4
Many people imagine the Great Wall to be one long
uninterruptedstructureInrealityitismoreamiles
kmnetworkofwallsthatreflecttheriseandfallof
numerous kingdoms and dynasties As such the story of
theGreat WallisalsothestoryofChinaasthenation we
recognizetoday
IntherdCenturyBCEmperorQinShiHuangconquered
hissixneighboringkingdomsestablishingtheQinDynasty
andbecomingthefirstEmperorofChinaAswellaslinking
together the many defensive walls the smaller kingdoms
hadbuiltheorderedthebuildingofanewnorthernwallto
protecthisnewempirefrommaraudingtribes
The following dynasties extended the wall further but it
wasduringtheMingDynastythatmuchofthewallthatwe
recognizetodaywasconstructedInaperiodthatstretched
over years over miles km of wall was
addedUnlikethefirstwallsthathadoftenbeenbuiltusing
compactedearthorwoodtheselatestsectionsweremade
ofcarvedstoneorbrickFortsflankingtowersandramparts
wereaddedtocreateaformidabledefensiveline
TheendoftheMingDynastyinalsosignaledtheend
ofanyconstructionormaintenanceoftheGreatWallThis
wouldcontinueuntilsectionsofthewallwererestoredand
opened to the public by the government of the People’s
RepublicofChinainthes