Triumphant Tuesday: China - The Construction of the Great Wall of China

     Hello everybody and welcome back to another installment of Nations Made Fun! I'll be your host, Mr. Nations, your tour guide to the wacky world of well... the world! Today we'll be discussing the construction of the Great Wall of China, one of China's greatest achievements to date. Let's get right into it.

     The Great Wall of China is a length of walls and fortifications that stretches to a whopping 13,000 miles in length. The main goal of the wall was to keep the Mongols from the north out of China. The wall didn't serve its purpose effectively, but it stood as a symbol of the power and wealth of the country of China.

     The beginning of the wall can be dated back to the third century B.C.E, but many of the fortifications of the wall can be traced back hundreds of years earlier, some even as far back as the Warring States period. The wall was very carefully planned out. Some of the sections of the wall even overlap to further increase security. It is said that thousands of citizens, convicts, and workers were used to build the massive stone and earth behemoth.

     The wall was constructed by using a base that could differ from fifteen to fifty feet and the actual wall rose fifteen to thirty feet. Guard towers were placed at different intervals throughout the construction of the wall.

     Unfortunately, the Great Wall of China has seen some major damage over the years. It's mainly caused by tourists taking a "souvenir" home with them to their country. Airports have even seen entire blocks being taken from the massive wall. Tourists do it with the mentality that "It's one block. How much of a difference can it make?" But combine that with thousands of others, and it starts to add up. It's a sad but true reality for many tourist attractions.

        

     Picture of the Great Wall of China.

    Fun Facts:

• The Great Wall of China is the world's longest manmade structure.
• A popular myth is that the wall can be seen from space. This has been debunked though, as several buildings are larger across than the wall.
• The wall is actually not a continuous line. It breaks when lakes or mountains offer natural protection. 

 Sources: https://www.history.com/topics/ancient-china/great-wall-of-china
https://www.holbrooktravel.com/blog/traveler-resources/10-fun-facts-about-great-wall-china