Why and How was the Great Wall of China built?

When we learn the Great Wall story, you may hear that it is for the Chinese to defend themselves from the Mongolians. But why do we need to make such a big effort to make such a long wall? There are 2 questions I want to discuss here:

1. We can use some of the high mountains to keep the enemies out, is it really necessary to build an extra wall on the mountains?

2. The Great Wall is super long, some of the walls in the grassland are easy to cross for a strong army. If the enemies cross the wall, the whole Great Wall looks useless.

The people who lived on the north side of the Great Wall

The Huns were nomadic warriors who terrorized much of Europe and the Roman Empire in the 4th and 5th centuries A.D. They were impressive horsemen best known for their astounding military achievements. Before they did that, the Huns grew up in the grassland in north China. The tough environment gives birth to a cruel army. They are small people, but they have great horse and archer skills. The easy way to get food if they have a bad year is to rob. So they come to the south to kill and rob the farmers very often.

The people who lived on the south side of the Great Wall

The Wall is a boundary between farmers and nomads. Before the whole wall was built, China was divided into 7 kingdoms, the emperor from the Qin kingdom united them together. This war lasted for centuries. The Qin became the strongest and beat all their enemies. The first emperor of the Qin Dynasty is called Shi Huangdi (秦始皇).

Why the Shi Huangdi need a long wall?

After Shi Huangdi united the 7 kingdoms, he wanted to conquer the world. Especially the Huns, who had fought for centuries with Qin and other kingdoms. It was not an easy job, even though the Qin generals won many battles initially.

Meng Tian, Shi Huangdi’s favorite general, killed the 400000 Huns army in 213 BC. But they didn’t stop and kept going to chase after and kill the Huns. But the army had to turn back because they ran out of supplies, and the Huns were hard to find in the grassland. They don’t even have a stable home as they usually live in the yurt; it is easy for them to move.

This war cost a lot, and they got almost nothing back since the Huns turned back very soon when the Qin army turned back. So, making the Great Wall keep the Huns out of the country was the best choice. Some sections of the wall were built by the Qi Yan kingdoms before Qin united this country.

What a big project!

Someone says there were over 1 million people who died during this project. There are few words in the history book to register this project, except that General Meng Tian led 300000 soldiers to fight with the Huns, and he is the same person who led the Great Wall project. We can’t know how many people worked on this, but there is something else that can let you know about this project.

1. The Qin Great Wall is not long

The wall was built hundreds of years ago before Qin Shihuang to defend the Huns. The Qin emperor only united the wall in the northern part of China.

2. How long does it take to build the Great Wall?

The Qin Great Wall started in 215 BC, but Shi Huangdi died in 210 BC, and the Qin was turned over in 207 BC. It is impossible to build the Great Wall like we see today under the technologies at that time in less than ten years.

3. There was not the only huge project at the same time

Shi Huangdi was ambitious; he built the Great Wall to keep his offspring away from tough enemies. But he also wanted to enjoy his life, so he called 700000 works to build his palace and tomb, which we know are the terracotta warriors.

4. The number of deaths is smaller than in a real war

The people may die because of hunger, disease, and tired hard work, but it is still less than a war.

5. The Great Wall is not a must at that moment; there are more important things to do

As we know, Meng Tian killed 400000 Hun’s army, so the enemies needed a long time to recover, even though they still feared coming to rob.

6. We can use some of the high mountains to keep the enemies out; is building an extra wall on the mountains necessary?

The Great Wall was not only for defense but also a strong military camp that connected all the fortresses. It is easy to transfer food and soldiers.

7. The Great Wall is super long, and some grassland walls are easy for a strong army to cross. If the enemies cross the wall, the whole Great Wall looks useless.

There are many watchtowers with firewood. If the enemies are invited, the soldiers can light up the fire to send information to the fortress and ask for help. This lets us know when and where the enemies came. So, it is unnecessary to keep many soldiers; instead, let them farm and come to fight when there is a signal from the wall.