The Great Wall of China

One of the most fascinating structures built by human hands is the Great Wall of China.  Its history is an intricate part of China itself.  The First Emperor of Qin ordered the building of this incredible wall along the empire's northern frontier.  The idea was to protect China against incursions from Xiongnu, a powerful non-Chinese confederacy.  This confederacy had mastered the war horse which had enabled them to dominate the steppe land of northeast and central Asia for several centuries.  They had successfully contested power with China for the same length of time.

Therefore the commander-in-chief of the Qin army, Meng Tian, deployed a force of 300,000 soldiers and also conscript laborers to build the Great Wall.  The wall became known as "wanli changcheng" or The Wall of Ten Thousand Li.  It was originally constructed of stamped earth with watchtowers and barracks along its mighty length.  One must imagine the time and hard work by ancient people which was required to built such an enormous structure as this one!  Sadly, many common workers died in the construction and maintenance of the Great Wall.

Later dynasties rebuilt the the walls along the northern frontier, often on top of old walls and sometimes in completely different locations.  By the Tang Dynasty (618-907 CE) the Great Wall had entered into the national consciousness of China.  In the popular mind it became the dividing wall between China and the outside world.  The wall has survived today, but it is not as long as it once was.  It has been completely re-constructed in several locations.  One noteworthy location is the hills at Badaling north of Beijing.  If you ever get to China even once in your life, it is absolutely important that you visit the famous Great Wall!

Best regards from the East,

Harlan Urwiler

For more information, feel free to visit my website at:  http://www.myorientalgallery.com/.