The Great Wall of China (TC: 長城; SC: 长城, Pinyin: Chángchéng), also known in China as the Great Wall of 10,000 Li¹ (SC: 万里长城, Pinyin: Wànlĭ Chángchéng), is an ancient Chinese fortification built from the end of the 14th century until the beginning of the 16th century, during the Ming Dynasty, in order to protect China against the Mongols essentially. It was preceded by several walls built since the 3rd century BC against the raids of nomadic tribes coming from modern day Mongolia and Manchuria.

The Wall stretches over a formidable 6,700 km, from Shanhai Pass on the Bohai Gulf in the east, at the limit between China proper and Manchuria, to Jiayu Pass (嘉峪关) in western Gansu province in the west, at the limit of the Gobi Desert and the oases of the Silk Road.

History

The first major wall was built during the reign of The First Emperor, the main emperor of the short-lived Qin dynasty. This wall was not constructed as a single endeavor, but rather was created by the joining of several regional walls built by the Warring States. It was located much more north than the current Great Wall, and very little remains of it. A defensive wall on the northern border was built and maintained by several dynasties at different times along Chinese history. The Great Wall that can still be seen today was built during the Ming Dynasty, on a much larger scale and with longer lasting materials (solid stone used for the sides and the top of the Wall) than any wall that had been built before. The primary purpose of the wall was not to keep out people, who could scale the wall, but to insure that semi-nomadic people on the outside of the wall could not cross with their horses or return easily with stolen property.

There have been four major walls:

1. 208 BC (the Qin Dynasty)
2. 1st century BC (the Han Dynasty)
3. 1138 - 1198 (the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms Period)
4. 1368-1620 (from Hongwu Emperor until Wanli Emperor of the Ming Dynasty)

The Ming Dynasty Great Wall starts on the eastern end at Shanhai Pass, near Qinhuangdao, in Hebei Province, next to Bohai Gulf. Spanning nine provinces and 100 counties, it ends on the western end at Jiayu Pass located in northwest Gansu Province. Jiayu Pass was intended to greet travelers along the Silk Road. Even though The Great Wall ends at Jiayu Pass, there are watchtowers (烽火台 fēng huǒ tái) extending beyond Jiayu Pass along the Silk Road. These towers communicated by smoke to signal invasion.

The Manchus crossed the Wall by convincing a crucial general Wu Sangui to open the gates of Shahai Pass and allow the Manchus to cross. Legend has it that they took three days for the Manchu armies to pass. After they conquered China, the Wall was of no strategic value as the people who the Wall was intended to keep out were ruling the country (becoming the Qing Dynasty).

The government ordered people to work on the wall, and workers were under constant danger of being attacked by brigands. Because many people died while building the wall, it is often called the "longest cemetery on Earth".

Major Gates

Significant passes (關口 simplified: 关口) include:

* Shānhǎi Pass (山海關)
* Jūyōng Pass (居庸關)
* Niángzi Pass (娘子關)


Condition

While some portions near tourist centers have been preserved and even reconstructed, in most locations the Wall is in disrepair, serving as a playground for some villages and a source of stones to rebuild houses and roads. Sections of the Wall are also prone to graffiti. Parts have been bulldozed because the Wall is in the way of construction projects. The China Great Wall Society works to preserve the Wall. Through June 2003, the Chinese government still had no laws written to protect the Wall nationwide. However, Beijing has enacted local legislation which would prohibit visits to the "wild Great Wall" or parts not open to the public; this has been in force since August 2003.

Watchtowers and Barracks

The wall is interrupted by defensive fighting stations, to which wall defenders may retreat if overwhelmed. Each tower has unique and restricted stairways and entries to confuse attackers.

Barracks and administrative centers are located at larger intervals.

Specialized defense weapons

In addition to the usual miltary weapons of the period, specialized wall defense weapons were used. Reproductions of these weapons are displayed at the wall.

Materials

The materials used are those available near the site of construction. Near Beijing the wall is constructed from quarried limestone blocks. In other locations it may be quarried granite or fired brick. Where such materials are used two finished walls are erected with earth and rubble fill placed in between with a final paving to form a single unit. In the extreme western desert locations where good materials are scarce the wall was constructed from dirt rammed between rough wood tied together with woven mats.

Recognition

The Wall is sometimes included in lists of the "Seven Wonders of the Modern World," but was of course not one of the classical Seven Wonders of the World recognized by the ancient Greeks.

The Wall was made a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1987.

In 1938, Richard Halliburton's Second Book of Marvels stated that the Great Wall is the only man-made object that can be seen from the moon. This statement has persisted, assuming urban legend status and sometimes entering textbooks. If taken to mean that the Great Wall can be seen with the unaided eye from the distance of the moon, it is untrue.

However, from low earth orbit, about a thousand times nearer than the moon, it may be visible under favorable conditions. The Great Wall is only a few meters wide and is comparable to many other structures, such as highways and airport runways. Astronauts give varying reports. This variation is not surprising; amateur astronomers know that features on the moon that are dramatically visible at times can be undetectable on others, due to changes in lighting direction.

One shuttle astronaut reported that "we can see things as small as airport runways [but] the Great Wall is almost invisible from only 180 miles (290 km) up." Astronaut William Pogue thought he had seen it from Skylab but discovered he was actually viewing the Grand Canal near Peking. He did succeed in spotting the Great Wall with binoculars but stated that "it wasn't visible to the unaided eye." Recently, Chinese astronaut Yang Liwei said he couldn't see it at all. An Apollo astronaut reported that no human structures at all were visible at a distance of a few thousand miles.

Meanwhile, veteran U.S. astronaut Gene Cernan has stated: "At Earth orbit of 160 km to 320 km high, the Great Wall of China is indeed visible to the naked eye."

Regardless of how visible the Great Wall is when viewed by the unaided eye from low earth orbit, the notion that the Great Wall has a unique and superlative visibility, exceeding that of other great public works, is a myth.



http://www.beautifulwallpapers.com/wallpapers/art/xart5.jpg

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http://www.chinadotour.com/great-wall.jpg

http://www.amazonsoft.com/SinoCharm/Views%20of%20China/GreatWall.jpg

http://www.artsmia.org/arts-of-asia/china/images/chin-great-wall-lrg.jpg

http://www.westutravel.com/AGENTS/CMS/China%201002/Great%20Wall.jpg

http://www.tropicalisland.de/Beijing_great_wall_2_b.jpg

http://digilander.libero.it/mickymaus/Sfondi/Architettura/02-08-01/emerging%20Onto%20the%20Great%20Wall%20of%20China.jpg

http://www.china2002.pwp.blueyonder.co.uk/chinapics/greatwall13.jpg

Must see this one before dead.

10/10

10/10

10/10 Ditto Exarchus!

10/10

very nice one 10
i wonder how many men it would take to fully man the whole wall

i loved it very much!!!

10/10

10 no doubt

Great Wonder of Human Kind!

12/10!

10/10

for its size

10 for sure.

10!!!!

well 10/10 of course :)

I don't know. One of the most impressive landmarks on earth for sure but we are talking about architecture, right?
Then, it's just ... a wall :tongue2:

9 because it's not a just a wall, it's a great wall

Impressive engineering.
8/10

great 10/10

10!!! I LOVE IT!

It's in my "things I need to see before I die" list.

10

20/10

10/10

10 Been there before and it looks amazing

8.5/10 Not bad!

9/10.

10 / 10

World's best known building?

9,5/10 .. Simply incredible :eek2:

The only human monument visible from the moon !!!
10/10

"The longest cemetery in the world"... But I like it, anyway ;)

Its just a wall. Granted, its a very big wall. But its still a wall. And i reckon those hills would look even better without it blotting the landscape. 5

10/10

9.5/10 Impressive feat...

The only Human monument visible from the moon...
*I had a hard time locating it on google earth :lol:*
maybe i am not trained or sensitive enough :dunno:

The only human monument visible from the moon !!!
10/10

That's obviously a myth. 8.5/10, a great... wall.

6/10

10/10

A world wonder!

10/10 The only structure visible from the moon! :applause:

10/10
I loved it when I was there in October 2005!
:okay:
Great!!
:yes:

10 for the incredible size!

10/10... one of 7 wonders in the world...

10/10 without a question!

knowing that this is a symbol that has stood the test of time i can give it anything other then 10/10

10/10 ;)

very impressive 9.5/10

10 of 10 :)

10/10.

6700 km, what a beast! No less than a 10!

http://www.davidwei.com/gall/greatwall/image00.JPG
http://www.davidwei.com/gall/greatwall/image02.JPG
http://www.davidwei.com/gall/greatwall/image04.JPG
http://www.davidwei.com/gall/greatwall/image06.JPG
http://www.davidwei.com/gall/greatwall/image10.JPG

10/10.......

10 there are some things that are as long as our earth keeps spinning before God will take us Home and this is one of those things, I dont think that we could built something like that in ourdays the wtc towers even being demolished with explosives hold for 1 hour things like these would hold for days

10/10

http://desktop.yesky.com/picupload1/20050913/1422139.jpg http://www.cng.com.cn/bbs/UploadFile/2005-7/20057141341230.jpg

Guess what! :D

I was going to sign up to do a sponsored walk on the wall. It was something that I really wanted to do. Unfortunately circumstances conspired against me and I had to abandon my plans. I have now pencilled in a huge tour of china as my 50th birthday treat in a few years time.

the great wall of china isn't an "ancient times monument" but i'll give it a 10 of course for the fact that it is the only one human monument visible from space.

the great wall of china isn't an "ancient times monument" but i'll give it a 10 of course for the that it is the only one human monument visible from space.
but I see you gave a 4.5/10 in the poll.

but I see you gave a 4.5/10 in the poll.

oups can i rectify ?

I cant give less than 10........

10/10

10/10.......................:runaway:

10/10
This is it, the real thing.
Btw, I only just noticed it is not only a wall, but a bridge as well. So much for the rethorics about separation and closure.

Great - 10/10 !

10/10 obviously :)

It is the most recognisable wall in the world with the Israel/ Palestine one in a close second! 10/10

10/10 The one of greatest everlasting achievements of human kind

If this was a highway, at Canadian highway speeds of 100 km/h, it would take 3 days to drive from one end to another, driving nonstop.

http://www.globalphotos.org/beijing/20030325/Rimg2940.jpg

http://www.globalphotos.org/beijing/20030325/Rimg3042.jpg

http://www.globalphotos.org/beijing/20030325/Rimg3056.jpg

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http://www.globalphotos.org/beijing/20030325/Rimg2849.jpg

10/10 absolutely.

0/10

The Wall has no artistic value. That's obvious. It's just an ill-conceived wall, built with brute force, under a misguided belief that it could actually stop northern invaders. Well, history has proved that the Long Wall failed miserably not only as a military defence, but also as a huge economic investment.

Like the Forbidden City, The Long Wall's significance lies in its size, not artistic, architectural or technological sophistication.

0/10.

10

10/10

0/10

The Wall has no artistic value. That's obvious. It's just an ill-conceived wall, built with brute force, under a misguided belief that it could actually stop northern invaders. Well, history has proved that the Long Wall failed miserably not only as a military defence, but also as a huge economic investment.

Like the Forbidden City, The Long Wall's significance lies in its size, not artistic, architectural or technological sophistication.

0/10.

have been there. it is GREAT. 10 for sure .
HEY NUT :scouserd: :scouserd: :scouserd: :scouserd: :scouserd: :scouserd: where are you come from ? you should get out here.

Impressive! But i can only give it 5/10 because it's a Middle age work.

built from the end of the 14th century until the beginning of the 16th century

10!!! I love it :master:

11!! :D

10/10

10. love it!

10/10 for sure! And thanks for the information. :okay:

10/10, of course ;)

10/10 of course!

10/10 - Shame to those that voted below that.

10/10 a colossal achievement

ill be there to see it in a month and a half

^^ Unfortunately for me, I won't :)
But have a nice trip.

8/10

Amazing! 10/10

10/10 Wonderful

10
I love it

10 9.9 10 10.1 10

49 people voted 3 or less :eek:

9/10

GREAT wall indeed!

Who will challenge one of the wonder world? 10/10.

10/10

aaron hoffman, adidas, architect student, aussie punk, Aussiemoron, Aussymoron, Auxxymoron, auxxymoron01, BigCity, Chinky Pimp, Chinky Sluts, city stroller, dante hall, david kevorkian, david thomas, dubai rules, dumb chink, estesa, Euretard, euro slut, Euro trash, firewire, gale haywood, Gators Rule, illbred aussie, illbred chink, imani, kiss the wind, laredo, linda davis, lisa vegaz, lonely aussypussy, mountainer, Never, orthogonal, pyramida, rainbow girl, Rica Nalis, roger danley, shannon lewis, sky dancer, snooze, songbird, stupid aussie, sujatadas, sumting wong, techie20, virarch, vx800

Those voted for 3 or less.
Retarded? I'd rather believe not.:ohno:
I wonder where does all the hatred come from.

^^ Look at their names, you will know it.

10/10


The other numbers in the polls shouldn't be there. This thing screams 10 :master:

10/10 would love to go back to it and have a walk on it again!

Those voted for 3 or less.
Retarded? I'd rather believe not.:ohno:
I wonder where does all the hatred come from.

Just look at their names and their posts history (0 post), and you will see that most of them are actually from one person with multiple accounts.

Some people just aint have a life and put so much efforts in just to do something like this .

10, one of the most impressive structures ever built.

10!!!

Even though the concept of the wall itself dates from ancient times the structure that were showing picutures of in thisthread is actually medieval, built during the Ming dynasty.

It's in my "things I need to see before I die" list, 10/10.

100000000000000000000000000000/10!

:master:


Pd. ¿WTF!? Amazing the people who voted "3 or less"!!!!

8/10

those who voted 3 or less
I feel shame for you
though you do not like China or hate China
but the great wall is just a building
if you vote with prejudice
I suggest you'd better not vote any more!

10/10 10/10/ 10/10 10/10 10/10 10/10 10/10 10/10 10/10 10/10

100%!! :banana: :cheers:

100000000000000000000000000000/10!

:master:


Pd. ¿WTF!? Amazing the people who voted "3 or less"!!!!

maybe jealous~~!!

Definitely one of the grandest things ever built by mankind.

10/10

9/10 veeeery looooooong wall :D

those who voted 3 or less
I feel shame for you
though you do not like China or hate China
but the great wall is just a building
if you vote with prejudice
I suggest you'd better not vote any more!

Agree..we should not use prejudice to vote..In my opinion, even if a country attacks another country, they must not allowed to destroy the enemy civilization heritage site..

I do not like Badaling Great Wall so much..it is too beautiful and not genuine :) But the Simatai and Jiayuguan is breathtaking..10/10

10/10

If aliens were to visit this planet and see this great treasure of humankind, they'd probably say "WOW!" A 10!

Dam whats wrong with these people giving only 3/10. And what crazy names they have.

aaron hoffman, adidas, architect student, aussie punk, Aussiemoron, Aussymoron, Auxxymoron, auxxymoron01, BigCity, Chinky Pimp, Chinky Sluts, city stroller, dante hall, david kevorkian, david thomas, dubai rules, dumb chink, estesa, Euretard, euro slut, Euro trash, firewire, gale haywood, Gators Rule, illbred aussie, illbred chink, imani, kiss the wind, laredo, linda davis, lisa vegaz, lonely aussypussy, mountainer, Never, orthogonal, pyramida, rainbow girl, Rica Nalis, roger danley, shannon lewis, sky dancer, snooze, songbird, stupid aussie, sujatadas, sumting wong, techie20, virarch, vx800

9/10

10/10 no doubt.

Taken in 2007. This part of the Great Wall is called Jian Kou.

《箭扣秋雪》转自佳友在线

http://www.beijingupdates.com/forum/UploadFile/2007-11/2007111518424577260.jpg

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http://www.beijingupdates.com/forum/UploadFile/2007-11/2007111120535191070.jpg

10/10 of course... Makes you wonder how smart the Chinese actually were at this time to construct something so colossal.

49 people are extrememly retarded here! less than 3? oh please, this deserves no less than a 10!

MDguy totally agree

1,000,000/10 - Perhaps the greatest thing constructed by mankind.

1,000,000/10 - Perhaps the greatest thing constructed by mankind.


:banana:

stunning!!!!!!!!

10, of course

10

the No.1 architecture in the world!

10/10 without any doubt!

10/10 without any doubt!

Great wall indeed! :cheers:
10/10 :)

tripple sorry, my computer has fucking problems today :bash:

:applause:

11/10

10/10

9.5/10 :master:

http://www.beijingupdates.com/forum/UploadFile/2008-7/20087913493774705.jpg
http://www.beijingupdates.com/forum/UploadFile/2008-7/2008791350890772.jpg
http://www.beijingupdates.com/forum/UploadFile/2008-7/20087913502081208.jpg
http://www.beijingupdates.com/forum/UploadFile/2008-7/20087913503029748.jpg
http://www.beijingupdates.com/forum/UploadFile/2008-7/20087913504045278.jpg
It is not only Great but also Beautiful

10/10! Very massive and enduring...

the best

It is a very big wall, but I don't think it has much going on, in terms of architecture. 7/10

10/10

Here he doesn't probably have doubts. Differently to be not perhaps. 10/10

polling?hahha

10 of course

10. It's absolutely amazing.

10/10, of course.

what i dont get is how 16% voted 3 or below for this building.

There can be only one note. 10/10

9/10

10/10

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2501/3677755895_f3268753a8_o.jpg

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2245/2424798123_9ae56041a8_o.jpg

http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1062/922748164_e5b3581d1c_b.jpg

Amazing. 10/10

http://farm1.static.flickr.com/127/360584632_fa321cc273_o.jpg

http://farm1.static.flickr.com/95/240094888_ef6d3cb71e_o.jpg

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3213/2960647583_14a2bbac7d_o.jpg

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http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2248/1676235594_1a309ffd8a_o.jpg

10/10 this is one of my favorite...

10. Excellent. Regards.

unbelievable 10!

9/10

:D

It's obviously a 10. I don't know why more than 50 people gave a 3 or less.... :hammer:

10/10

1000/10

perfect 10

12/10, if I can? Please?

Nothing like it in the world. That's all I have to say.

10/10 :nuts:

10/10 I think chinese are doing wonders since long

10 who can beat it!

10/10, of course.

10/10

http://img716.imageshack.us/img716/2019/copiadegranmurallachina.jpg

http://img94.imageshack.us/img94/447/granmurallachinavista.jpg

10/10!!!!





:applause::applause::applause::applause::applause::applause::applause::applause::applause::applause:

true 10

One of the masterpieces of mankind (10/10)

Honestly I think its very impressive but only for the size, and they basically needed millions of chinese to build it, thats about it, no architecture beauty or complexity... 8/10

10/10

this really belongs in the middle ages section as the vast majority of it was made during those times. 9/10

10/10 'nuff said.

10/10

this wall is not ancient,. the ancient one was made out of clay. that's the one made in the 15th century.

11 / 10

no doubt 10/10

10/10 Superb.

10/10, this wall is timeless and unrivaled.

10/10

http://cs11497.vkontakte.ru/u7759541/142850420/z_d7302abb.jpg

http://cs11497.vkontakte.ru/u7759541/142850420/z_739ce80c.jpg

http://cs11497.vkontakte.ru/u7759541/142850420/z_fea2f379.jpg

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http://cs11497.vkontakte.ru/u7759541/142850420/z_19bd345f.jpg

http://cs11497.vkontakte.ru/u7759541/142850420/z_7b1ca945.jpg

http://cs11497.vkontakte.ru/u7759541/142850420/z_7672938b.jpg

http://cs11497.vkontakte.ru/u7759541/142850420/z_5ecd3f7f.jpg

http://cs11497.vkontakte.ru/u7759541/142850420/z_2a695e7d.jpg

http://cs11497.vkontakte.ru/u7759541/142850420/z_0b2364d8.jpg

These are my photos.

10/10

This wall is no way ancient,. the ancient one was made out of clay and looks nothing like a wall today!!! this is the one made in the 15th century. It should be in the middleages thread!!!!!! :bash: MOVE IT MODERATORS!!!!

10/10

I don't know. One of the most impressive landmarks on earth for sure but we are talking about architecture, right?
Then, it's just ... a wall :tongue2:

9 because it's not a just a wall, it's a great wall

Totally agree with this one.

9/10

6/10

This should be moved to the middleages thread, it's not ancient!

6/10

This should be moved to the middleages thread, it's not ancient!

if you are not from southeast asia, then you must be india. soure grape.:lol:

What he said it's true though. All of the structures in this thread was built during and after Zhengtong Emperor reign (15th century). If you insist the thread is about pre-Ming walls, please show some photos of Qin, Han, Nan-beichao or Jin dynasty Great walls.

What he said it's true though. All of the structures in this thread was built during and after Zhengtong Emperor reign (15th century). If you insist the thread is about pre-Ming walls, please show some photos of Qin, Han, Nan-beichao or Jin dynasty Great walls.

great wall built 2000years ago.you should read some histroy book ,but i dont pin any hope for vietnam history book:lol:

More than 2200 years ago. But not the walls shown in this thread. It's your own country history, come on.

Here he comes..10/10:)