Chinese wall in good quality. The Great Wall of China is all about sightseeing. Height of historical value

The history of the Great Wall of China (VKS for short) has more than two thousand years. The Great Chinese building is known all over the world. The amazing building is not included in the official list of the Ancient Wonders of the World, but it is not inferior to them in popularity. The Chinese architectural monument is included in the UNESCO World Heritage List, among tourists it is often referred to as the eighth wonder of the world. The construction of the protective structure was accompanied by the death of hundreds of people, huge financial costs, the birth of numerous legends and rumors.

In what city was it built

The length of China's "visiting card" is approximately 21,000 kilometers. Researchers name this figure, taking into account the sites that have not survived until the 21st century. The wall is laid across a vast territory, in view of this, its location cannot be attributed to any one particular city.

The defensive structure conditionally divides China into two parts: south and north. The main Chinese attraction begins in the city of Jiayuguan, stretches in whimsical meanders across the country up to the waters of the Yellow Sea in the Liaodong Bay and ends in the city of Shanghaiguan. The direct distance between these two points is 1900 kilometers.

One of the sections of the wall is located near the Chinese capital. Tourists who come to Beijing will have to overcome only 55 kilometers - it is at this distance from the city that the "earth dragon" is located.

Description

The Great Wall of China is the largest ancient building, the windings of which resemble a giant snake. That is why the Chinese attraction is called the "earth dragon" or "earth snake".

During the centuries that have passed since the beginning of the phenomenal scale of construction, the most famous Chinese architectural object has repeatedly changed its name. The ubiquitous name - the Great Wall of China - appeared at the end of the 19th century AD. Until that time, the building was known under the following poetic names:

• Land of dragons;
• revelry;
• purple border;
• Fortress;
• Barrier.

Age

The answer to the question "Who built the Chinese wall?" ambiguous. It is known for sure that the beginning of the construction of the Great Wall of China was laid in the third century BC by Emperor Qin Shi Huang.

In the first decade, work on the construction of the building was carried out most actively. In the future, over the years, the length of the structure gradually increased, the end of construction and its beginning are separated by almost two thousand years.

Thus, the age of the unique architectural monument is approximately 23 centuries.

total length

In addition to the main branch, the giant building has many branches. According to the latest archaeological data, the Chinese wall occupies a total of 21,196 km. For comparison, the length of the equator is 40.075 thousand kilometers.

Almost 9000 kilometers of Chinese territory are covered by a great wall, creeping along the mountain spurs and gorges of the Yinshan ridge. This is the official length of the ancient structure. The photo below clearly demonstrates the windings of the "earth dragon".

Where does it take place

The VKS passes through the territories of the provinces:

• Gansu;
• Beijing;
• Liaoning;
• Shaanxi;
• Ningxia.

The structure includes numerous segments, the most famous are:

• Badaling is the site that is most popular among tourists. Located 75 kilometers northwest of the Chinese capital. You can get from Beijing by bus or train express.
• Juyongguan is also a popular section of the longest building that tourists can access from the Chinese capital. Juyongguan is located in the same direction as Badaling. This section and the Chinese capital are separated by 60 kilometers.
• Shanhaiguan - Built in the 14th century AD, this section is the easternmost outpost of the great structure. Shanhaiguan, also called the first pass under heaven, is located in the northeastern part of Qinhuangdao city, open to tourists.

• Yanguan is an almost completely destroyed area, only the signal tower has survived from the impressive building; The outpost has been partially reconstructed and is accessible to everyone who wants to visit it.
• Gubeyku - an abandoned section of the building, which will appeal to lovers of antiquities;
• Gianku is a "wild" segment of the Great Wall, which is easy to reach from Beijing. This part of the main Chinese attraction is very dangerous, a visit is recommended only for people with good physical fitness. Gianku is replete with ruined areas, crumbling stairs, rockfalls. Tourists who decide to visit a dangerous building should take into account that cliffs surround Gianka on all sides.
• Mutianyu is the most qualitatively restored section of the Chinese wall. Ideal for a leisurely walk through the 22 watchtowers. It is from here, from a height of 8 meters, that a magnificent view of the mountain landscapes of China opens.
• Symatai is one of the dangerous segments that has survived to this day in its original form. This section divides the Symatai reservoir in two. To move from one part of the wall to another, you need to go over the reservoir on a suspension bridge.
• Yanmenguan - the site was built during the "Warring States" period, open to tourists. Nearby is a village with an identical name, where you can get acquainted with the life of the ancient Chinese.

Thickness of the Chinese wall

The thickness of the building is a variable value, the internal width of the main Chinese landmark varies from five to eight meters. The outer side of the VKS is framed by "teeth" made of bricks. The inner wall is protected by a barrier 0.9 meters high.

Historical fact: the great width of the Chinese landmark led to the transformation of one of the sections of the wall into a road with a length of approximately 466 miles.

Height of historical value

The average value of this parameter is 6 meters, but in some places the protective walls reach 10 meters in height.

How many bricks are used

The disparate Chinese kingdoms that existed during the period of the creation of a single state (the period of warring states) erected defensive structures to protect their borders. Emperor Qin Shi Huang combined the existing walls with the newly erected ones.

Some of the fortifications were built from the ground - these barrage areas were the most vulnerable places of construction and have not survived to our times. Subsequently, blocks of stone sprinkled with earth began to be used to create defensive structures.

During the Han and Ming dynasties, walls were built from stone blocks and bricks, which were joined with an adhesive compound containing:

• rice glue;
• hydrated lime.

One of the myths associated with the Chinese landmark claims that the glue is not made from rice, but from ground human bones. Actually it is not.

One of the sites built during the Han Dynasty is made of wood and consists of half a dozen layers of logs, between which there is a thin layer of stone chips.

The videoconferencing segments, which were built of bricks, turned out to be the least affected by time. By the 21st century AD, more than 74% of the total size of the architectural miracle was seriously damaged, and only about 8% of the fortress walls remained in their original state.

The Great China Landmark is a very long structure. Therefore, it is extremely difficult to accurately answer the question “how many bricks were used”.

There is a legend associated with the construction of the Jiayu Crossing in the Badaling section. One of the masters employed at the great construction site had an argument with an official. The master claimed that he could easily determine how many bricks are needed to build an object. The number given by the master was 99,999 thousand brick blocks.

When the construction of the transition was completed, one "extra" brick block was presented to the eyes of officials. The master said that everything was correct - according to his calculations, this brick should have been placed above the entrance to the tower to attract good luck to everyone who passed under it.

Story

The construction of the VKS began three hundred years before our era. The end of the most large-scale construction in the history of mankind took place at the end of the 17th century.

In the first 10 years, the construction of the defensive structure was carried out especially actively. The attraction was built on a mountainous area, organically fitting into the landscape. The building has many branches, in some areas the walls duplicate each other, arranged in rows. This feature is clearly visible in the picture below.

What separates

The facts show that in the 21st century the Aerospace Forces does not share anything - it fancifully meanders across the country's territory, but does not pass along its borders.

Reasons for construction

The original purpose of erecting a monumental structure was to protect ancient China from invaders from Mongolia and Manchuria. In addition to the fact that the building protected the country from nomadic peoples, it played another role - it fixed the state border.

There is a legend that answers the question: "Why was the Great Wall of China built?" The legend tells that the court soothsayer predicted the end of the existence of the Chinese state, when the country would be destroyed by northern nomads.

After the emperor decided to build a wall, a dragon appeared to him, which left its mark on the surface of the earth. According to this mark, it was ordered to carry out construction work.

Who participated in the construction

In a ten-year period, when the size of the wall was actively growing, a fifth of the entire population of the country was sent to build a defensive structure. The Chinese wall was built by about 300 thousand people, later this figure grew to two million.

The following were involved in the construction:

• slaves;
• soldiers;
• peasants.

In the last decade, a myth has spread in our country, saying that a giant architectural monument was actually built not at all by the inhabitants of the Celestial Empire, but .... Russians. In response to the logical question "Why?" supporters of this idea answer: "So that the wall protects from the Chinese."

History is written by the winners and real historical facts may differ from the information that has come down to the modern world. However, the map clearly shows that Mongolia was located between Ancient China and the Slavic territories.

Another fact that the myth of the Slavic origin of the structure looks unconvincing is that all the surviving ancient inscriptions on the tablets are made using hieroglyphs.

How many people died during construction

Difficult working conditions, irregular supplies of water and food led to the fact that during the construction a huge number of people died. According to rough estimates, the total number of deaths is about half a million Chinese.

The wall, which stretches for many thousands of miles, is called the longest cemetery on our planet, which begins in Hebei province and ends at the border of Xinjiang Uygur autonomy with Gansu province.

Many tourists believe that when visiting the VKS, you can see the skeletons of people who were immured alive in a structure under construction. Studies of the building with the help of magnetometers did not give any results - no mass graves were found. However, the wall extends for many kilometers and not all of them have been surveyed. There is a possibility that the mystery of large-scale human burials will be solved in the coming years.

Chinese and VKS

The VKS played a huge role in trade relations; a busy road passed along one of its sections. The originally intended purpose of the building - defensive - did not justify itself:

• undeveloped areas could not impede the advance of enemies;
• the height was insufficient to fully protect the area from raids;
• the huge length and lack of sufficient manpower did not allow the deployment of troops along its entire length.

Despite being thousands of kilometers long, the wall proved to be useless defensively. Chinese scientists say: "The wall is a sign of weakness."

The architectural marvel looks amazing, leaving a lasting impression on tourists. At the time of its construction, the practice of mass forced conscription for construction work was introduced in the country. Such a policy caused discontent among ordinary people, which often developed into uprisings. During the last of them, the Ming dynasty ceased to exist, at the same time the giant construction was stopped.

Modern Chinese are proud of the huge structure, calling it a symbol of the resilience and greatness of their country. In some parts of the building there are monuments with the saying of the founder of the People's Republic of China (briefly - PRC) Mao Zedong: "If you have not been on the Great Wall of China, you cannot be called a real Chinese."

Wall restoration

The impact of time had a detrimental effect on the state of the fortress walls, most of the sections were destroyed almost to the ground. The exception was the Badaling site - in the Qing period, the so-called "gates to Beijing" were located here.

In the 19th century, an unjustified rumor was spread through American newspapers about the proposed demolition of a historical landmark and the construction of a highway instead.

In the second half of the 20th century, Deng Xiaoping initiated restoration work, which was financed by:

• private persons;
• Chinese companies;
• foreign investors.

It is impossible to completely restore the largest archaeological site on our planet. Many sites are rapidly deteriorating not only due to the impact of climate, but also as a result of human activity:

• housing estates are being built;
• roads and railways are laid;
• agricultural work is actively carried out;
• vandals are often found among tourists.

According to the forecasts of researchers, the unrestored sections of the barrier structure will no longer be visible on the earth's surface in the next two decades. The most rapid destruction is observed in the province of Gansu - on a site erected during the reign of the Han Dynasty.

Can you see the wall from space

Most researchers agree that neither from the orbit of the Earth, nor from the Moon, a gigantic building in length is visible.

View from earth orbit

Some astronauts have reported seeing the Wall of China from space. As evidence, photographs were presented in which a sinuous line was visible. However, it was subsequently proved that one of the rivers was captured in the photo.

Chinese-American astronaut Leroy Chiao photographed the structure from the ISS. The photo is accompanied by the comment: "The wall can be seen under ideal weather conditions, knowledge of its location and the presence of a good camera."

View from the moon

It is all the more impossible to see an architectural miracle from a satellite of our planet. Human vision allows us to see from a satellite on the earth's surface only an object contrasting to the background, the width of which is more than ten kilometers.

Among netizens, there are people who claim that they were able to find the video conferencing using the popular Google Maps search service. It really is. The capabilities of Google maps allow you to examine in sufficient detail the wall and its towers, which are located from each other at an arrow flight distance (200 meters).

Wall on the map

The Chinese wall on the map is indicated by multi-colored lines: a separate color for each era.

Interesting fact: The Great China Landmark is a collection of different walls, some of which are not even connected to each other. The picture clearly shows that some sections of the structure are parallel to each other, while others are almost closed in a ring.

On the Internet, sensationalists suggest: “The wall is not at all ancient, it was specially built to attract tourists.” This hypothesis has no scientific justification, but the secret of the greatest construction site in the history of mankind has not yet been fully disclosed.

legends

The most interesting legend is associated with a woman named Meng Jiangnui. Her husband was called to the "construction of the century" and she came to visit him. When the woman reached the place, her beloved was no longer alive - he died during construction and was buried under the Great Wall.

Meng Jiangnui was beside herself with grief and began to weep bitterly. The building shook and partially collapsed. At the site of the collapse, the widow found the body of her husband, which she took and buried.

Another legend is known as the "Wall of Tears". Emperor Qin Shi Huang received a prediction that the wall would be successful only if he walled up a man with the name Wang in it. This man was found, killed and buried upright. The same fate, according to legend, befell all those who died during the construction of a monumental structure, so that their souls would forever guard the borders of the Celestial country.

Interesting Facts

• The Chinese wall is not a single structure;
• The loopholes are directed in two directions, why this is done remains a mystery;
• In documents from the beginning of the 20th century, there is no mention of the eighth wonder of the world.

Conclusion

The Chinese wall is a symbol of modern China, known everywhere. Scientists and archaeologists are asking a lot of questions about the reasons for the construction of this structure with bizarre curving walls that run up steep mountain spurs and descend into deep gorges. The architectural miracle still keeps its secrets and is in no hurry to share them with researchers.

There is no other structure in the world that would arouse so much interest among scientists, tourists, builders and astronauts as the Great Wall of China. Its construction gave rise to many rumors and legends, took the lives of hundreds of thousands of people and cost a lot of money. In the story about this grandiose building, we will try to uncover secrets, solve riddles and briefly give answers to many questions about it: who built it and why, from whom did it protect the Chinese, where is the most popular site of the structure, is it visible from space.

Reasons for building the Great Wall of China

During the Warring States period (from the 5th to the 2nd century BC), large Chinese kingdoms absorbed smaller ones through wars of conquest. This is how the future unified state began to take shape. But while it was fragmented, individual kingdoms were subjected to raids by the ancient nomadic people of the Xiongnu, who came to China from the north. Each kingdom built protective fences on separate sections of its borders. But ordinary earth served as the material, so the defensive fortifications eventually disappeared from the face of the earth and did not reach our times.

Emperor Qin Shi Huangdi (3rd century BC), who became the head of the first united kingdom of Qin, initiated the construction of a protective and defensive wall in the north of his possession, for which they erected new walls and watchtowers, combining them with existing ones. The purpose of the buildings being erected was not only to protect the population from raids, but also to mark the boundaries of the new state.

How many years and how was the wall built

For the construction of the Great Wall of China, a fifth of the entire population of the country was involved, which is about a million people in 10 years of the main construction. Peasants, soldiers, slaves and all criminals sent here as punishment were used as labor force.

Taking into account the experience of previous builders, they began to lay not rammed earth, but stone blocks at the base of the walls, sprinkling them with soil. The subsequent rulers of China from the Han and Ming dynasties also expanded the line of defense. Stone blocks and bricks, fastened with rice glue with the addition of slaked lime, have already been used as materials. It is those sections of the wall that were built during the Ming Dynasty in the XIV-XVII centuries that are quite well preserved.

The construction process was accompanied by many difficulties related to food and difficult working conditions. At the same time, more than 300 thousand people had to be fed and watered. This was not always possible in a timely manner, so human casualties numbered in the tens, even hundreds of thousands. There is a legend that during the construction of all the dead and dead builders were placed in the foundation of the structure, since their bones served as a good bond for stones. The people even call the building "the longest cemetery in the world." But modern scientists and archaeologists refute the version of mass graves, probably most of the bodies of the dead were given to relatives.

It is definitely impossible to answer the question of how many years the Great Wall of China was built. Volumetric construction was carried out for 10 years, and about 20 centuries passed from the very beginning to the last completion.

Dimensions of the Great Wall of China

According to the latest estimates of the dimensions of the wall, its length is 8.85 thousand km, while the length with branches in kilometers and meters was calculated in all sections scattered throughout China. The estimated total length of the building, including sections that have not been preserved, from beginning to end would today be 21.19 thousand km.

Since the location of the wall goes mainly along the mountainous territory, passes both along the mountain ranges and along the bottom of the gorges, its width and height could not be sustained in single figures. The width of the walls (thickness) is in the range of 5-9 m, while at the base it is about 1 m wider than in the upper part, and the average height is about 7-7.5 m, sometimes up to 10 m, the outer wall is supplemented rectangular battlements up to 1.5 m high. Brick or stone towers were built along the entire length with loopholes directed in different directions, with weapons depots, observation platforms and premises for protection.

During the construction of the Great Wall of China, according to the plan, the towers were built in the same style and at the same distance from each other - 200 m, equal to the range of the arrow. But when connecting old sections with new ones, towers of a different architectural solution sometimes crash into the harmonious pattern of walls and towers. At a distance of 10 km from each other, the towers are complemented by signal towers (high towers without internal maintenance), from which the sentinels watched the surroundings and, in case of danger, had to give the signal to the next tower with the fire of a lit fire.

Can you see the wall from space?

Listing interesting facts about this building, everyone often mentions that the Great Wall of China is the only man-made structure that can be seen from space. Let's try to figure out if this is really the case.

Assumptions that one of the main attractions of China should be visible from the moon were set out several centuries ago. But not a single astronaut reported on flights that he saw it with the naked eye. It is believed that the human eye from such a distance is able to distinguish objects whose diameter is more than 10 km, and not 5-9 m.

It is also impossible to see it from Earth orbit without special equipment. Sometimes objects in a photo from space, taken without magnification, are mistaken for the outlines of a wall, but when magnified, they turn out to be rivers, mountain ranges, or the Grand Canal. But through binoculars in good weather, the wall can be seen if you know where to look. Enlarged satellite photos allow you to see the entire length of the fence, distinguish towers and turns.

Was a wall needed?

The Chinese themselves did not believe that they needed the wall. After all, for many centuries she took strong men to the construction site, most of the state's income went to its construction and maintenance. History has shown that it did not provide special protection to the country: the nomads of the Xiongnu and the Tatar-Mongols easily crossed the barrier line in destroyed areas or along special passages. In addition, many sentinels let attackers pass in the hope of escaping or getting a reward, so they did not give signals to neighboring towers.

In our time, the Great Wall of China has been made a symbol of the resilience of the Chinese people, it has been made a visiting card of the country. Everyone who has visited China seeks to go on an excursion to an accessible site of interest.

Current state and tourist attraction

Most of the fence today needs full or partial restoration. The state is especially deplorable in the northwestern section in Minqin County, where powerful sandstorms destroy and cover the masonry. Great damage to the building is caused by the people themselves, dismantling its components for the construction of their houses. Some sections were once demolished by order of the authorities to make way for the construction of roads or villages. Modern vandal artists paint the wall with their graffiti.

Realizing the attractiveness of the Great Wall of China for tourists, the authorities of large cities are restoring parts of the wall close to them and laying excursion routes to them. So, near Beijing there are sections of Mutianyu and Badaling, which have become almost the main attractions in the capital region.

The first site is located 75 km from Beijing, near the city of Huaizhou. At the Mutianyu site, a 2.25 km long section with 22 watchtowers has been restored. The site, located on the crest of the ridge, is distinguished by the very close construction of the towers to each other. At the foot of the ridge there is a village where private and excursion transport stops. You can get to the top of the ridge on foot or by using the funicular.

The closest to the capital is the Badaling section, they are separated by 65 km. How to get here? You can come by sightseeing or scheduled bus, taxi, private car or train express. The length of the accessible and restored site is 3.74 km, the height is about 8.5 m. You can see everything interesting in the vicinity of Badaling while walking along the crest of the wall or from the cable car cabin. By the way, the name "Badalin" is translated as "giving access in all directions." During the 2008 Olympics, the finish line of the group road cycling race was located near Badaling. Every year in May, a marathon is organized, in which participants need to run 3800 degrees and overcome ups and downs, running along the ridge of the wall.

The Great Wall of China was not included in the list of "Seven Wonders of the World", but the modern public included it in the list of "New Wonders of the World". In 1987, UNESCO took the wall under its protection as a World Heritage Site.

THE GREAT WALL OF CHINA

The colossal defensive structures known today as the Great Wall of China were built by those who thousands of years ago possessed technologies that we have not yet grown up to. And it was clearly not the Chinese ...

In China, there is another material evidence of the presence in this country of a highly developed civilization, to which the Chinese have nothing to do. Unlike the Chinese pyramids, this evidence is well known to everyone. This is the so-called Great Wall of China.

Let's see what orthodox historians have to say about this largest piece of architecture, which has recently become a major tourist attraction in China. The wall is located in the north of the country, stretching from the sea coast and going deep into the Mongolian steppes, and, according to various estimates, has a length, taking into account the branches, from 6 to 13,000 km. The thickness of the wall is several meters (on average 5 meters), the height is 6-10 meters. The wall is said to have included 25,000 towers.

A brief history of the construction of the wall today looks like this. The construction of the wall allegedly began as early as the 3rd century BC. during the reign of the Qin Dynasty, to defend against the raids of nomads from the north and clearly define the border of Chinese civilization. The initiator of the construction was the famous "collector of Chinese lands" Emperor Qin Shi Huang Di. He drove about half a million people to the construction, which, with a total population of 20 million, is a very impressive figure. Back then, the wall was a structure made mostly of earth – a huge earthen rampart.

During the Han Dynasty (206 BC - 220 AD), the wall was expanded to the west, reinforced with stone, and built a line of watchtowers that went deep into the desert. During the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644), the wall continued to be built further. As a result, it stretched from east to west from the Bohai Bay in the Yellow Sea to the western border of the modern provinces of Gansu, entering the territory of the Gobi Desert. It is believed that this wall was already built by the efforts of a million Chinese from bricks and stone blocks, which is why these sections of the wall have survived to this day in the form in which a modern tourist is already accustomed to seeing it. The Ming dynasty was replaced by the Manchu Qing dynasty (1644-1911), which did not build the wall. She limited herself to maintaining in relative order a small area near Beijing, which served as the "gateway to the capital."

In 1899, American newspapers started a rumor that the wall would soon be demolished and a highway built in its place. However, no one was going to demolish anything. Moreover, in 1984, a wall restoration program initiated by Deng Xiaoping and led by Mao Tse Tung was launched, which is still being carried out and financed by Chinese and foreign companies, as well as individuals. How many drove Mao to restore the wall is not reported. Several sections were repaired, in some places they were erected altogether anew. So we can assume that in 1984 the construction of the fourth wall of China began. Usually, tourists are shown one of the sections of the wall, located 60 km northwest of Beijing. This is the area of ​​Mount Badaling (Badaling), the length of the wall is 50 km.

The wall makes the greatest impression not in the Beijing region, where it was erected on not very high mountains, but in remote mountainous regions. There, by the way, it is very clearly seen that the wall, as a defensive structure, was made very thoughtfully. Firstly, five people in a row could move along the wall itself, so it was also a good road, which is extremely important when it is necessary to transfer troops. Under cover of the battlements, the guards could stealthily approach the area where the enemies planned to attack. The signal towers were located in such a way that each of them was within sight of the other two. Some important messages were transmitted either by drumming, or by smoke, or by the fire of bonfires. Thus, the news of the enemy's invasion from the most distant frontiers could be transmitted to the center in a day!

During the restoration of the wall, interesting facts were revealed. For example, its stone blocks were fastened together with sticky rice porridge mixed with slaked lime. Or that the loopholes on its fortresses looked towards China; that on the north side the height of the wall is small, much less than on the south, and there are stairs. The latest facts, for obvious reasons, are not advertised and are not commented on by official science - neither Chinese nor world. Moreover, when reconstructing towers, they try to build loopholes in the opposite direction, although this is not always possible. These photos show the south side of the wall - the sun is shining at noon.

However, the oddities with the Chinese wall do not end there. Wikipedia has a full map of the wall, which shows in different colors the wall we are told each Chinese dynasty built. As you can see, the great wall is not alone. Northern China is often and densely dotted with "great Chinese walls" that go into the territory of modern Mongolia and even Russia. Light on these oddities was shed by A.A. Tyunyaev in his work "The Chinese Wall - a great barrier from the Chinese":

“It is extremely interesting to trace the stages of the construction of the “Chinese” wall, based on the data of Chinese scientists. It can be seen from them that Chinese scientists who call the wall “Chinese” are not very concerned about the fact that the Chinese people themselves did not take any part in its construction: every time the next section of the wall was built, the Chinese state was far from the construction sites.

So, the first and main part of the wall was built in the period from 445 BC. to 222 BC It runs along 41-42 ° north latitude and simultaneously along some sections of the river. Huanghe. At that time, of course, there were no Mongol-Tatars. Moreover, the first unification of peoples within China took place only in 221 BC. under the reign of Qin. And before that, there was the Zhangguo period (5-3 centuries BC), in which eight states existed on the territory of China. Only in the middle of the 4th c. BC. Qin began to fight against other kingdoms, and by 221 BC. conquered some of them.

The figure shows that the western and northern border of the state of Qin by 221 BC. began to coincide with that section of the "Chinese" wall, which began to be built as early as 445 BC. and was built precisely in 222 BC.

Thus, we see that this section of the “Chinese” wall was built not by the Chinese of the Qin state, but by the northern neighbors, but precisely from the Chinese spreading to the north. In just 5 years - from 221 to 206. BC. - a wall was built along the entire border of the state of Qin, which stopped the spread of his subjects to the north and west. In addition, at the same time, 100-200 km west and north of the first, the second line of defense from Qin was built - the second "Chinese" wall of this period.

The next period of construction covers the time from 206 BC. to 220 AD During this period, sections of the wall were built, located 500 km to the west and 100 km to the north of the previous ones ... In the period from 618 to 907. China was ruled by the Tang dynasty, which did not mark itself as victorious over its northern neighbors.

In the next period, from 960 to 1279. The Song Empire was established in China. At this time, China lost dominance over its vassals in the west, in the northeast (on the territory of the Korean Peninsula) and in the South - in northern Vietnam. The Sung empire lost a significant part of the territories of the Chinese proper in the north and northwest, which went to the Khitan state of Liao (part of the modern provinces of Hebei and Shanxi), the Tangut kingdom of Xi-Xia (part of the territories of modern Shaanxi province, the entire territory of modern Gansu province and Ningxia Hui autonomous region).

In 1125, the border between the non-Chinese kingdom of the Jurchens and China passed along the river. Huaihe is 500-700 km south of the places where the wall was built. And in 1141, a peace treaty was signed, according to which the Chinese Sung Empire recognized itself as a vassal of the non-Chinese state of Jin, pledging to pay him a large tribute.

However, while China itself huddled south of the river. Hunahe, 2100-2500 km north of its borders, another section of the "Chinese" wall was erected. This part of the wall, built from 1066 to 1234, runs through Russian territory north of the village of Borzya near the river. Argun. At the same time, another section of the wall was built 1500-2000 km north of China, located along the Greater Khingan...

The next section of the wall was built between 1366 and 1644. It runs along the 40th parallel from Andong (40°), just north of Beijing (40°), through Yinchuan (39°) to Dunhuang and Anxi (40°) in the west. This section of the wall is the last, southernmost and most deeply penetrating into the territory of China ... During the construction of this section of the wall, the entire Amur region belonged to Russian territories. By the middle of the 17th century, on both banks of the Amur, there were already Russian fortresses-prisons (Albazinsky, Kumarsky, etc.), peasant settlements and arable lands. In 1656, the Daurskoye (later Albazinskoye) voivodship was formed, which included the valley of the Upper and Middle Amur along both banks ... The “Chinese” wall built by the Russians by 1644 ran exactly along the border of Russia with Qing China. In the 1650s, Qing China invaded Russian lands to a depth of 1500 km, which was confirmed by the Aigun (1858) and Beijing (1860) treaties ... "

Today the Wall of China is inside China. However, there was a time when the wall marked the border of the country.

This fact is confirmed by ancient maps that have come down to us. For example, a map of China by the famous medieval cartographer Abraham Ortelius from his geographical atlas of the world Theatrum Orbis Terrarum of 1602. On the map, north is on the right. It clearly shows that China is separated from the northern country - Tartary by a wall.

On the map of 1754 "Le Carte de l'Asie" it is also clearly seen that the border of China with Great Tartary runs along the wall.

And even the 1880 map shows the wall as China's border with its northern neighbor. It is noteworthy that part of the wall goes far enough into the territory of China's western neighbor - Chinese Tartary...

Interesting illustrations for this article are collected on the Food of RA website ...

Elena Lyubimova

WHO BUILT THIS WALL?

A group of British archaeologists, led by William Lindsey, made a sensational discovery in the fall of 2011: a part of the Great Wall of China was discovered, which is located outside of China, in Mongolia.

The remains of this huge structure (100 kilometers long and 2.5 meters high) were discovered in the Gobi Desert, located in southern Mongolia. Scientists concluded that the find is part of the famous Chinese sights. The wall section materials include wood, earth and volcanic stone. The building itself dates from the period between 1040 and 1160 BC.

Back in 2007, on the border of Mongolia and China, during an expedition organized by the same Lindsey, a significant section of the wall was found, which was attributed to the time of the Han Dynasty. Since then, the search for the remaining fragments of the wall continued, which finally ended in success in Mongolia. The Great Wall of China, we recall, is one of the largest architectural monuments and one of the most famous defensive structures of antiquity. It passes through the territory of Northern China and is included in the UNESCO World Heritage List.

It is generally accepted that they began to build it in the 3rd century BC. to protect the state of the Qin dynasty from the raids of the "northern barbarians" - the nomadic people of the Xiongnu. In the 3rd century AD, during the Han Dynasty, the construction of the wall was resumed and it was extended to the west. Over time, the wall began to collapse, but during the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644), according to Chinese historians, the wall was restored and strengthened. Those parts of it that have survived to our time were built mainly in the 15th-16th centuries.

Over the three centuries of the reign of the Manchu Qing Dynasty (since 1644), the protective structure dilapidated and almost everything collapsed, since the new rulers of the Celestial Empire did not need protection from the north. Only in our time, in the mid-1980s, restoration of sections of the wall began as material evidence of the ancient origin of statehood in the lands of Northeast Asia.

Some Russian researchers (President of the Academy of Fundamental Sciences A.A. Tyunyaev and his associate, Honorary Doctor of the University of Brussels V.I. Semeyko) express doubts about the generally accepted version of the origin of the protective structure on the northern borders of the state of the Qin dynasty. In November 2006, in one of his publications, Andrei Tyunyaev formulated his thoughts on this topic in the following way: “As you know, to the north of the territory of modern China there was another, much more ancient civilization. This has been repeatedly confirmed by archaeological discoveries made, in particular, on the territory of Eastern Siberia. Impressive evidence of this civilization, comparable to Arkaim in the Urals, not only has not yet been studied and comprehended by world historical science, but has not even received a proper assessment in Russia itself.

As for the ancient wall, according to Tyunyaev, “the loopholes on a significant part of the wall are directed not to the north, but to the south. And this is clearly seen not only in the most ancient, not reconstructed sections of the wall, but even in recent photographs and in works of Chinese drawing.

In 2008, at the First International Congress "Pre-Cyrillic Slavic Writing and Pre-Christian Slavic Culture" at the Leningrad State University named after A.S. Pushkina Tyunyaev made a report "China - the younger brother of Russia", during which he presented fragments of Neolithic ceramics from the territory of the eastern part of Northern China. The signs depicted on ceramics did not look like Chinese characters, but they showed almost complete coincidence with the ancient Russian runic - up to 80 percent.

Based on the latest archaeological data, the researcher expresses the opinion that during the Neolithic and Bronze Ages, the population of the western part of Northern China was Caucasoid. Indeed, throughout Siberia, up to China, mummies of Caucasians are found. According to genetic data, this population had the Old Russian haplogroup R1a1.

This version is also supported by the mythology of the ancient Slavs, which tells of the movement of the ancient Rus in an easterly direction - they were led by Bogumir, Slavunya and their son Scythian. These events are reflected, in particular, in the Book of Veles, which, let's make a reservation, is not recognized by academic historians.

Tyunyaev and his supporters draw attention to the fact that the Great Wall of China was built in a similar way to European and Russian medieval walls, the main purpose of which was protection from firearms. The construction of such structures began no earlier than the 15th century, when cannons and other siege weapons appeared on the battlefields. Before the 15th century, the so-called northern nomads did not have artillery.

Based on these data, Tyunyaev expresses the opinion that the wall in eastern Asia was built as a defensive structure marking the border between two medieval states. It was erected after an agreement was reached on the delimitation of territories. And this, according to Tyunyaev, is confirmed by a map of the time when the border between the Russian Empire and the Qing Empire passed exactly along the wall.

We are talking about a map of the Qing Empire in the second half of the 17th-18th centuries, presented in the academic 10-volume World History. That map shows in detail the wall that runs exactly along the border between the Russian Empire and the Empire of the Manchu Dynasty (Qing Empire).

On the map of Asia of the XVIII century, made by the Royal Academy in Amsterdam, two geographical formations are indicated: in the north - Tartaria (Tartarie), in the south - China (Chine), the northern border of which runs approximately along the 40th parallel, that is, exactly along the wall. On this map, the wall is marked with a thick line and is labeled "Muraille de la Chine". Now this phrase is usually translated from French as “Chinese wall”.
However, when translated literally, the meaning is somewhat different: muraille (“wall”) in a construction with the preposition de (noun + preposition de + noun) and the word la Chine expresses the object and belonging of the wall. That is the "wall of China". Based on analogies (for example, place de la Concorde - Place de la Concorde), then Muraille de la Chine is a wall named after the country that the Europeans called Chine.

There are other translations from the French phrase "Muraille de la Chine" - "a wall from China", "a wall delimiting from China". Indeed, in an apartment or in a house, we call the wall that separates us from our neighbors a neighbor's wall, and the wall that separates us from the street is an outer wall. We have the same thing with the name of the borders: the Finnish border, the Ukrainian border... In this case, the adjectives indicate only the geographical location of the Russian borders.

It is noteworthy that in medieval Russia there was the word "whale" - knitting poles, which were used in the construction of fortifications. So, the name of the Moscow district Kitay-gorod was given in the 16th century for the same reasons - the building consisted of a stone wall with 13 towers and 6 gates...

According to the opinion enshrined in the official version of history, the Great Wall of China began to be built in 246 BC. under Emperor Shi Huangdi, its height was from 6 to 7 meters, the purpose of construction was protection from northern nomads.

Russian historian L.N. Gumilyov wrote: “The wall stretched for 4,000 km. Its height reached 10 meters, and watchtowers rose every 60-100 meters. He also noted: “When the work was completed, it turned out that all the armed forces of China were not enough to organize an effective defense on the wall. In fact, if a small detachment is placed on each tower, then the enemy will destroy it before the neighbors have time to gather and give help. If, however, large detachments are spaced less often, then gaps are formed through which the enemy will easily and imperceptibly penetrate into the interior of the country. A fortress without defenders is not a fortress.”
It is known from European experience that ancient walls more than a few hundred years old are not repaired, but rebuilt - due to the fact that materials over such a long time gain fatigue and simply fall apart. But in relation to the Chinese wall, the opinion was entrenched that the structure was built two thousand years ago and nevertheless survived.

We will not go into controversy on this issue, but simply use the Chinese dating and see who and against whom built different sections of the wall. The first and main part of the wall was built before our era. It runs along 41-42 degrees north latitude, including along some sections of the Yellow River.
The western and northern borders of the state of Qin only by 221 BC. began to coincide with the section of the wall built by this time. It is logical to assume that this site was built not by the inhabitants of the Qin kingdom, but by their northern neighbors. From 221 to 206 BC A wall was built along the entire border of the state of Qin. In addition, at the same time, a second line of defense was built 100-200 km west and north of the first wall - another wall.

It definitely could not be built by the kingdom of Qin, since it did not control these lands at that time.
During the Han Dynasty (from 206 BC to 220 AD), sections of the wall were built, located 500 km to the west and 100 km to the north of the previous ones. Their location corresponded to the expansion of the territories controlled by this state. It is very difficult to say today who built these defensive structures - southerners or northerners. From the point of view of traditional history - the state of the Han Dynasty, which sought to protect itself from the warlike northern nomads.

In 1125, the border between the Jurchen kingdom and China passed along the Yellow River - this is 500-700 kilometers south of the location of the built wall. And in 1141, a peace treaty was signed, according to which the Chinese Sung Empire recognized itself as a vassal of the Jurchen state of Jin, pledging to pay him a large tribute.

However, while the lands of China proper were located south of the Yellow River, another section of the wall was erected 2,100–2,500 kilometers north of its borders. This part of the wall, built from 1066 to 1234, runs through Russian territory north of the village of Borzya near the Argun River. At the same time, another section of the wall was built 1,500–2,000 kilometers north of China, located along the Greater Khingan.
But if only hypotheses can be put forward on the topic of the nationality of the builders of the wall due to the lack of reliable historical information, then the study of the style in the architecture of this defensive structure allows, apparently, to make more accurate assumptions.

The architectural style of the wall, now located on the territory of China, is captured by the features of the building "handprints" of its creators. Elements of the wall and towers, similar to fragments of the wall, in the Middle Ages can only be found in the architecture of the ancient Russian defensive structures of the central regions of Russia - the "northern architecture".

Andrey Tyunyaev offers to compare two towers - from the Chinese wall and from the Novgorod Kremlin. The shape of the towers is the same: a rectangle, slightly narrowed upwards. From the wall inside both towers there is an entrance blocked by a round arch, lined with the same brick as the wall with the tower. Each of the towers has two upper "working" floors. Round-arched windows were made in the first floor of both towers. The number of windows on the first floor of both towers is 3 on one side and 4 on the other. The height of the windows is approximately the same - about 130-160 centimeters.

Loopholes are located on the upper (second) floor. They are made in the form of rectangular narrow grooves about 35-45 cm wide. The number of such loopholes in the Chinese tower is 3 deep and 4 wide, and in the Novgorod one - 4 deep and 5 wide. On the top floor of the “Chinese” tower, square holes go along its very edge. There are similar holes in the Novgorod tower, and the ends of the rafters sticking out of them, on which the wooden roof rests.

The situation is the same in comparison of the Chinese tower and the tower of the Tula Kremlin. The Chinese and Tula towers have the same number of loopholes in width - 4 each. And the same number of arched openings - 4 each. On the upper floor, between the large loopholes, there are small ones - near the Chinese and Tula towers. The shape of the towers is still the same. In the Tula tower, as in the Chinese one, white stone is used. The arches are made in the same way: at the Tula gate - at the "Chinese" - entrances.

For comparison, you can also use the Russian towers of the Nikolsky Gate (Smolensk) and the northern fortress wall of the Nikitsky Monastery (Pereslavl-Zalessky, 16th century), as well as a tower in Suzdal (mid-17th century). Conclusion: the design features of the towers of the Chinese wall reveal almost exact analogies among the towers of the Russian Kremlin.

Nikolsky gate towers (Smolensk)

And what does the comparison of the preserved towers of the Chinese city of Beijing with the medieval towers of Europe say? The fortress walls of the Spanish city of Avila and Beijing are very similar to each other, especially in that the towers are located very often and have practically no architectural adaptations for military needs. Peking towers have only an upper deck with loopholes, and are laid out at the same height as the rest of the wall.
Neither the Spanish nor the Peking towers show such a high resemblance to the defensive towers of the Chinese Wall, as the towers of the Russian Kremlin and fortress walls show. And this is an occasion for reflection for historians.

The Great Wall of China is a unique and amazing structure of all times, which has no equal in the whole world.

The grandiose building is recognized as the longest structure ever erected by man; according to some sources, its length is nearly 8,852 kilometers. At the same time, the average height of the wall is 7.5 meters (and the maximum is up to 10 meters), and the width at the base is 6.5 meters. The Chinese wall originates in the city of Shaihanguan, and it ends in the province of Gansu.

The Wall of China was built to protect the Qin Empire from threats from the north. Then in the 3rd century b.c. Emperor Qin Shi Huang ordered the construction of an incredibly large defensive fortification, the construction of which involved more than a million people (slaves, peasants and prisoners of war). During the construction of the wall, tens and hundreds of thousands of people died, so it is also considered the largest cemetery in the world. With all this, the quality of construction is amazing - even after 2000 years, most of the wall remained intact, although rammed earth served as the main material for it, and ordinary rice flour was found in the composition of the mortar for laying stones and bricks. But still, some sections of the wall were restored already in a later period, since over time they were destroyed under the influence of natural conditions.

It is worth noting that, despite all the efforts of the emperor to build such a large-scale defensive structure, the Qin dynasty was later overthrown.

The grandeur of the Chinese Wall has given rise to many myths. So, for example, it is believed that it can be seen from space, but this opinion is erroneous. In addition, one of the most terrible and sinister myths says that real human bones, crushed into powder, were used as "cement" for the construction of the wall. But as mentioned earlier, this is fundamentally wrong. There is also an opinion that people who died during construction were buried directly in the wall to make it stronger, but this is not true either - the dying builders were buried along the structure.

Today, the Great Wall of China is one of the most popular attractions in the world. Every year, more than 40 million people come to China to see with their own eyes an architectural monument that strikes with its grandeur. And the Chinese even claim that without visiting the wall, it is impossible to truly understand China itself. The most popular section of the Chinese wall among tourists is located in close proximity to Beijing - just 75 km away.

Chinese wall brief information.

The Great Wall of China is one of the oldest structures that have survived to this day. Its construction dragged on for many centuries, accompanied by exorbitant human losses and gigantic material costs. Today, this legendary architectural monument, which some even call the eighth wonder of the world, attracts travelers from all over the planet.

Which Chinese ruler was the first to build the Wall?

The beginning of the construction of the Wall is associated with the name of the legendary Emperor Qin Shi Huang. He did many important things for the development of Chinese civilization. In the III century BC. e. Qin Shi Huang was able to unite several kingdoms that were at war with each other into a single entity. After the unification, he ordered the erection of a high Wall on the northern borders of the empire (more specifically, this happened in 215 BC). At the same time, the commander Meng Tian was to directly supervise the construction process.

Construction lasted about ten years and was associated with a large number of difficulties. A serious problem was the lack of any kind of infrastructure: there were no roads for the transport of building materials, there was also not enough water and food for the people involved in the work. The number of those who were involved in construction during the time of Qin Shi Huang reached, according to researchers, two million. En masse, soldiers, slaves, and then peasants were transported to this construction.

Working conditions (and it was mostly forced labor) were extremely cruel, so many builders died right here. Legends have come down to us about immured corpses, that powder from the bones of the dead was allegedly used to strengthen the structure, but this is not supported by facts and studies.

The construction of the Wall, despite the difficulties, was carried out at a high pace

A popular version is that the Wall was intended to prevent the raids of the tribes that lived on the lands to the north. There is some truth in this. Indeed, at that time, the Chinese principalities were attacked by aggressive Xiongnu tribes and other nomads. But they did not pose a serious danger and could not cope with the militarily and culturally developed Chinese. And further historical events showed that the Wall is, in principle, not a very good way to stop the nomads. Many centuries after the death of Qin Shi Huang, when the Mongols came to China, she did not become an insurmountable obstacle for them. The Mongols found (or made themselves) several gaps in the Wall and simply passed through them.

The main purpose of the Wall was probably to limit the further expansion of the empire. It seems not entirely logical, but only at first glance. The newly-made emperor needed to preserve his territory and at the same time prevent a mass exodus of subjects to the north. There, the Chinese could mix with the nomads and adopt their nomadic way of life. And this ultimately could lead to a new fragmentation of the country. That is, the Wall was intended to consolidate the empire within the existing borders and contribute to its consolidation.

Of course, the Wall could be used at any time to move troops and cargo. And a system of signal towers on and near the Wall ensured fast communication. The advancing enemies could be seen in advance from afar and quickly, lighting a fire, notify others about it.

The wall during the reign of other dynasties

During the reign of the Han Dynasty (206 BC - 220 AD), the wall was extended westward to the oasis city of Dunhuang. In addition, a special network of watchtowers was created, stretching even deeper into the Gobi Desert. These towers were designed to protect merchants from nomadic robbers. During the years of the Han Empire, about 10,000 kilometers of the Wall were restored and built "from scratch" - this is twice as much as was built under Qin Shi Huangji.

During the Tang Dynasty (618–907 AD), women were used instead of men as sentinels on the Wall, whose job it was to monitor the surrounding area and sound the alarm when necessary. It was believed that women are more attentive and treat the duties assigned to them more responsibly.

Representatives of the ruling Jin dynasty (1115–1234 AD) made a lot of effort to improve the Wall in the 12th century - they periodically mobilized tens and hundreds of thousands of people for construction work.

Sections of the Great Wall of China, which have survived to this day in an acceptable condition, were erected mainly during the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644). In this era, blocks of stone and bricks were used for construction, which made the structure even stronger than before. And the mortar, as studies show, was prepared by ancient masters from limestone with the addition of rice flour. Largely due to this unusual composition, many sections of the Wall have not collapsed so far.

During the Ming Dynasty, the Wall was seriously updated and modernized - this helped many of its sections to survive to this day.

The appearance of the Wall also changed: its upper part was equipped with a parapet with battlements. In those areas where the foundation was already flimsy, it was reinforced with stone blocks. Interestingly, at the beginning of the twentieth century, the inhabitants of China considered Wan-Li to be the main creator of the Wall.

Over the centuries of the Ming Dynasty, the building stretched from the Shanhaiguan outpost on the coast of the Bohai Bay (here one section of the fortifications even goes a little into the water) to the Yumenguan outpost, located on the border of the modern Xinjiang region.

After the accession of the Manchu Qing dynasty in 1644, which managed to unite the North and South of China under its control, the issue of the safety of the wall receded into the background. It lost its importance as a defensive structure and seemed useless to the new rulers and many of their subjects. Representatives of the Qing dynasty treated the Wall with some disdain, in particular, due to the fact that they themselves easily overcame it in 1644 and entered Beijing, thanks to the betrayal of General Wu Sangai. In general, none of them had plans to build the Wall further or restore any sections.

During the reign of the Qing Dynasty, the Great Wall practically collapsed, as it was not properly looked after. Only a small section of it near Beijing - Badaling - was preserved in a decent form. This section was used as a kind of front "capital gate".

Wall in the 20th century

It was only under Mao Zedong that the Wall was again given serious attention. Once, back in the thirties of the XX century, Mao Zedong said that one who was not on the Wall cannot consider himself a good fellow (or, in another translation, a good Chinese). These words later became a very popular proverb among the people.

But large-scale work to restore the Wall began only after 1949. True, during the years of the "cultural revolution" these works were interrupted - on the contrary, the so-called hongweipings (members of school and student communist detachments), dismantled some sections of the Wall and made pigsties and other "more useful", in their opinion, from the building materials obtained in this way, objects.

In the seventies, the Cultural Revolution ended, and soon Deng Xiaoping became the next leader of the PRC. With his support, in 1984, a program was launched to restore the Wall - it was financed by large companies and ordinary people. And three years later, the Great Wall of China was included in the UNESCO list as a world heritage site.

Not so long ago, the myth that the Wall could really be seen from near-Earth orbit was widespread. However, real testimonies of astronauts refute this. For example, the famous American cosmonaut Neil Armstrong said in an interview that he basically does not believe that any artificial structure can be seen from orbit. And he added that he did not know a single guy who would confess that he could see with his own eyes, without special devices, the Great Wall of China.

Features and dimensions Walls

If you count together with the branches created in various periods of Chinese history, then the length of the Wall will be more than 21,000 kilometers. Initially, this object looked like a network or a complex of walls, which often did not even have a connection with each other. Later they were united, strengthened, demolished and rebuilt, if necessary. As for the height of this grandiose structure, it varies from 6 to 10 meters.

On the outer side of the wall, you can see simple rectangular battlements - this is another feature of this design.

It is worth saying a few words about the towers of this magnificent Wall. There are several types of them, they differ in architectural parameters. The most common are rectangular two-story towers. And in the upper part of such towers there are loopholes.

Interestingly, some towers were built by Chinese craftsmen even before the construction of the Wall itself. Such towers are often smaller in width than the main structure, and their locations seem to be chosen at random. The towers that were built along with the Wall are almost always located two hundred meters from each other (this is the distance that an arrow fired from a bow cannot overcome).

As for the signal towers, they were arranged approximately every ten kilometers. This allowed a person on one tower to see a fire lit on another, neighboring tower.

In addition, 12 large gates were created to enter or enter the Wall - over time, full-fledged outposts grew around them.

Of course, the existing landscape did not always contribute to the easy and quick construction of the Wall: in certain places it goes along the mountain range, bending around ridges and spurs, rising to the heights and descending into deep gorges. This, by the way, reveals the uniqueness and originality of the described structure - the Wall is very harmoniously inscribed in the environment.

Wall at present

Now the most popular section of the Wall among tourists is the already mentioned Badaling, located not far (about seventy kilometers) from Beijing. It is better preserved than other sites. For tourists, it became available in 1957, since then excursions have been constantly held here. Badaling today can be reached directly from Beijing by bus or train express - it does not take much time.

At the 2008 Olympics, the Badaling gate served as the finish line for cyclists. And in China, every year a marathon for runners is organized, the route of which passes through one of the sections of the legendary Wall.

Throughout the long history of the construction of the Wall, all sorts of things have happened. For example, builders sometimes rioted because they did not want or did not want to work anymore. In addition, often the guards themselves let the enemy pass the Wall - out of fear for their lives or for a bribe. That is, in many cases, it really was an ineffective protective barrier.

Today in China, the Wall, despite all the failures, difficulties and failures that arose during its construction, is considered a symbol of the fortitude and diligence of ancestors. Although among ordinary modern Chinese there are those who treat this building with genuine respect, and those who, without hesitation, will throw garbage near this attraction. At the same time, it was noted that Chinese residents go on excursions to the Wall just as willingly as foreigners.

Unfortunately, time and the vagaries of nature are working against this architectural structure. For example, in 2012, the media reported that heavy rains in Hebei completely washed away a 36-meter section of the Wall.

According to experts, a significant segment of the Great Wall of China (literally thousands of kilometers) will be destroyed before 2040. First of all, it threatens the segments of the Wall in the province of Gansu - their condition is very dilapidated.

Documentary film of the Discovery channel “Blowing up history. The great Wall of China"