The Great Wall of China, also known in China as the Great Wall of 10,000, is an ancient Chinese fortification built from the end of the 14th century until the beginning of the 17th century, during the Ming Dynasty, in order to protect China from raids by the Mongols and Turkic tribes. It was preceded by several walls built since the 3rd century BC against the raids of nomadic tribes coming from areas now in modern day Mongolia and Manchuria.The Wall stretches over a formidable 6,350 km (3,946 miles), from Shanhai Pass on the Bohai Gulf in the east, at the limit between China proper and Manchuria, to Lop Nur in the southeastern portion of Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region.
The Great Wall that can still be seen today was built during the Ming Dynasty, on a much larger scale and with longer lasting materials (solid stone used for the sides and the top of the Wall) than any wall that had been built before. The primary purpose of the wall was not to keep out people, who could scale the wall, but to insure that semi-nomadic people on the outside of the wall could not cross with their horses or return easily with stolen property.
: : : : There have been four major walls : : : :
208 BC (the Qin Dynasty)
1st century BC (the Han Dynasty)
1138 - 1198 (the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms Period)
1368-1620 (from Hongwu Emperor until Wanli Emperor of the Ming Dynasty)
--------New Part of China's Great Wall Found--------
October 2002 - AP
1)The Great Wall of China just got a little bit greater.
2)A new 50-mile section of China's iconic structure has been discovered in northwestern China, centuries after being submerged by the sands that move across the arid area each year, the Chinese government said Wednesday.
3)That part of the wall was built in 1531 and gradually buried by moving sand, Xinhua said. When the section was repaired in 1540, three watchtowers were added at different parts of the section, which meanders from east to west, the agency said
4)The government said some parts were more fortified than others, being protected by stone segments that formed a "double-layered wall."
5)In August, archaeologists said they uncovered 2,000-year-old sections of the wall in the desert northwest including two fortified castles dating to the Han dynasty, which lasted from 206 B.C. to A.D. 220.
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In recent months, Chinese and foreigners alike have underscored the importance of preserving the decaying sections of the Great Wall and preventing stronger sections from being worn down by tourists and careless visitors.
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Wanna have some Avatars ?? :bigok:
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Maaan I love this picture ! :09: :D
..::The Great Wall Of China::..
