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With the fall of the Sui and the rise of the Tang Dynasty , the Great Wall lost its importance as a fortification, as China had defeated the Tujue tribe to the north and expanded past the original frontier protected by the wall. During the Song Dynasty, the Chinese were forced to withdraw under threat from the Liao and Jin peoples to the north, who took over many areas on both sides of the Great Wall. Though the Great Wall held little importance for the Mongols as a military fortification, soldiers were assigned to man the wall in order to protect merchants and caravans traveling along the lucrative Silk Road trade routes established during this period.
Despite its long history, the Great Wall of China as it is exists today was constructed mainly during the mighty Ming Dynasty Like the Mongols, the early Ming rulers had little interest in building border fortifications, and wall building was limited before the late 15th century. Under the strong hand of the Ming rulers, Chinese culture flourished, and the period saw an immense amount of construction in addition to the Great Wall, including bridges, temples and pagodas. The construction of the Great Wall as it is known today began around After an initial phase of territorial expansion, Ming rulers took a largely defensive stance, and their reformation and extension of the Great Wall was key to this strategy.
All six passes were heavily garrisoned during the Ming period and considered vital to the defense of the capital. In the midth century, the Manchus from central and southern Manchuria broke through the Great Wall and encroached on Beijing, eventually forcing the fall of the Ming Dynasty and beginning of the Qing Dynasty. Between the 18th and 20th centuries, the Great Wall emerged as the most common emblem of China for the Western world, and a symbol both physical — as a manifestation of Chinese strength — and a psychological representation of the barrier maintained by the Chinese state to repel foreign influences and exert control over its citizens.
Today, the Great Wall is generally recognized as one of the most impressive architectural feats in human history. In , UNESCO designated the Great Wall a World Heritage site, and a popular claim that emerged in the 20th century holds that it is the only manmade structure that is visible from space. Over the Great Wall's thousands of miles the terrain changes from desert to riverside, from mountains to plains.
The Great Wall designers took advantage of the terrain, and built at strategic places to repel invaders most effectively. From the Great Wall relics we can see that the wall is either built along mountain ridges, across mountain passes, or across key transportation areas on flat land.
Watchtowers and beacon towers were built high for observation and communication by signal fire. On the plains and deserts , designers made use of rivers and their cliffs as natural barriers. This not only controlled strategic places, but also saved labor and materials. Where bricks and blocks weren't available, tamped earth, uncut stones, wood, and even reeds were used as local materials.
Wood was used for forts and as an auxiliary material. Where local timber wasn't enough, they had it delivered in. In mountain areas, workers quarried stone to build the Great Wall. Using the mountains themselves as footings, the outer layer of the Great Wall was built with stone blocks and bricks , and filled with uncut stone and anything else available like earth and dead workers.
On the plains Great Wall workers made use of local soil sand, loess, etc. Jiayuguan's Great Wall section in west China was mainly built with dusty loess soil — "the most erodible soil on the planet". It's amazing that sections 2, years old still remain mostly intact! The other following dynasties are also important makers of Great Wall of China.
The Chinese Hero, General Qi Jiguang built an important section and repaired some stretches of the wall. He was a ruler of Ming Dynasty AD. The height of The Great Wall of China varies from place to place as it passes through the plain, land desert, jungle, plateau and hills. However, the average height of the Great Wall ranges from 15 to 30 feet from the base. This height was perceived to quite secure, and would not let anyone cross the wall.
The material used to build the wall varies in its span of construction period. Using earth, soil, sand and mud for cementing boulders and pieces of stones together was a common technique applied.
Later on the better traditional materials have been used for cementing. The Wall has been damaged at places and intervals with the passage of time due to weather and natural reasons. The basic motive of building the Great Wall was to defend the Chinese states from the attacks of enemies.
The fortified defensive wall containing the watchtowers, army barracks, and garrison stations can be seen at various places built on the very wall. The wall equipped with various traditional signaling capabilities was a common to see.
Use of smoke in days and fire in the night was most wonderful techniques of warning. The wall served as a strategic point of control and defense to Chinese States. In the drier regions of Gansu Province, mud bricks dried in the sun were used. In the desert, there is evidence of reeds incorporated with sand in layers. In the later years, the complexity of materials increased, particularly during the Qin dynasty which sought to expand and in the process, new walls were erected by use of rammed earth and wood.
These were local materials and therefore easy to source and use. Bricks were used during the Tang dynasty and they were used alongside other materials rather than solely because they were expensive to produce for large-scale construction. However, the bricks were easier to use compared to stones since they were light.
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