Top 10 Interesting Facts About the Great Wall of China

The Great Wall of China is, for good reason, considered one of the most impressive structures in the world. The fact that it was built in the 15th and 16th centuries using the resources available at the time makes it all the more incredible.

In fact, once the Great Wall of China was a kind of stone barrier to protect against barbarian invaders. Millions of lives of ordinary Chinese who participated in this grandiose construction project in different years had to be sacrificed for the construction of this wonder of the world.

To this day, the Great Wall of China is the concentration of a huge number of tourists who want to comprehend the secrets of this huge artifact and plunge into its authentic atmosphere. This unique historical monument will be discussed further.

Here is a list of 10 interesting facts about the Great Wall of China.

10 Construction took over 1800 years

The beginning of the construction of the Great Wall of China coincides with the reign of Qin Shi Huang. He ruled China from 246 to 210 BC. Therefore, it can be argued that the construction of this structure took a little less than two thousand years. This is due to the fact that the wall had to be built stone by stone, piece by piece…

As a result, despite the haste associated with the threat from hostile neighbors, construction dragged on for many years and required a sacrifice of millions of lives of ordinary workers.

9. Place for tricks

Renowned illusionist David Copperfield chose the Great Wall in 1986 as the spectacular location for one of his greatest magic tricks.. Accompanied by a revolving camera and in front of numerous spectators, the television magician passed through the wall.

8. Over a million people died during construction

It is said that the one who died during the construction of the wall will return to the world as part of the wall … Therefore she is also called “longest cemetery in the world». If it is ever demolished, and the remains of the dead are found and examined, it will turn out that the emperors mainly used soldiers to build the wall. In addition, there you can find a huge number of remains of slaves, prisoners and peasants.

7. Prisoners took part in the construction

All the fortresses of the Great Wall of China were built on checkpoints. Military temporary camps were also erected there for patrols, garrison services and watchtowers. Mostly slaves, prisoners of war and prisoners took part in the construction. When the workers began to die en masse from overwork, mass mobilization of the peasants began.

6. Construction “on the bones”

According to legend, the course of the Great Wall of China was not chosen by chance. It is believed that it was the dragon (a symbolic creature in China) that set the course for the workers. Some people even claim that the course of the wall is very similar to a snake wandering through the mountains. Thus, the workers followed the dragon’s trail.

One such worker was a man named Meng Jiangnu. It is said that soldiers came to his village during the time of the first emperor, Qin Shi Huangdi, to take him away to build the Great Wall. Meng Jiangnu’s wife’s call to spare her husband went unheeded by the soldiers.

After the young woman never received a message from her husband, she set off on a long and difficult journey to the Wall. There the workers told her that her husband died while working and his body was walled up. It is said that the unfortunate widow cried so much that the wall exploded and exposed the remains of her husband. Together with the bones, she jumped into the sea. At the moment, there is still a temple there, reminiscent of this legend.

Also, according to legend, Yi Kaizhan was a worker who calculated that exactly 99 bricks would be needed to build the Jiayuguan Pass. However, his boss did not believe him and threatened to punish all employees with three years of hard work if the calculation was not 999 percent correct.

After the completion of the work, the rock was left behind the Sivong City Gate. And Kaizhan told his superior that a supernatural force had placed a stone there to complete the construction. If the stone were moved even a millimeter, the entire wall would collapse. For this reason, the stone never moved again and can still be seen on the Jiayuguan Pass tower.

5. Length, width and height of the wall

The length of the structure, according to some sources, is about 4 thousand km, and according to others, more than 6 thousand km. However, it should be noted that the structure is not straight: it twists and turns. Consequently, the length of the Great Wall should be at least 6000 km (some researchers give a figure an order of magnitude larger).

Its height is on average 6-7 meters, in some areas it even reaches 10 meters..

The width of the building is approximately 6 meters, so five of us can walk along the wall. In addition, a small car can even pass here. Outside there are “teeth” of large stones. The inner wall is protected by a barrier which is 90 cm high.

4. Thousands of kilometers of walls destroyed

Unfortunately, growing tourism often has negative consequences, and buildings that are both unique historical artifacts suffer from endless crowds of people. Due to their reckless behavior and unauthorized taking of souvenirs, many tourists are increasingly causing damage to the stonework of the Great Wall of China. Today, 30% of Ming period walls completely destroyed.

In addition, the UNESCO World Heritage Site is at risk from industrial damage, natural erosion, and a lack of conservation measures for the wall to be further preserved. The damage to the building is so great that more than half of the walls as a whole are in poor condition.

The percentage of the wall, the condition of which can still be described as really good, is negligible. However, most of these areas have been restored and are therefore popular with tourists.

3.

During construction, the Chinese preferred natural materials: brick, wood, earth. However original ingredients were also used, such as glutinous rice. It was mixed with burnt lime to improve stability. And this original method has shown itself from the best side – for thousands of years the design withstands all wars and earthquakes.

2. The wall is visible from space – it’s a myth

Some myths have hovered around the Great Wall of China for centuries. For example, in the mid-18th century, the Briton William Stukley claimed that it could be seen even from the surface of the moon. This legend is popular to this day, but, unfortunately, is erroneous. The Great Wall of China is by no means visible from the Moon, let alone from space.. The reason is that the wall is no more than ten meters wide, too narrow.

1. Wonder of the world

The Great Wall of China, whose official length is about 8 km, is the largest man-made structure ever created by man. According to experts, at first the wall was twice as long. However, due to various natural formations (mountains, rivers, etc.), it had a discontinuous structure.

The latest archaeological finds in 2012 show how amazing and incomprehensible the Great Wall of China remains today. There, scientists discovered previously unknown sections of this unique structure that have yet to be identified. They are located on the border of modern Mongolia.