Great Wall

Author: Shanghai Renmei
Publisher:
Publishing Date: 2004-05-01
Features: The Great Wall is a great military defensive engineering project of ancient China, known as the eighth wonder of the ancient world. In 1987, "The Great Wall of China" was listed by the UNESCO World Heritage Committee as a "World Cultural Heritage." In 1999, the internationally recognized most authoritative American magazine "National Geographic Traveler" ranked it as one of the top "50 Best" travel destinations in the world, described as "a must-visit in a lifetime, otherwise you will regret it forever." In Hebei Province, remnants of the Great Wall from the Warring States period to the Ming Dynasty still exist. During the Warring States period, the Zhao, Yan, and Zhongshan states in what is now Hebei Province all built sections of the Great Wall, and traces can still be found today. After Qin Shi Huang unified China, to consolidate the feudal regime, he sent General Meng Tian with an army of 300,000 to defeat the Xiongnu in 215 BC, then connected the existing Yan and Zhao Great Walls, integrating them into a single continuous wall stretching over 10,000 li. Traces of the Qin Great Wall have been found in Fengning and Weichang counties in Chengde, and Zhangbei County in Zhangjiakou. In the northern part of Weichang County, in the Xindabo Township of Daidian Village, is a stone stele erected by Emperor Qianlong titled "On the Ancient Great Wall," which records the emperor's exploration and notes on the original Yan Great Wall in the north, discovered in the 17th year of his reign (1752 AD). During the Northern and Southern Dynasties period, as well as later periods of the Liao and Jin dynasties, many ethnic minority dynasties emerged in northern China. To prevent invasions from other groups and consolidate their rule, they continuously rebuilt the Great Wall. Among them, the Northern Wei, Northern Qi, and Jin dynasties constructed the largest-scale Great Walls. Remnants of these have been found in Zhangjiakou, Chengde, and Qinhuangdao City within our province. The Great Wall we refer to today is generally the Ming Dynasty Great Wall. The Ming Great Wall stretches from the Yalu River in the east to Jiayuguan in the west, including the Inner Great Wall, with a total length of 6,300 kilometers. The Ming Great Wall in Hebei Province stretches from Laolongtou in Shanhaiguan in the east to Mashikou in Huai'an in the west, covering over 1,200 kilometers. If the Inner Great Wall is included, the total length is...