the
Great Wall
To the northwest and north of Beijing, a huge, serrated wall zigzags
it's way to the east and west along the undulating mountains.
This is the Great Wall, which is said to be visible from the moon.
Construction of the Great Wall started in the 7th century B.C.
The vassal states under the Zhou Dynasty in the northern parts
of the country each built their own walls for defence purposes.
After the state of Qin unified China in 221 B.C., it joined the
walls to hold off the invaders from the Xiongnu tribes in the
north and extended them to more than 10,000 li or 5,000 kilometers.
This is the origin of the name Of the "10,000-li Great Wall".
The Great Wall was renovated from time to time after the Qin
Dynasty. A major renovation started with the founding of the Ming
Dynasty in 1368, and took 200 years to complete. The wall we see
today is almost exactly the result of this effort. With a total
length of over 6,000 kilometers, it extends to the jiayu Pass
in Gansu Province in the west and to the mouth of the Yalu River
in Liaoning Province in the east. What lies north of Beijing is
but a small section of it.
Badaling section:
The Badaling section of the Great Wall snaking along the mountains
northwest of Beijing was built at the beginning of the Ming Dynasty
in the 14th century. Being 7.8 metres high and 5.8 metres wide
at the top on the average, it has battle forts at important points,
including the corners.
Pass of Conscripted Labourers ( Juyongguan ):
Located 10 kilometers south of the Badaling section of the Great
Wall and built in an 18.5-kilometre-long valley, the pass has
always been an important gateway northwest of Beijing. The name
is believed to have its origin in the workers and slaves conscripted
to build the Great Wall in ancient times. Cloud Terrace, built
in 1345, was originally the base of a pagoda over looking the
main road of the town of the pass. The arched gate of the terrace
and the walls inside the arch are decorated with carvings. of
elephants, lions, birds, flowers and heavenly kings as well as
charms in six languages-Sanskrit, Tibetan, Phats pa (Mongolian),
Uygur, West Xia and Han.
Mutianyu Section:
The Mutianyu section of the Great Wall, 70 kilometers northeast
of Beijing, is linked to the Gubeikou section on the east and
the Badaling section on the west. It is one of the best sections
of the Great Wall.The Mutianyu section of the Great Wall is crenelatted
for watching and shooting at the invading enemy. Some of the battle
forts on the wall are as close as 50 metres apart.
Jinshanling Section
Located in Miyun County northeast of Beijing, the Jinshanling
division of the Great Wall, like the Simatai division, belongs
to the Gubeikou section of the colossal defence barrier. The battlements
in the Jinshanling division of the Great Wall are built along
the ridge of a mountain, where the soldiers can esist the invading
enemy by taking advantage of the high terrain.
Simatai Section
Located to the east of Jinshanling, the Simatai division of the
Great Wall is 3,000 metres long and has 35 battle forts. The wall
rises and falls with the precipitous mountain ridge, while the
battle forts are located high up the hills.
The Beacon Tower
Alarm was raised by means of smoke signals, at night by fire.
Smoke was produced by burning a mixture of wolf dung, sulfur and
saltpeter. Shots were fired at the same time. Thus an alarm could
be relayed ove
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