China's Great Wall north of Beijing is one of the
world's most famous sights. Millions every year climb
the line of stone snaking over mountains. We all feel we
know the Wall. But we are wrong. It is too big, too
varied, too complex to be captured by a few images or a
day-trip. Myths surround it. Many believe that the stone
barrier marches across all China, that it has been in
existence for over 2,000 years, and that it is the only
man-made structure visible from the Moon. In fact, most
of it is made of earth, and much of it is not there at
all. It cannot even be seen from earth orbit, let alone
the Moon. Estimates of its length vary from 1,500 to
5,000 miles. Even its name is deceptive - it is not an
it, a single entity, but many walls (hence the uncertain
length), built at different times. Yet behind the
confusion are great simplicities. The many walls are
united by two ideas - self-protection and unity - which
go back to the First Emperor, who founded the nation in
221 BC.For 2,000 years, the Wall marked the border
between China and nomadic peoples to the north and
west.Mutual hostility inspired centuries of attacks,
counter-attacks and Wall-building, until the northward
spread of China in the 20th century made the Wall
redundant. For this riveting account, John Man travelled
the Wall from the far western deserts to the Pacific,
exploring the grandest sections and many 'wild' ones. He
is the first writer to describe two unknown walls in
Mongolia. He covers two millennia of history, from the
country's first unification to the present day, when the
Great Wall, built and rebuilt over centuries of war, has
become a symbol of tranquillity. |
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