Warning: mysql_connect() [function.mysql-connect]: Lost connection to MySQL server at 'reading initial communication packet', system error: 110 in /data/web/greatwal/greatwall-of-china-www/common/func/class/adodb-mysql.inc.php on line 105
Great Wall of China, History, Gallery of Pictures, Travel Guide, News, Discovery & Research
Welcome to the Great Wall Web Site

Within a long time we had a thought to set up a website that could introduce the Great Wall of China to all over the world, which writings appearing in sources online and offline are often oversimple and centered generally on titles granted to the world's longest construction, and on travel information whose browsers might not know that the Great Wall is gasping under the burden of tourism.

Contrasting to the contents above, little has been mentioned about the origin of the Great Wall, and its significance why and how in military affairs during more than 20 dynasties who built it. What's worse, quite a few sources even hold wrongly about the building time and the length of the Great Wall, and arbitrarily about the role it played in the international world. All these may lead people to a false impression of the Great Wall.

Most people tend to think that the Great Wall was a product of wars (actually of defense), thus its role ought to have been most closely related to battles and bloodshedding. It is, however, not that case. Most time under the Great Wall was actually peace rather than war; the Great Wall, in all times, was connected to the culture, foreign policies, and economy (just think how much could be spent on this super project). Philosophically, the Great Wall speaks well for a growth in the mixed soil of peace and war. It stands for some power, an unbeatable power despite all bitter conditions, known as the Great Wall Spirit among Chinese people.

Besides culture, policies and economy, another essential part that can't be divided from the Great Wall, which is the history of China. The Great Wall, whose building started more than 2,000 years ago, represents a main part of Chinese history, which has a profound influence on China today. So to speak, the Great Wall, in a sense, is history. And you will see that this tendency is reflected in our content. We generally talk about the Great Wall with dynasties who built it, along with events and social aspects of those dynasties, which may branch out as far as to other topics. In this manner of narration, It can be a little loose and sightly off the point, but we think it interesting, and it makes sense to put the Great Wall into the Chinese history.

Besides Great Wall History, which sector we have spent much time building up, we also include several other sectors:

Discover & Research, which answers questions like "how long is the Great Wall," "is the Great Wall visible from the space," and so on;
News
related to the conditions of Great Wall, with a high concern on its damages, pollution, and protection;
Anthology
of stories and other writings about the Great Wall;
Gallery
with a good collection of pictures ever-updated;
Travel Guide
, which introduces famous and the most visited sites and spots of the Great Wall.

The Web site is a non-profit one. But it's maybe not exact to say so, for profit is not always tangible. People are brought together here out of certain commonness. It is a treasure, isn't it? And we would like to quote a saying from the Analects of Confucius: what a delight to see friends from afar. And we are delighted that you sit down and read a bit of our site, of China and its Great Wall.