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The Great Wall that is
seen now was built by China’s Ming dynasty. The walls were erected
to keep out the Mongols. However, the wall did not serve its purpose
as the Mongols easily broke through it at several places.
The Ming dynasty fell in
1644. They left behind a massive construction 2,400 kilometers long. The Great Wall left by the Mings had its eastern end in
Hebei Province and the western extreme near Jiayuguan in Gansu
Province. The Ming dynasty, which ruled for 276 years, maintained
and strengthened the Great Wall on a regular basis. When the Manchu
dynasty replaced the Ming dynasty, the Great Wall gradually fell
into ruin, since the ruling policy of this dynasty was one of
tolerance with neighbors.
The 15th
Century saw the Great Wall being built of mud. The 16th
Century builders reinforced the wall in places and added sections
built of stone.
Main features of the
Great Wall
The walls had been painstakingly built over mountainous terrain
and had several watchtowers at regular intervals. Near the capital
Beijing, the Wall’s height varied from 7 meters to 9 meters. The top
of the wall was made broad enough for soldiers to march on while
keeping vigil.
Passes, signal towers
and walls were the main components of the Great Wall. Signal towers
were used to send military communications using beacons and smoke
signals and other methods, depending on the time of day. The lower
levels of the signal towers contained functional areas for the
soldiers.
Various techniques of
construction like tamped earth sandwiched between wooden boards, a
brick and stone mixture, rocks and planks were used to construct the
walls. Existing natural terrain was put to good use and blended in
with the main structure.
The greatness and wonder
of the Wall is well reflected by the fact that in the year 1987, the
Great Wall was added to the UNESCO’s World Heritage List. |
