Great Wall of China

40°40′37″N 117°13′55″E / 40.67693°N 117.23193°E / 40.67693; 117.23193

The Great Wall of China is an ancient wall in China. It was finished in 1878^[1] and it was meant to protect the north of the empire of China from enemy attacks. It is the longest structure humans have ever built. It is about 21,196 kilometers long, 9.1 metres (30 feet) wide and 20 meters high. The earlier sections on the wall are made of compacted dirt and stone. Later in the Ming Dynasty they used bricks. There are 7,000 watch towers, block houses for soldiers.

To send signals, soldiers used fire, and also smoke signals.

Nineteen walls have been built that were called the Great Wall of China. The first was built in the 7th century BC. The most famous wall was built between 226 and 200 BC by the first Emperor of China, Qin Shi Huang (Qin Pronounced as Chin), during the Qin Dynasty. Not much of this wall remains as people have been stealing from it. It was much farther north than the current wall. The current wall was built during the Ming Dynasty.^[2]

The wall is made of mortar,^[3] rocks, bricks, and dirt.

1. ↑ "When was the Great Wall of China built? 7th Century BC - 1878". www.travelchinaguide.com. Retrieved 2020-04-20.
2. ↑ "Construction of the Great Wall". Archived from the original on 2008-12-02. Retrieved 2008-11-21.
3. ↑ https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/sticky-rice-mortar-view-space-and-more-fun-facts-about-chinas-great-wall-180962197/. Retrieved 2024-06-29