The Great Wall Of China

The Great Wall of China is the longest fortress ever constructed and made of stone, block, packed earth, wood, and different materials which crossed many provinces and municipalities, these are Liaoning, Hebei, Tianjin, Beijing, Shanxi, Shaanxi, Ningxia, Gansu. The Great Wall starts from Shanghai Pass and ends at Jiayu Pass. The most popular part of this Great Wall is around Beijing.

With a straight-line distance of over 1180 miles, the main purpose for building this fortification wall was to protect The Chinese Empire against the raids and invasions of Mongolian nomads and Manchu enemies. Other purposes were border control, imposing duties on goods transported along the famous Silk Road and also for use as a transportation passageway.

The history of the construction of The Great Wall of China:

• The Spring and Autumn Period (770-476 BC):

1. a) Wall of the Chu State: This period is considered the beginning of The Great Wall of China. A length of about 620 miles was built during this period.
2. b) Wall of the Qi State: This wall covered a distance of about 370 miles. By expanding the wall, the whole area of the Shandong Province was covered. The Yellow Sea of China was reached as the wall stretched from the West in Pingyin County to the East Jiao County.

• The Warring States Period (475-221 BC):

1. a) Wall of the Qin State: The construction of the wall continued along the North of the province frontier. This wall can be found at the Gansu-Province and Ningxia Hui.
2. b) Wall of the Wei State: A wall of about 430 miles was constructed across the East Bank of the Luo River in Shaanxi which is called, “The Wall West of the Yellow River”.
3. c) Wall of the Zhao State: In this period about 620 miles was completed which at present is located in Linzhang County and also Cixian County of the Hebei Province.
4. d) Wall of the Yan State: A 620 mile long wall comprised of two sections was built in this area.

• Qin Dynasty (221-207 BC):

Wall of the Qin Dynasty: This was a period of great progress and the wall was extended by over 3100 miles. It was during this period that The Great Wall of China first took the shape.

• Western Han Dynasty (206 BC-AD 24):

The wall of the Han Dynasty: An exceptional achievement is attributed to the Han Dynasty as a wall more than 6200 miles was built. This remains the longest stretch of wall ever built in China.

• Northern and Southern Dynasty (420-588AD):

1. a) Wall of the Northern Wei: Covering a stretch from Chicheng and Hebei-Urad Banners all the way to Inner Mongolia, a wall of about 620 miles was built.
2. b) Wall of the Eastern Wei: A 46 mile long wall was built in Shanxi Province.
3. c) Wall of the Northern Qi: About 930 miles of wall was built.
4. d) Wall of the Northern Zhou: During this period the wall wasn’t expanded. Instead, the Chinese worked hard to renovate the existing wall.

• Sui Dynasty (581-618 AD)

Wall of the Sui Dynasty: Two sections of wall were built totaling a distance of about 930 miles. These sections were built under the rule of two different Sui Emperors.

• Ming Dynasty (1368-1644 AD)

Wall of the Ming Dynasty: The great efforts of the Ming Dynasty administration ensured that a wall which covered about 4500 miles was built. This wall stretched from the Yalu River in the East to the Jiayu Pass in the West.