The Great Wall of China

 

The Great Wall of China is one of the most famous structures in the world. It was built over centuries by China’s emperors to protect their territory ¹. There are many myths and legends surrounding the Great Wall, including a common myth that it can be seen from space, which has been proven untrue.

When and who built it?

The Great Wall of China was built over centuries by China’s emperors to protect their territory ². The main labor force was soldiers, led by generals. After the unification of China, the First Emperor of Qin ordered 300,000 soldiers to build the Great Wall. The supplementary labor force was peasants. Besides the soldiers, almost every emperor forced (male) farmers to help build the Great Wall. The third kind of laborer was the arrested rebels

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Whay it was built?

The Great Wall of China was built over centuries by China’s emperors to protect their territory from northern invaders ¹. For millennia, Chinese leaders instituted wall-building projects to protect the land from northern, nomadic invaders ². One of the most famous attackers of the Great Wall was Genghis Khan, the founder of the Mongol Empire. He led his Mongolian army to break through the Great Wall several times ³.