The Great Wall of China - History, Facts , Myths and Legends


The Great Wall of China is one of the most famous masterpiece work ever done entirely by human hand. It is also one of the most recognizable symbols of china and its long and vivid history.


History of ‘The Great Wall’ Through Centuries


The Great Wall of China is a series of walls and fortifications totaling more than 13000 miles in length. This wall was originally conceived by Emperor Qin Shi Huang in the third century B.C as a means of preventing incursions from barbarian nomads.

Around 220 B.C., Qin Shi Huang, the first emperor of a unified China under the Qin Dynasty, ordered that earlier fortifications between states be removed and a number of existing walls along the northern border be joined into a single system that would protect China against attacks from the north. The famous Chinese general Meng Tian initially directed the project, and was said to have used a massive army of soldiers, convicts and commoners as workers.

When Emperor Qin Shi Huang ordered construction of the Great Wall around 221 B.C., the labor force that built the wall was made up largely of soldiers and convicts. It is said that as many as 400,000 people died during the wall's construction; many of these workers were buried within the wall itself.

With the death of Qin Shi Huang and the fall of the Qin Dynasty, much of the Great Wall fell into disrepair. After the fall of the later Han Dynasty, a series of frontier tribes seized control in northern China. The most powerful of these was the Northern Wei Dynasty, which repaired and extended the existing wall to defend against attacks from other tribes.


Amazing Facts

Chinese Name: 长城 (cháng chéng), 万里长城 (wàn lǐ cháng chéng), literally meaning ‘The Long Wall of 10,000 Miles'.

- The Great Wall of China is more than 2300 years old.

- The Great Wall is not a continuous line. There are side walls, circular walls, parallel walls and sections with no walls.

- In December 1987 The Great Wall placed on World Heritage List by UNESCO.

- The Great Wall of China is the longest structure ever built by humans.

- In the past, wall construction was a common punishment for Chinese convicts.

- Since 1644, when the Ming dynasty was overthrown no further work has been done on the great wall.

- Numerous temples were built along The Great Wall of China for the worship of the war god Guandi.

- The Great Wall of China is 25 feet high in some places and ranges from 15-30 feet wide.

- The Great Wall of China cannot be seen from space by the human eye without aid.

- A large number of workers lost their lives while building the wall.

- Roosters were brought to The Great Wall to honor the dead.
It is estimated that around 400,000 builders were died and some are said to be buried in the long wall. That gives the dreadful saying of the ‘longest cemetery’.


Myths Surrounding The Great Wall

- The Great Wall Successfully Kept Out Invaders

- The Great Wall Was Built In A Year

- The Great Wall Can Be Seen From Space

- The Wall Was Built For Beating The Mongols

- Work Has Been Done To Restore Some Parts Of The Wall

- The Wall Is Just Made Of Earth And Stone

- All Of The Great Wall Is Already Discovered

- The Great Wall Of China Is A World Wonder


Most Widely Spread Legend

- A Dragon Determined The Course Of The Wall

A legend states that a helpful dragon traced out the course of the Great Wall for the people who were building the wall. The builders followed the dragon and used his tracks to map out which way the wall would go. This is just a myth.


The Cry of Meng Jiangnu

A tragic trivia is known to every household in China. Once there was a woman named Meng Jiangnu, whose husband Fan Xiliang was forcibly recruited to help build the Great Wall just three days after their marriage. Meng missed her husband so much that she decided to visit him. When she arrived at the building site, she was informed that Fan had died of exhaustion and been buried inside the wall. She was heart-broken and cried day and night. Finally, the wall collapsed and exposed her husband’s bones.


Some Fun Facts

- A wheel barrow whose invention is credited to Chinese was a big help in building this structure.

- Laolongtou ('Old Dragon's Head') is where the east end of the Great Wall of the Ming Dynasty meets the Bo Sea. It's part of the Shanhai Pass Great Wall defense system covering mountains, sea, plain, and town. The Great Wall at Laolongtou is like a huge dragon lying with its head on the beach and mouth in the sea. The square watchtower on the beach looks uncannily like a raised reptilian skull when viewed at a distance, along with the seaward wall extension, resembling a mouth, and the narrower landward wall resembling a neck.


Written by - Abija P.B.

Edited by - Gunika Manchanda