The people who built the Great Wall of China

The Great Wall of China is a fortification, situated along the northern and northwestern frontier of China proper. The first and largest portion of the wall was erected by Emperor Shi Hwang Ti, as a symbol of the unity of the Chinest empire, as well as a defense against barbarian hordes. The first segment of the wall began about 228 B.C., after the emperor succeeded in bringing together the people and the parts of China, under his control. The wall was completed about 204 B.C. Shi Hwang Ti erected nearly 1,200 miles of the wall. The reign of Shi Hwang Ti (meaning “first universal emperor”), during the Ts’n Dynasty, marked the end of feudal and divided China. He played a unifying role in the east, just as Alexander the Great might have played in the west, but he lived longer; the unity he accomplished was well-founded. It was he who organized the building of the Great Wall of China against the Huns. The fortification finally reached a length of about 1,400 miles, following the course of rivers, instead of bridging them, while conforming to the contours of the mountains and the valleys in its path. Surrounding the wall, which is 18 to 30 feet wide, is a passageway, about 10 feet wide. It runs between crenallated parapets. Hundreds of miles of the Great Wall of China remain intact at the present time.

Shi Hwang Ti might have defended China from the Huns, but, at the same time, he ordered the burning of all books, except those on pharmacy, medicine, divination, agriculture and arboriculture. For such a deed, his name had been held in reproach by later Chinese scholars.

There was a rebellion after his death, during the Han dynasty (202 B.C.-220 B.C.) By this time, the Tartar hordes were driven as far back as Turkestan, while Mongolia was added to the empire. An overland route was inaugurated. Trade, chiefly in Chinese silk, flourished. There were cultural advances during the Han Dynasty, together with territorial expansion. Reproduction of books by printing, recovery of the classics, the first dictionary and the first encyclopedic history of China, brought China closer to countries outside its border.

Buddhism was also introduced from India at about that time, marking the first, strong influence of another culture on that of China.

The Tang Dynasty succeeded the fall of the Han Dynasty. Then the era of the Sung Dynasty (960-1250) opened with a fresh burst of literary splendor, together with the formation of libraries, printing and bookmaking.

The Great Wall of China continues to be a great tourist attraction. It is also one of the great historical landmarks of an ancient civilization, as well as a symbol of Chinese ingenuity at a time when enemies were intent on advancing across its borders.