rice juice as cementation materials which proved to be a very effective method.

Great Wall Built with Reed and Red Willows

Great Wall Built with Stones

Stone walls were made of locally found stones when walls passed through mountainous areas. Some stones were processed into necessary stone pieces and others kept their original appearance. Between stones, mortar mixed with sticky rice juice was used to securely glue them together. The wall was firm enough to bear more weight, go through natural erosion and resist any weapon's attack of the period.Badaling was built in this way.

Attached Designs

There are many necessary designs attached to China Great Wall to make the defense system complete.

 Crenel: It refers to the parapets which are concave-convex shaped and often measures 6.6 feet high. They are used for watching enemies' activities and shooting at enemies while at the same time being sheltered.

Great Wall Crenel

Parapet Wall of Badaling

 Parapet Wall: In Chinese, it is called Nuqiang or Yuqiang, literally translated as "Women's Wall", to indicate that it is low enough to allow a woman to climb over. It is built to ensure the safety of soldiers and horses on the wall, often 1.1 yards high and built on the inner side of the wall.

 Single Parapet Wall: As the name suggests, it is only a thin wall built on extremely steep mountain slopes. In this area, the regular way of building a double parapet wall is impossible to realize. The lofty peaks serve as natural barriers on the other side. The height varies according to the terrain, often measuring 6.6 to 11.5 feet tall. A famous and steep single parapet wall is located in Simatai.

 Barrier Wall: It is built vertically to the crenels. Once the enemies' attack approached the wall, allied soldiers could use barrier walls to provide cover for themselves.

 Horse Ramps (or Bridle Paths): Beside the gate tower usually laid a pathway which leads people and horses to the top of the wall. It measures about 5.5 to 6.6 yards wide. A parapet wall serving as railing was built on one side of it. The incline is 30 degrees and bricks were placed with their lateral surfaces skewed to provide anti-slip.

 Drainage System: In order to drain precipitation on the wall in a timely fashion, workers built barrel drains at certain intervals. Rain water could be drained to the outside through the mouth of the barrel drains which extended out from the wall about one yard. The drainage system has protected the wall from the erosion of rain water over a long period of time.

Brick Wall with Drain

Brick Wall with Quanmen

 Quanmen: On the inner side of the wall, at regular intervals, there are arched doors. When war was coming, soldiers could pass through these doors as indicators to the top of the wall to fight.

 Pufang: It is a shelter built on the wall or watchtower for soldiers on guard.