6+The+Great+Wall+of+China

__ The Great Wall of China __ Emily

The Great Wall of China, China; Google Earth, May 1st, 2009

 **__The Great Wall of China __**

 The Great Wall of China is one of the greatest ancient wonders of the world. It is one of the most famous attractions in China, and is also the largest structure in the world! In 1987, the Great Wall was listed in the UNESCO World Heritage Site. The Great Wall of China began construction in 220 B.C. The building of this structure stopped sometime in or after that year and resumed in1368 A.D. The Great Wall of China was finally completed in 1644 A.D.

Over the centuries, various rulers of many countries would build walls to protect their country’s borders against invaders. Written records indicate that the Chinese people would build walls along their country’s borders as early as 400 B.C. Some ancient walls were built in the vicinity of the Great Wall of China. The Great Wall was built from the ground up, entirely by hand, which is one reason that makes the wall so special! Many thousands of people gave their lives to build the wall. People did not volunteer to build this wall, rulers of certain time periods drafted men. The Great Wall of China was built for many reasons. The idea came up when the Ming Dynasty began in 1368. Many of the walls had either fallen down or had been destroyed by Mongol attacks. As a response to the growing threats of Mongol tribes, the Ming government decided to build a great wall. Basically, the wall was built to keep invading Mongol tribes out of China. Therefore, the wall had to be very strong. The Chinese linked existing protection walls to form a united defense system.

The Great Wall of China stretches approximately 4,163 miles east to west, and winds up and down across deserts, grasslands, mountains, and plateaus. The Great Wall has watchtowers which stand from 100 to 200 yards apart. The towers, standing 40 feet high, once served as look-outs. Including loops and branches the Great Wall extends to about 4,500 miles. A large portion of the Great Wall still remains today. Although parts of it have crumbled through the years, some parts have been restored. The Great Wall of China is a tremendous structure. Some theories, like the fact that the wall was built all at once, or that it can be seen from the moon are false.

The impressive architecture of the Great Wall of China has captured not only the imaginations of the Chinese, but also many other cultures and people for centuries. The wall spans from east China all the way across to west China. The Great Wall of China wins both the award for "largest man-made monument ever to be built", and longest structure ever built"! I hope that someday I can visit this amazing sturcture.