About Great Wall of China:The great wall averages 7.8 meters in height and is 6.5 meters wide at the base and 5.7 meters at the top. The width is enough for five horses to go side by side.On both sides of the road there are dwarf walls called "parapet wall". The 1.7-meter-high "crenel wall" is the outer wall. On its top, there are battlements for patrolling and watching. Below the battlements are peepholes, used for firing at the enemy. At intervals along the inner wall are arched entrances with stone stairways leading to the top of the wall.
Every other 300 to 500 meters, there are fortresses. There are two kinds of fortresses. One is two-storied fortress called fighting tower. The ground floor was used for living, storing weapons and the top floor was used for watching and shooting. Another kind is fighting terrace or enemy terrace, which was used for patrolling and fighting.
History of Great Wall:The Great Wall has a history of more than 2,000 years. As early as the Warring States Period, in order to self-protect, rival kingdoms built walls around their territories. This is the earliest Great Wall.When Qin Shihuang, the first emperor in Chinese history, unified the whole country in 221B.C, he ordered to build another new wall on the base of the original walls of the Countries Qin, Zhao, and Yan in effort to guard against the invasion of the northern nomadic tribes.
The Great Wall concept was revived again during the Ming Dynasty following the Ming army's defeat by the Oirats in the Battle of Tumu in 1449. The Ming had failed to gain a clear upper-hand over the Manchurian and Mongolian tribes after successive battles, and the long-drawn conflict was taking a toll on the empire. The Ming adopted a new strategy to keep the nomadic tribes out by constructing walls along the northern border of China. Acknowledging the Mongol control established in the Ordos Desert, the wall followed the desert's southern edge instead of incorporating the bend of the Huang He.
Great Wall of China Sections: Badaling ,Gubeikou,Huanghuacheng,Huangyaguan,Jiankou,Jiayuguan,Simatai Yangguan Yanmenguan Jinshanling,Juyongguan,Mutianyu ,Niangziguan ,Shanhaiguan and so on.
How long is the Great Wall:This is a very complicated question as many dynasties in Chinese history built, modified or extended the Great Wall. The latest construction took place in Ming Dynasty and the length built was over 6,000 kilometres. This is the one often referred to when we talk about the Great Wall. However, if including all the walls built in different dynasties around China, the total length will exceed 50,000 kilometres.The Great Wall is not just a wall. Other defensive works such as forts, passes and beacon towers were built along the Wall to house auxiliary soldiers, store grain and weapons, and transmit military information. As a product of the clashes between agricultural and nomadic economies, the Great Wall provided protection to the economic development and cultural progress, safeguarded the trading routes such as the Silk Road, and secured transmission of information and transportation.
