Great Wall of China

Aiton's Encyclopedia (1910)

a defensive wall following the northern boundary of China proper. It is the most extensive defensive work ever undertaken by man. It is said, on what authority we do not know, to represent the labor of 7,000,000 men for ten years. It was completed about 214 B. C., and was intended to put a stop to the invasions of the Tartar tribes. It extends from the vicinity of the sea, northeast of Peking, far into the desert northwest of China. It is 1,500 miles in length. It follows the natural contour of the country, rising over mountains, dipping down into valleys, and crossing rivers without a break. It differs greatly in construction. Some portions are little more than huge walls of loose earth and gravel. The typical construction, however, is thoroughly workmanlike in manner. The wall rests on a stone foundation twenty-five feet in width; retaining walls of brick, rising to a height of from fifteen to thirty feet, slope toward each other; so that the wall is about fifteen feet wide on the top. The space between these walls is filled in with earth and gravel; the top is paved with brick and defended by a parapet about six feet high with loop holes. The wall is further protected by strong towers at short intervals. The various roadways are spanned by massive arches of sufficient height to allow the passage of camels with their burdens. Portions of the wall are in ruins; yet other portions again are as firm apparently as when first built over 2,000 years ago. The paved roadway along the top of the wall is overgrown with weeds and grass. See Chinese Empire ; Tartars