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Details Category: Masterpieces of ancient and medieval fine arts and architecture Published on 04/26/2016 17:03 Views: 4114The Great Wall of China is the largest defensive structure in the history of mankind.
Even by modern standards, this building is gigantic. It could be realized only as a result of the unification of the whole country. The wall was conceived to protect the northern borders of Ancient China from the raids of the barbarian hordes. But modern scientists believe that the wall was never a single defensive structure - it was built in different parts of the country under different dynasties for different purposes.
Description of the Great Wall of China
The height of the wall is 10 m, width 5-8 m. It originates from the city of Shanhaiguan and from there stretches like a giant snake along the ledges of mountain ranges to the west, ending in Central China, at the borders of the Gobi desert.
In some places, other fortifications and earthworks stretch parallel to it. At the gates and passages, additional fortresses and casemates were built for protection.
The length of the wall is over 21,000 km. To date, only 8.2% of the total length of the wall erected during the Ming Dynasty retains its original appearance, while over 74% has received serious damage. This huge structure is clearly visible even from space, from Earth's orbit. Although not all astronauts agree with this.
Satellite image of the Great Wall of China
On a section of 750 km, the wall is used not only as a fortification, but also as a convenient road.
Construction
The construction of the wall began in 221 BC. It is believed that it was built by the 300,000-strong imperial army and a huge number of peasants. The Great Wall of China was built over several centuries, but its main part was built under Emperor Qing in 10 years. When laying the stone blocks of the wall, glutinous rice porridge with an admixture of slaked lime was used.
One can only guess how many human lives were put into its construction. No wonder the Great Wall of China is called the "wall of tears" and "the longest cemetery in the world." The remains of workers who died of exhaustion were often immured directly into the wall, sometimes they are already found in our time.
After Qin's death, the wall lost its significance for a long time. During the Han Dynasty (206-220 AD), it was renovated and extended by 100 km. In 607, the emperors of the Sui dynasty (589-618) began its reconstruction. Subsequently, the wall was subjected to reconstruction more than once.
The wall acquired its modern appearance under the emperors of the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644). In many areas it was rebuilt, earthen embankments were replaced with brick and stone structures. Of the 25,000 watchtowers 12 meters high, standing at a distance of two arrow flights, many have survived to this day. From their upper platforms, in the event of an enemy attack, an alarm was transmitted: at night with the help of fire, and during the day with a smoke signal.
In the XV century. under the Wanli emperor, huge work was carried out to reconstruct this structure, so huge that until the beginning of the 20th century. many believed that it was he who built the wall.
Despite the huge expenditure of manpower and resources, the effectiveness of the wall as a defensive structure turned out to be extremely low - it turned out to be a weak defense against foreign invaders. But on the other hand, it kept the population of China from fleeing from a country where cruel orders reigned.
As China's borders expanded beyond the wall, its role as a frontier was reduced to zero. For decades, peasants dismantled the wall for building materials, so that in some places it disappeared altogether. Only in 1977 did the authorities begin to punish with a large fine for damaging the wall.
If you ask a person anywhere in the world to name the first thing that is associated with China, there is a high probability that it will be the Wall of China. No wonder - this is really a huge, majestic structure that deserves to be mentioned. Many readers would certainly like to know what is the length of the Chinese Wall in km, when it was built, by whom, for what purpose. We will try to answer these questions briefly, but meaningfully.
Where is it?
It would seem that the answer is obvious - the Great Wall of China should be located in China. However, he is only partly true. Of course, most of it is really in the Middle Kingdom. But not all! Several hundred kilometers of the wall are in the south of Mongolia, and some segment is in the northeast of the same country. Many will probably be surprised by the fact that a small piece of the same segment runs along the southernmost border of the Chita region. Some of the most ancient sites can be found in North Korea.
The wall itself has a very complex structure - individual pieces were built tens and even hundreds of kilometers from others. Because of this, the wall is located not only in the northern part of China, but also in the central, and even eastern.
What is its length
Not only ordinary readers, but also many experts would like to know how long the Great Wall of China is. Alas, the data on this is very different. Judging by the annals, the length was the same, some modern commissions present completely different data, and other groups of specialists - the third.
So, what is the length of the Chinese Wall in km?
The Chinese themselves call it the "Wall 10,000 li long". If we take into account that "li" is an ancient Chinese measure of length, equal to approximately 570 meters, then we can calculate the length - we get 5,700,000 meters, or 5,700 kilometers. A very impressive number. However, in ancient times, problems often arose when counting. Therefore, it is better to turn to modern research, since they are carried out regularly.
In 2012, a special commission was assembled to determine exactly how long the Great Wall of China is in km. They counted 21,196 kilometers - just mind-boggling. After all, the length of the planet Earth at the equator is a little more than 40 thousand kilometers. It turns out that the wall could encircle the Earth by more than half? Very doubtful. It is more likely that Chinese scientists, wanting to impress the whole world, to attract even more tourists, simply "slightly" overestimated the length of their main pride. All sites were taken into account - both existing to this day and destroyed many centuries ago. They even included in the calculations the parameters of structures erected in Mongolia during the Qing Dynasty, although they were never part of the Great Wall of China.
The official length is 8852 kilometers. Also very impressive! Especially when you consider the rest of its dimensions. The thickness in different areas varies from 5 to 8 meters, and the height is approximately 6-7 meters. However, there are also places where it rises by as much as 10 meters.
Even with the use of modern technology and materials, it would be very difficult to create such a colossus. But here the construction was carried out using manual labor, natural materials and the most primitive tools. So you definitely cannot refuse the Chinese in diligence.
Why is it so difficult to calculate its length?
After reading, the reader may have a question: why are there such problems and discrepancies when trying to determine what is the length of the Great Wall of China in km?
The answer is simple. The fact is that it was built not one or two years, but almost two millennia. As a result, when some sections were just completed, others were already destroyed - under the influence of rains, floods, and human activities.
When they find two segments of the wall several tens of kilometers long, between which there are no buildings, many guesses arise as to why this happened. Maybe the Chinese engineers didn't want to build anything here? Or did not have time? Or maybe the wall was here, but just collapsed over time? Therefore, some experts, trying to understand how long the Chinese Wall is, count only the sections that exist today. Others, in an effort to get more impressive numbers, take into account both destroyed and hypothetically existing ones. Of course, the discrepancies are more than serious.
So, if we talk about the parameters of such a building as the Great Wall of China, it is not possible to unambiguously name its length in kilometers.
Why was it built
Speaking about the global nature of the construction, one cannot help but wonder why it was built at all. The most obvious and popular answer is to protect Chinese lands from the enemy from the north. But he does not stand up to criticism - we will return to this later.
There is a version that she was supposed to prevent the enemy, who had captured slaves and wealth in China, to freely leave back to the north. But this version is not too plausible.
But another option has been tested by practice - it was used as a road. Wide enough for two carts to pass freely, it was not afraid of rain and mudslides. On the wall, even in the autumn slush, it was dry. Merchants and simple peasants carrying goods to the markets could quickly move from one province to another.
Also, the wall could be used as a customs post. After all, the military was on duty all the time in the towers, who checked whether all the duties were paid by the merchants. The Great Silk Road alone is crossed by the wall three times.
Some experts advocate a completely different version. When the wall began to be built, China was a bunch of fragmented, warring states and peoples. What was needed was a single great goal that would make yesterday's enemies work together, helping each other. That was the purpose of the construction of the Great Wall of China.
Useless from a military point of view
Now let's think about why it could not be used as a military facility? Everything is simple - precisely because of its length. In those days, the army of China was very small, and it defended not so much the border from the attacks of enemies, but the emperor and his entourage, as well as other feudal lords from ordinary peasants.
If you split up the entire available army, planting a small detachment in each tower, then they would not be able to resist - even a small enemy army, choosing a good direction for a strike, would easily capture a section of the fortress, killing the guards. And if you collect small detachments into large armies, then they would be at a great distance from each other - it would not be possible to control the entire length of the wall.
In addition, as mentioned above, the wall is not a straight, continuous construction, but a chain of separate sections, between which there are often gaping gaps of tens and hundreds of kilometers. What prevented the enemies from breaking through the wall, but calmly bypassing it, choosing a route through such a hole?
So the fact that she could not, with all her desire, perform a military function is quite obvious.
How many years did it take to build
Well, the question of how long the Chinese Wall is, how many kilometers it stretches, is more or less disclosed. How many years was it built? Fortunately, many written sources have been preserved that allow a fairly accurate answer to this question.
Construction began in the third century BC. Then China as such did not exist - only numerous scattered and constantly warring kingdoms. According to the chronicles, almost immediately 20% of the population - about a million people - were thrown into the construction.
The construction was completed in 1644, when the powerful Ming dynasty already ruled the united China.
Of course, construction was not carried out constantly. Sometimes they forgot about it for decades and even centuries, in order to eventually return to the construction of this amazing object.
Human losses during construction
To say how many people died during construction is even more difficult than to unambiguously answer how long the Chinese wall is. The fact is that people were crippled and died constantly: poor nutrition, primitive mechanisms, inhuman working conditions - all this affected life expectancy. But it never occurred to anyone to record or otherwise mark the deaths of people at work. Just from time to time more and more new workers were brought here.
There is a legend that for every kilometer of wall built, there was one fatal accident. But it is possible that in fact there were much more victims than 9 thousand.
The dead were treated quite simply - they were walled up in the base of the walls so as not to dig graves for them. So the Wall of China is not just an impressive building, but also a very unusual cemetery.
Legends associated with her
By the way, one of the legends is connected with the people buried in the wall. It says that one man - a simple farmer who was forced to build a wall - died and was walled into the foundation of the building. His wife - Meng Jiang Nu - was heartbroken and cried terribly. So terrible that the part of the wall where the husband was buried simply crumbled, exposing the remains and allowing them to be buried according to customs. Rumor has it that a monument was even erected on the wall in honor of this.
Another interesting legend is connected with the dragon - well, what is China without it? Allegedly, the location of the Great Wall of China was not chosen by chance. The wise dragon crawled across the earth, showing the place where it should be erected. Well, the legend is really beautiful and quite in oriental style.
Vandalism and fraud
At various times, the Great Wall was often used as ... a source of building materials. Landed peasants, not thinking too much about the value of the building, calmly dismantled it into bricks for their needs. And it began many centuries ago and continues to this day. Only in the middle of the 20th century, the authorities caught on and imposed a fine for such sabotage - 5,000 yuan (about 48,000 rubles). True, in remote provinces this stops people weakly - many do not even know about such a ban and punishment.
In many places you can even buy such a brick - it is quite inexpensive, about 50 yuan (less than 500 rubles). However, when exporting from the country, serious problems may well arise. And what prevents scammers from slipping an ordinary brick made a few days ago under the guise of an ancient artifact? Therefore, it is better to refrain from such purchases.
The main binder was not concrete, as they would do now, but slaked lime mixed with rice porridge.
On average, 40 million tourists visit the Great Wall of China in one year - both from China and from all over the world.
Although there is an opinion that this is the only building that can be seen from space with the naked eye, this is not so - although the wall is long enough, its small width makes this impossible.
In 1987, it was included in the UNESCO World Heritage List, being China's greatest landmark.
Conclusion
This can be the end of the article. Now you know, if not everything, then a lot about such an amazing building as the Great Wall of China: length in kilometers, width, purpose, years of construction and much more. Surely this will allow you to significantly expand your horizons.
Badaling is the most visited section of the Great Wall of China.“A long wall of 10,000 li” is what the Chinese themselves call this miracle of ancient engineering. For a huge country with almost one and a half billion people, it has become a matter of national pride, a calling card that attracts travelers from all over the world. Today, the Great Wall of China is one of the most popular attractions - approximately 40 million people visit it every year. In 1987, the unique object was included in the UNESCO list of world cultural heritage.
Locals still like to repeat that the one who did not climb the wall is not a real Chinese. This phrase, uttered by Mao Zedong, is perceived as a real call to action. Despite the fact that the height of the structure is about 10 meters with a width of 5-8 m in different sections (not to mention not very comfortable steps), there are no fewer foreigners who want to feel like true Chinese at least for a moment. In addition, a magnificent panorama of the surroundings opens up from a height, which you can admire endlessly.
You involuntarily wonder how harmoniously this creation of human hands fits into the natural landscape, making up a single whole with it. The answer to the phenomenon is simple: the Great Wall of China was laid not in the desert, but next to hills and mountains, spurs and deep gorges, smoothly bending around them. But why did the ancient Chinese need to build such a large and extended fortification? How did the construction go and how long did it last? These questions are asked by everyone who was lucky enough to visit here at least once. Answers to them have long been received by researchers, and we will dwell on the rich historical past of the Great Wall of China. She herself leaves an ambiguous impression on tourists, since some sections are in excellent condition, while others are completely abandoned. Only this circumstance in no way detracts from the interest in this object - rather, on the contrary.
The history of the construction of the Great Wall of China
In the III century BC, one of the rulers of the Celestial Empire was Emperor Qing Shi Huang. His era was during the Warring States period. It was a difficult and controversial time. The state was threatened from all sides by enemies, especially the aggressive Xiongnu nomads, and it needed protection from their treacherous raids. Thus was born the decision to build an impregnable wall - high and long, so that no one could disturb the peace of the Qin empire. At the same time, this structure was supposed, in modern terms, to demarcate the boundaries of the ancient Chinese kingdom and contribute to its further centralization. The wall was also intended to solve the issue of “the purity of the nation”: by fencing off the barbarians, the Chinese would be deprived of the opportunity to enter into marriage relations with them and have children together.
The idea of building such a grandiose border fortification was not born out of the blue. There have already been precedents. Many kingdoms - for example, Wei, Yan, Zhao and the already mentioned Qin - tried to build something similar. The Wei state erected its wall around 353 BC. e .: adobe construction separated it from the kingdom of Qin. Later, this and other border fortifications were connected to each other, and they formed a single architectural ensemble.
The construction of the Great Wall of China started along the Yingshan, a mountain range in Inner Mongolia, in northern China. The emperor appointed commander Meng Tian to coordinate its course. The work ahead was large. Previously built walls had to be strengthened, connected with new sections and lengthened. As for the so-called "inner" walls, which served as borders between separate kingdoms, they were simply demolished.
The construction of the first sections of this grandiose object took a total of a decade, and the construction of the entire Great Wall of China stretched for two millennia (according to some evidence, even as much as 2,700 years). At its various stages, the number of people simultaneously involved in the work reached three hundred thousand. In general, the authorities attracted (more precisely, forced) about two million people to join them. These were representatives of many social strata: slaves, peasants, and military personnel. The workers worked in inhuman conditions. Some died from overwork as such, others became victims of severe and incurable infections.
To comfort, at least relative, did not have the area itself. The construction ran along the mountain ranges, skirting all the spurs extending from them. The builders moved forward, overcoming not only high rises, but also many gorges. Their sacrifices were not in vain - at least from the point of view of today: it was precisely such a landscape of the area that determined the unique appearance of the miracle building. Not to mention its size: on average, the height of the wall reaches 7.5 meters, and this is without taking into account the rectangular battlements (with them all 9 meters are obtained). Its width is also not the same - at the bottom 6.5 m, at the top 5.5 m.
The Chinese in everyday life call their wall "earth dragon". And it is by no means accidental: at the very beginning, any materials were used in its construction, primarily rammed earth. It was done like this: first, shields were woven from reeds or twigs, and clay, small pebbles and other improvised materials were pressed in layers between them. When Emperor Qin Shi Huang took over, they began to use more reliable stone slabs, which were laid right next to each other.
Surviving sections of the Great Wall of China
However, not only the variety of materials determined the heterogeneous appearance of the Great Wall of China. The towers also make it recognizable. Some of them were built before the wall itself appeared, and were built into it. Other elevations appeared simultaneously with the stone "border". It is not difficult to determine which were before and which were erected after: the first ones have a smaller width and are located at an unequal distance, while the second organically fit into the building and are exactly 200 meters apart from each other. They were usually erected rectangular, in two floors, equipped with upper platforms with loopholes. Observation of enemy maneuvers, especially when they attacked, was carried out from signal towers located here, on the wall.
When the Han Dynasty came to power, ruling from 206 BC to 220 AD, the Great Wall of China was expanded westward to Dunhuang. During this period, the object was equipped with a whole line of watchtowers that went deep into the desert. Their purpose is to protect caravans with goods, which often suffered from nomadic raids. To this day, mainly sections of the wall, erected in the era of the Ming dynasty, which ruled from 1368 to 1644, have survived. They were built mainly from more reliable and durable materials - stone blocks and bricks. Over the three centuries of the reign of the named dynasty, the Great Wall of China "grew" significantly, stretching from the coast of the Bohai Bay (Shanhaiguan outpost) to the border of the modern Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region and Gansu Province (Yumenguan outpost).
Where does the wall begin and end?
The man-made border of Ancient China originates in the north of the country, in the city of Shanghai-guan, located on the shores of the Bohai Bay of the Yellow Sea, which once had strategic importance on the borders of Manchuria and Mongolia. This is the easternmost point of the 10,000 Li Long Wall. The Laoluntou tower is also located here, it is also called the “dragon's head”. The tower is also notable for being the only place in the country where the Great Wall of China is washed by the sea, and it itself deepens into the bay by as much as 23 meters.
The westernmost point of the monumental structure is located in the vicinity of the city of Jiayuguan, in the central part of the Celestial Empire. Here the Great Wall of China is best preserved. This site was built back in the 14th century, so it might not stand the test of time either. But it survived due to the fact that it was constantly strengthened and repaired. The westernmost outpost of the empire was built near Jiayuyoshan Mountain. The outpost was equipped with a moat and walls - internal and semicircular external. There are also main gates located on the western and eastern sides of the outpost. The Yuntai Tower stands proudly here, considered by many almost as a separate attraction. Inside, Buddhist texts and bas-reliefs of ancient Chinese kings are engraved on the walls, which arouse the constant interest of researchers.
Myths, legends, interesting facts
For a long time it was believed that the Great Wall of China could be seen from space. Moreover, this myth was born long before the flights to low Earth orbit, in 1893. Not even an assumption, but a statement was made by The Century magazine (USA). Then they returned to this idea in 1932. Robert Ripley, a well-known showman at the time, claimed that the structure could also be seen from the moon. With the advent of the era of spaceflight, these claims were largely refuted. According to NASA experts, the object is barely visible from the orbit, from which to the Earth's surface is about 160 km. The wall, and then with the help of strong binoculars, was able to see the American astronaut William Pogue.
Another myth takes us directly to the time of the construction of the Great Wall of China. An ancient legend says that a powder prepared from human bones was allegedly used as a cementing mortar that held the stones together. It was not necessary to go far for “raw materials” for him, given that many workers died here. Luckily, this is just a legend, albeit a creepy one. The ancient masters really prepared the adhesive solution from powder, only the basis of the substance was ordinary rice flour.
There is a legend that a great fiery Dragon paved the way for the workers. He also indicated in which areas the wall should be erected, and the builders steadily followed in his footsteps. Another legend tells of a farmer's wife named Men Jing Niu. Upon learning of the death of her husband at the construction site, she came there and began to cry inconsolably. As a result, one of the sites collapsed, and the widow saw the remains of her beloved under it, which she was able to take and bury.
It is known that the Chinese invented the wheelbarrow. But few people know what prompted them to begin the construction of a grandiose object: the workers needed a convenient device with which to transport building materials. Some sections of the Great Wall of China, which were of exceptional strategic importance, were surrounded by protective ditches filled with water or left in the form of ditches.
Great Wall of China in winter
Sections of the Great Wall of China
Several sections of the Great Wall of China are open for tourists to visit. Let's talk about some of them.
The closest outpost to Beijing, the modern capital of the PRC, is Badaling (it is also one of the most popular). It is located north of the Juyongguan pass and is only 60 km from the city. It was built in the era of the ninth Chinese emperor - Hongzhi, who ruled from 1487 to 1505. Along this section of the wall are signal platforms and watchtowers, which offer a magnificent view if you climb to its highest point. In this place, the height of the object reaches an average of 7.8 meters. The width is sufficient for 10 pedestrians or 5 horses to pass.
Another outpost quite close to the capital is called Mutianyu and is located 75 km from it, in Huaizhou, the urban subordination area of Beijing. This section was built during the reign of the Longqing (Zhu Zaihou) and Wanli (Zhu Yijun) Emperors of the Ming Dynasty. At this point, the wall takes a sharp turn towards the northeastern regions of the country. The local landscape is mountainous, there are many steep slopes and cliffs. Zastava is notable for the fact that three branches of the “great stone border” converge at its southeastern tip, and at a 600-meter height.
One of the few sites where the Great Wall of China has been preserved almost in its original form is Simatai. It is located in Gubeikou Village, 100 km northeast of Miyun County, Beijing Municipality. This section stretches for 19 km. In its southeastern part, which still impresses with its impregnable view even today, there are partially preserved observation towers (14 in total).
The steppe section of the wall originates from the Jinchuan Gorge - this is east of the county town of Shandan, in the Zhangye district of Gansu province. In this place, the structure stretches for 30 km, and its height varies between 4-5 meters. In ancient times, the Great Wall of China was supported on both sides by a parapet that has survived to this day. The gorge itself deserves special attention. At a height of 5 meters, if you count from its bottom, you can see several carved hieroglyphs right on a rocky cliff. The inscription translates as "Jinchuan Citadel".
In the same province of Gansu, north of the Jiayuguan outpost, at a distance of only 8 km, there is a steep section of the Great Wall of China. It was built during the Ming period. He received this view due to the specifics of the local landscape. The bends of the mountainous terrain, which the builders had to take into account, “lead” the wall to a steep descent right into the crevice, where it goes straight. In 1988, the Chinese authorities restored this site and opened it to tourists a year later. From the watchtower you have a magnificent panorama of the surroundings on both sides of the wall.
Steep section of the Great Wall of China
The ruins of the Yangguan outpost are located 75 km southwest of the city of Dunhuang, which in ancient times served as a gateway to the Celestial Empire on the Great Silk Road. In the old days, the length of this section of the wall was approximately 70 km. Here you can see impressive heaps of stones and earthen ramparts. All this leaves no doubt: there were at least a dozen watch and signal towers here. However, they have not survived to our time, except for the signal tower north of the outpost, on Mount Dundun.
The section known as the Wei Wall originates in the town of Chaoyuandong (Shaanxi Province), located on the west coast of the Changjian River. Not far from here is the northern spur of one of the five sacred mountains of Taoism - Huashan, belonging to the Qinling Range. From here, the Great Wall of China moves towards the northern regions, as evidenced by its fragments in the villages of Chengnan and Hongyan, of which the former is best preserved.
Measures to save the wall
Time did not spare this unique architectural object, which many call the eighth wonder of the world. The rulers of the Chinese kingdoms did everything in their power to counteract the destruction. However, from 1644 to 1911 - the period of the Manchu Qing Dynasty - the Great Wall was practically abandoned and suffered even more destruction. Only the Badaling section was maintained in order, and that because it was located near Beijing and was considered the “front gate” to the capital. History, of course, does not tolerate the subjunctive mood, but if it were not for the betrayal of the commander Wu Sangui, who opened the gates of the Shanhaiguan outpost to the Manchus and let the enemy through, the Ming dynasty would not have fallen, and the attitude towards the wall would have remained the same - careful.
Deng Xiaoping, the founder of economic reforms in the PRC, paid great attention to the preservation of the country's historical heritage. It was he who initiated the restoration of the Great Wall of China, the program of which started in 1984. It was financed from a variety of sources, including funds from foreign business structures and donations from individuals. To raise money in the late 80s, an art auction was even held in the capital of the Celestial Empire, the course of which was widely covered not only in the country itself, but also by the leading television companies in Paris, London and New York. A lot of work was done with the proceeds, but the sections of the wall that are far from the tourist centers are still in a deplorable state.
On September 6, 1994, the thematic Museum of the Great Wall of China was inaugurated in Badaling. Behind the building, which resembles a wall in its appearance, is she herself. The institution is called upon to popularize the great historical and cultural heritage of this, without exaggeration, unique architectural object.
Even the corridor in the museum is stylized under it - it is distinguished by its sinuousness, along its entire length there are “passages”, “signal towers”, “fortresses”, etc. The tour makes you feel as if you are traveling along the real Great Wall of China: so everything is well thought out and realistic.
Note to tourists
There are two funiculars on the Mutianyu section, the longest of the completely restored fragments of the wall, located 90 km north of the capital of China. The first is equipped with closed cabins and is designed for 4-6 people, the second is an open lift, similar to ski lifts. Those suffering from acrophobia (fear of heights) are better off not taking risks and prefer a walking tour, which, however, is also fraught with difficulties.
Climbing the Great Wall of China is easy enough, but the descent can turn into real torture. The fact is that the height of the steps is not the same and varies between 5-30 centimeters. You should go down them with the utmost care and it is advisable not to stop, because after a pause it is much harder to resume the descent. One tourist even calculated: climbing the wall at its lowest point involves overcoming 4,000 (!) steps.
Time to visit how to get to the Great Wall of China
Tours to the Mutianyu site from March 16 to November 15 are held from 7:00 to 18:00, in other months - from 7:30 to 17:00.
The Badaling site is open to the public from 06:00 to 19:00 in summer and from 07:00 to 18:00 in winter.
You can get acquainted with the Symatai site in November-March from 8:00 to 17:00, in April-November - from 8:00 to 19:00.
A visit to the Great Wall of China is provided both as part of excursion groups and individually. In the first case, tourists are delivered by special buses, which usually depart from Beijing's Tiananmen Square, Yabaolu and Qianmen streets, in the second, public transport or a private car with a driver hired for the whole day is available to inquisitive travelers.
The first option is suitable for those who are in China for the first time and do not know the language. Or, on the contrary, those who know the country and speak Chinese, but at the same time want to save money: group tours are relatively inexpensive. But there are also costs, namely the significant duration of such tours and the need to focus on other members of the group.
Public transport to get to the Great Wall of China is usually used by those who know Beijing well and at least speak and read Chinese. A trip by regular bus or train will cost less than even the most attractive group tour. There is also a time saving: an independent tour will allow you not to be distracted, for example, by visiting numerous souvenir shops, where guides love to take tourists so much in the hope of earning their commission on sales.
Renting a driver with a car for the whole day is the most comfortable and flexible way to get to the section of the Great Wall of China that you choose for yourself. The pleasure is not cheap, but it is worth it. Wealthy tourists often book a car through a hotel. You can catch it just on the street, like an ordinary taxi: this is how many metropolitan residents earn money, readily offering their services to foreigners. Just do not forget to take a phone number from the driver or take a picture of the car itself, so that you don’t have to look for it for a long time if the person leaves or drives off somewhere before you return from the tour.
The Great Wall of China is one of the largest and oldest architectural monuments in the world. Its total length is 8851.8 km, in one of the sections it runs near Beijing. The construction process of this structure is amazing in its scale. We will tell you about the most interesting facts and events from the history of the Wall.
To begin with, let's delve a little into the history of the great building. It is hard to imagine how much time and human resources it takes to build a structure of this magnitude. It is unlikely that anywhere else in the world there is a building with such a long, great and at the same time tragic history. The construction of the Great Wall of China began as early as the 3rd century BC during the reign of Emperor Qin Shi Huangdi of the Qin Dynasty, during the Warring States period (475-221 BC). In those days, the state was in dire need of protection from the attacks of enemies, in particular the nomadic people of the Xiongnu. A fifth of the population of China was involved in the work, at that time it was about a million people.
The wall was supposed to be the extreme northern point of the planned expansion of the Chinese, as well as to protect the subjects of the "Celestial Empire" from being drawn into a semi-nomadic lifestyle, and assimilation with the barbarians. It was planned to clearly define the boundaries of the great Chinese civilization, to promote the unification of the empire into a single whole, since China was just beginning to form from a multitude of conquered states. Here are the boundaries of the Wall of China on the map:
During the Han Dynasty (206 - 220 BC), the building was expanded to the west to Dunhuang. They built many watchtowers to protect trade caravans from the attack of warring nomads. Almost all sections of the Great Wall that have come down to our times were built during the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644). During this period, they built mainly from bricks and blocks, due to which the structure became stronger and more reliable. During this time, the Wall ran from east to west from Shanhaiguan on the coast of the Yellow Sea to the Yumenguan outpost on the border of the provinces of Gansu and the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region.
The Qing Dynasty of Manchuria (1644-1911) broke the resistance of the defenders of the Wall due to the betrayal of Wu Sangui. During this period, the building was treated with great disdain. During the three centuries of the Qing in power, the Great Wall was almost destroyed by the influence of time. Only a small section of it, passing near Beijing - Badaling - was kept in order - it was used as a "gateway to the capital". Nowadays, this section of the wall is the most popular among tourists - it was the very first open to the public back in 1957, and also served as the finish point for the cycling race at the 2008 Olympics in Beijing. US President Nixon visited him. In 1899, newspapers in the United States wrote that the wall would be dismantled, and a highway would be laid in its place.
In 1984, at the initiative of Deng Xiaoping, a program was organized to restoreChinese wall, financial assistance from Chinese and foreign companies was attracted. A collection was also held among private individuals, everyone could donate any amount.
The total length of the Great Wall of China is 8,851 kilometers and 800 meters. Just think about this figure, is it really impressive?
In our time, a 60-kilometer section of the wall in the Shanxi region in northwest China is undergoing active erosion. The main reason for this is the intensive farming practices in the country, when, starting in the 1950s, groundwater gradually dried up, and the region became the epicenter of the onset of extremely severe sandstorms. More than 40 kilometers of the wall have already been destroyed, and only 10 kilometers are still in place, but the height of the wall has partially decreased from five to two meters.
The Great Wall was listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1987 as one of China's greatest historical landmarks. In addition, this is one of the most visited attractions in the world - about 40 million tourists visit here every year.
A lot of myths and legends roam around such a large-scale structure. For example, the fact that this is a solid, continuous wall built in one go is a real myth. In reality, the wall is a discontinuous network of separate segments built by various dynasties to protect China's northern border.
During construction, the Great Wall of China was nicknamed the longest cemetery on the planet, as a large number of people died at the construction site. According to approximate calculations, the construction of the wall cost the lives of more than one million people.
It is logical that such a whopper has broken and still holds many records. The most significant of them is the longest structure ever built by man.
The Great Wall was built as many separate elements at different times. Each province built its own wall and gradually they united into a single whole. In those days, protective structures were simply necessary, and were built everywhere. In total, more than 50,000 kilometers of defensive walls have been erected in China over the past 2,000 years.
Since the Wall of China was interrupted in some places, it was not difficult for the Mongol invaders led by Genghis Khan to raid China, and they subsequently conquered the northern part of the country between 1211 and 1223. The Mongols ruled China until 1368, when they were driven out by the Ming Dynasty described above.
Contrary to popular belief, the Great Wall of China cannot be seen from space. This pervasive myth was born in 1893 in the American magazine The Century and then re-discussed in 1932 in Robert Ripley's show, who claimed that the wall was visible from the moon - this despite the fact that the first flight into space was still very far away. In our time, it has been proven that it is quite difficult to notice a wall from space with the naked eye. Here's a NASA shot from space, see for yourself.
Another legend says that the substance used to hold the stones together was mixed with human bone powder, and that those who died at the construction site were buried right in the wall itself to make the structure stronger. But this is not true, the solution was made from ordinary rice flour - and there are no bones or dead in the wall structure.
For obvious reasons, this miracle was not included in the 7 ancient wonders of the world, but the Great Wall of China is rightfully included in the list of 7 new wonders of the world.Another legend says that a large fire dragon paved the way for the workers, indicating where to build the wall. Builders subsequently followed in his footsteps.
Since we are talking about legends, one of the most popular is about a woman named Meng Jing Niu, the wife of a farmer working on the construction of the Great Wall. When she learned that her husband had died at work, she went to the wall and wept on it until it collapsed, revealing the bones of her lover, and the wife was able to bury them.
There was a whole tradition of burying those who died on the construction of the wall. Members of the family of the deceased carried the coffin, on which was a cage with a white rooster. The crowing of a rooster was supposed to keep the spirit of a dead person awake until the procession had crossed the Great Wall. Otherwise, the spirit will forever wander along the wall.
During the Ming Dynasty, more than one million soldiers were called upon to defend the country's borders from enemies on the Great Wall. As for the builders, they were drawn from the same defenders in peacetime, peasants, simply unemployed and criminals. There was a special punishment for all the convicts and there was only one verdict - to build a wall!
Especially for this construction, the Chinese invented a wheelbarrow and used it everywhere in the construction of the Great Wall. Some of the most dangerous parts of the Great Wall were surrounded by defensive ditches, which were either filled with water or left as ditches. The Chinese used advanced defense weapons such as axes, hammers, spears, crossbows, halberds, and a Chinese invention: gunpowder.
Observation towers were built along the length of the Great Wall in even sections and could be up to 40 feet high. They were used to monitor the territory, as well as fortresses and garrisons for troops. They had supplies of necessary food and water. In case of danger, a signal was given from the tower, torches, special beacons or just flags were lit. The western section of the Great Wall, with a long chain of watchtowers, served to protect caravans that traveled along the Silk Road, a famous trade route.
The last battle at the wall took place in 1938 during the Sino-Japanese War. There are many traces of bullets from those times in the wall. The highest point of the Great Wall of China is at an altitude of 1534 meters, near Beijing, while the lowest point is at sea level near Laolongtu. The average height of the wall is 7 meters, and the width in some places reaches 8 meters, but in general it varies from 5 to 7 meters.
The Great Wall of China is a symbol of national pride, centuries of struggle, and greatness. The country's government spends a huge amount of money on the preservation of this architectural monument, estimated at billions of US dollars a year, hoping to save the wall for future generations.
The most grandiose defensive structure on the planet is the Great Wall of China, the Eighth Wonder of the World. This fortification is considered the longest and widest. There are still disputes how many kilometers is the wall of china stretches. You can find a lot of interesting facts about this structure in the literature and on the Internet. Even its location is of interest - this wall divides China into north and south - the land of nomads and the land of farmers.
History of the Chinese Wall
Before the advent of the Great Wall of China, there were a lot of scattered defensive structures in China from nomadic raids. In the third century BC, when Qin Shi Huang began to rule, small kingdoms and principalities united. And the emperor decided to build one big wall.
They started building the wall in 221 BC. There is a legend that construction of the Chinese wall abandoned the whole imperial army - about three hundred thousand people. The peasants were also attracted. At first, the wall was in the form of ordinary earthen mounds, and after that they began to be replaced with brick and stone.
By the way, this building can be called the longest not only wall, but also a cemetery. After all, a lot of builders were buried here - they were buried in the wall, and then structures were built directly on the bones.
Since the construction of the wall, they have repeatedly tried to destroy, and then restore. This building received its modern look during the Ming Dynasty. From 1368 to 1644, construction towers were erected, bricks were laid instead of earth embankments, and some sections were rebuilt.
There are many interesting facts about the Wall of China, which is considered the longest man-made structure in the world. Here is some of them:
- when laying blocks of stone, glutinous rice porridge was used, into which slaked lime was mixed;
- its construction took the lives of more than a million people;
- this wall is on the UNESCO World Heritage List as one of the greatest historical sights;
- in 2004, more than forty million foreign tourists visited the Wall of China.
Most of the controversy is around the numbers, how many kilometers is the Great Wall of China. Previously, it was believed that its length is 8.85 thousand. But then it turned out that archaeologists measured only those sections of the structure that were erected in the era of the Ming Dynasty.
But if we talk about everything Chinese wall, length it is 21.196 thousand kilometers. These data were announced by employees of the State Administration for Cultural Heritage Affairs. They began research in 2007, and announced the results in 2012. Thus, the length of the Chinese wall turned out to be 12 thousand kilometers longer than the original data.