Ep. 123: The Great Wall of China - 5 Facts
Intro
Hello and Welcome to this episode of the podcast, "The Mnemonic Tree", where we add a single mnemonic leaf to our Tree of Knowledge.
I’m Jans your Mnemonic Man and today's episode will be on the greatest wall of all, The Great Wall of China.
Voted one of the New Seven Wonders of the World, The Great Wall of China ranks as the oldest wonder in the modern list, with the Giza Pyramids granted honorary status and not part of the list of seven wonders. Just for those of you who are interested in that list of the New Seven Wonders of the World, it consists of, The Great Wall of China, Chichén Itzá, Petra, Machu Picchu, Christ the Redeemer, the Colosseum, and the Taj Mahal.
Now getting back to the Great Wall. Construction began in the 7th century BC and continued for centuries until 1878 when construction ceased during the Qing Dynasty.
It covers a myriad of landscapes including mountains, deserts, and plains and if laid out in a straight line it would wrap more than halfway around the equator of the earth.
It is considered one of the greatest feats of human civilisation with around 10 million people coming each year to view this monolith and cultural icon.
Today’s mnemonic is on five facts about The Great Wall of China.
So, with no further ado, we will begin with a summary from Wikipedia.
Wikipedia Summary
The Great Wall of China (traditional Chinese: 萬里長城; simplified Chinese: 万里长城; pinyin: Wànlǐ Chángchéng, literally "ten thousand li long wall") is a series of fortifications that were built across the historical northern borders of ancient Chinese states and Imperial China as protection against various nomadic groups from the Eurasian Steppe. Several walls were built from as early as the 7th century BC,[4] with selective stretches later joined by Qin Shi Huang (220–206 BC), the first emperor of China. Little of the Qin wall remains.[5] Later on, many successive dynasties built and maintained multiple stretches of border walls. The best-known sections of the wall were built by the Ming dynasty (1368–1644).
Apart from defense, other purposes of the Great Wall have included border controls, allowing the imposition of duties on goods transported along the Silk Road, regulation or encouragement of trade and the control of immigration and emigration.[6] Furthermore, the defensive characteristics of the Great Wall were enhanced by the construction of watchtowers, troop barracks, garrison stations, signaling capabilities through the means of smoke or fire, and the fact that the path of the Great Wall also served as a transportation corridor.
The frontier walls built by different dynasties have multiple courses. Collectively, they stretch from Liaodong in the east to Lop Lake in the west, from the present-day Sino–Russian border in the north to Tao River (Taohe) in the south; along an arc that roughly delineates the edge of the Mongolian steppe; spanning 21,196.18 km (13,170.70 mi) in total.[7][3] Today, the defensive system of the Great Wall is generally recognized as one of the most impressive architectural feats in history.[8]
Extracted from: [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_Wall_of_China]
Mnemonic
Great Wall of China – 5 Facts Mnemonic – LIFT Bricks
(Picture a million people lifting bricks to slowly make what is now The Great Wall of China)
1. Length is 21,196.18 km long
2. It is not a wall but a series of fortifications
3. Fifteen strategic passes from East to West
4. Two thousand five hundred years to construct
5. Built from various materials which include bricks, cut stone blocks, uncut stones, tamped earth, wood, and lime mortar
Five Fun Facts
1. The Great Wall of China is the longest man-made structure in the world which runs along the northern part of the country. Its Chinese name of Wan Li Chang Cheng, which literally means “The Long Wall of 10,000 Miles”. To give you some idea of how long The Great Wall of China is; it is 40,075 kilometres around the equator. The Great Wall is just over half of this at 21,196.18 kilometres.
2. As mentioned in the mnemonic, it is not a wall but a series of fortifications. Also, it is not in a single line, but rather many walls that can be random, parallel, doubled-up, or even tripled.
3. Many people believe that the wall was built to keep the Mongols out. However, this is not the case as construction on the wall began in the 7th century BC. Whereas the rise of the Mongols was in the 11th century AD. The original purpose was to defend against northern nomadic tribes living in today’s Mongolia and northern China.
Now just speaking of building walls to keep people out; Donald Trump may just be on the right path to building a wall between the US and Mexico. As he succinctly stated in a press conference “China has a wall, and they don’t have any illegal Mexicans!”
4. It has taken more than 20 dynasties and states to construct The Great Wall of China over 2,500 years. A fair chunk of this construction was from the Ming dynasty where construction commenced around 1368. The Ming Great Wall weaves its way from Hushan in the east to Jiayuguan in the west a total of 8,851.8 kilometres. Many tourist resorts have now been set up along this section.
5. The Great Wall of China has another sobriquet, and that is the Longest Cemetery in the World. Over the 2,500 years of construction, it is said that more than a million labourers had been used. This has included civilians, soldiers, and convicts. With this, they believe around 400,000 perished along the journey with many interred within its walls.
Three Question Quiz
Q.1. Can the Great Wall of China be seen from space with the naked eye? Is that True or False
Q.2. Which century did the Mongols led by Genghis Khan breach the wall?
Q.3. What year did The Great Wall of China become a protected UNESCO World Heritage site? Options are 1957, 1977, or 1987
Bonus Q. Approximately what fraction of the Great Wall has disappeared and is in ruins? Options are one-half, one-third, or one fifth
Mnemonic Recap
Great Wall of China – 5 Facts Mnemonic – LIFT Bricks
(Picture a million people lifting bricks to slowly make what is now The Great Wall of China)
1. Length is 21,196.18 km long
2. It is not a wall but a series of fortifications
3. Fifteen strategic passes from East to West
4. Two thousand five hundred years to construct
5. Built from various materials which include bricks, cut stone blocks, uncut stones, tamped earth, wood, and lime mortar
Three Question Quiz Answers
Q.1. Can the Great Wall of China be seen from space with the naked eye? Is that True or False
A. False. It would be the equivalent of seeing a hair from two miles away!
Q.2. Which century did the Mongols led by Genghis Khan breach the wall?
A. The 13th Century
Q.3. What year did The Great Wall of China become a protected UNESCO World Heritage site? Options are 1957, 1977, or 1987
A. 1987
Bonus Q. Approximately what fraction of the Great Wall has disappeared and is in ruins? Options are one-half, one third, or one fifth
A. One-third
Word of the Week
muster
[ muhs-ter ]
verb
to gather, summon, rouse
Example
The Ming Dynasty mustered many to build the Ming Great Wall, built between 1368 and 1644.
Extracted from: [https://www.dictionary.com/]
https://www.themnemonictreepodcast.com/
https://podcasts.apple.com/au/podcast/the-mnemonic-tree-podcast/id1591795132
https://open.spotify.com/show/3T0LdIJ9PBQMXM3cdKd42Q?si=fqmaN2TNS8qqc7jOEVa-Cw
References
https://www.travelchinaguide.com/china_great_wall/facts/