As the previous pages will have made clear, a historical survey of the Great Wall of China reveals that there are several ‘great walls’, not just one. Any attempt to ‘join up’ structures that were built centuries apart, and to project on to them some conscious decision by their designers to build, or even add to, a notional Great Wall that had lasted for 1,000 years, is totally to misinterpret the situation. This is a particularly important point to consider when describing the geography of the Great Wall, because each section has to be identified not only in terms of its location but also according to when it was built.
The description that follows can only be a brief summary of the main features along the immense Great Wall. A comprehensive list would require several entire books, and the photographs in Schwarz’s The Great Wall of China (see page 63) will give the reader a good idea of the size of the task. This short gazetteer will look at the Great Wall from east to west, the conventional way of doing so. As the Ming Great Wall is the most prominent survivor of China’s border defences, it is sensible to use it as a framework by referring to the 11 military garrisons or commands along the Great Wall. Nine were created at the time of the Ming dynasty’s foundation, and two others were added when the capital was moved from Nanjing to Beijing. The border defences built at other times will be noted where they occur along the route.
The sequence of wall building under the Ming reflected the shifting locations of the current Mongol threat, which was in turn affected by the pressure placed on them by wall construction. Yu Zijun’s successful Ordos wall of the 1470s naturally directed the nomads’ attacks eastwards, and by the early 1500s the areas under most threat were the Datong and Xuanfu Commands, where no walls had then been built. As the fortified barrier grew, the Mongols moved round to the north-east and east of the capital where most of the building of the late Ming dynasty took place. Other lines of defence were maintained in Liaodong to the east and Gansu in the west. There were also inner and outer walls, spurs and detached sections in a bewildering pattern of construction and reconstruction.
The Xifengkou Pass, from an old photograph taken before this section of the Great Wall was submerged under the waters of the Panjiakou Reservoir. In 1933 the Chinese army held the invading Japanese at bay at this spot.
The Great Wall at Shanhaiguan from the Old Dragon’s Head to the Yanshan Mountains c.1580.
This plate shows the Great Wall from the place where it touches the waves of the Bohai Sea to its first ascent of high ground. Laolongtou (the Old Dragon’s Head) projects into the sea and a signalling tower sits on top of it. The barracks for the guards lie just inland behind the Calm Sea Tower. The Great Wall runs along the coast for a short distance then heads inland to cross the river, where a fort defends it. It then reaches the town of Shanhaiguan, which is an impressive fortress complex built round the famous First Pass Under Heaven, a huge gatehouse complex protected by a courtyard. Two outer walled sections protect the town to the east and west. After another castle the Great Wall then begins its dramatic ascent of the Yanshan Mountains.
Laolongtou (the Old Dragon’s Head) projects into the sea. This recently rebuilt tower (the original was destroyed during the Boxer Rebellion) derives its name from the image of the dragon that is the Great Wall bending to drink from the sea.
The first problem is where to begin. Although the Great Wall has its ‘official’ eastern terminus at the Old Dragon’s Head near Shanhaiguan an extension was built further east through Liaoning province to the Yalu River (now the border with North Korea) at Dandong. This section came under the jurisdiction of the Liaodong Command based at Liaoyang. Ancient walls are believed to have been constructed here before the Ming dynasty. The Ming wall consists of a variety of styles including rammed-earth and dry-stone sections with many separate watchtowers. There is also an important river crossing at Jiumenkou, where the Great Wall becomes a bridge.
The next section along – the Jizhou Command (later subdivided into Jizhou, Chang and Zhenbao) – which runs from the shore of the Bohai Sea to Juyongguan, includes some of the best-known portions of the Great Wall. It also contains its official beginning, which is to be found at Laolongtou (the Old Dragon’s Head). This recently rebuilt tower (the original was destroyed during the Boxer Rebellion) projects into the sea, making the perfect eastern terminus for the Great Wall of China. Its name is derived from the image of the dragon that is the Great Wall bending to drink from the sea.
A short distance inland is the town of Shanhaiguan, which is built across the pass of the same name. The Northern Qi first fortified this very important area and the Ming walls were begun in 1382 under Xu Da. The Great Wall at Shanhaiguan is an impressive fortress complex built round the famous First Pass Under Heaven, a huge gatehouse complex protected by a courtyard. The Great Wall then begins its dramatic ascent of the Yanshan Mountains, reaching a height of 519m above sea level. Travelling west we encounter the Xifengkou section, where the defences were built by Xu Da, but the Luan River has now been dammed to form the Panjiakou Reservoir, so the Great Wall disappears into it to emerge on the far side. There is an interesting ruined section not far away at Luowenyu.
Leaving Shanhaiguan, the Great Wall begins a dramatic ascent of the Yanshan Mountains at Jiaoshan, reaching a height of 519m above sea level.
The next major pass is the ‘yellow cliff’ of Huangyaguan. This fine location takes its name from the near vertical cliff on the eastern side of the pass through which the Ju River flows. Qi Jiguang was once in command here, and his statue stands next to a section of the Ming wall that dates from 1567. Huangyaguan shows many interesting features of wall construction, including several spurs and an isolated watchtower called the Phoenix Tower that lies beyond the wall. There are also certain places where there is no wall at all, because to build anything would have helped an enemy. Instead the natural cliffs are integrated into the defence layout.
The next major route through the Great Wall is the strategic Gubeikou Pass, through which passes the road to the Qing emperors’ summer palace at Chengde. Gubeikou is reached along the Great Wall by traversing two of its finest stretches: Simatai and Jinshanling. Simatai is noted for its dramatic narrow ridges where the Great Wall ascends at 70 degrees. Some towers are also very narrow because of the reduced space on which to build them, so that the whole section is something of a tour de force. Adjoining Simatai, and physically connected to it by a footbridge across the modern reservoir, is the stunningly undulating Jinshanling section, built after 1570 by Qi Jiguang. Towers of various sizes and shapes follow its switchback course. Some of them are among the finest examples of the towers designed by the famous general. On several sections of the battlements are three sets of loopholes for firing from standing, kneeling and prone positions. Here also we find the zhang qiang (transverse walls) that extend halfway across the walkway.
Moving further round to the north of Beijing we encounter Mutianyu. This is one of the most heavily restored sections of the Great Wall, but the work has been done exceptionally well. Its 22 watchtowers have been built at regular intervals and vary from being complex structures to simple beacons. Among these, the most famous is a virtual castle made up from three interconnected watchtowers. Away from the restored sections the wall makes several dramatic twists and turns. Unlike Huangyaguan, where cliffs were allowed to be part of the defences, the emphasis here is on providing an uninterrupted line of communication. This has produced in one place the very odd-looking ‘ox-horn wall’, where the wall goes up a mountain and then down again in a ‘hairpin bend’.
A short distance further on and the Great Wall splits in two. On the Inner Great Wall, Juyongguan guards the most convenient pass through the mountains. Traces of the walls built by the Northern Wei and Northern Qi dynasties have been found nearby. As noted earlier, it was defended against the Mongols in 1211 and 1213. Xu Da established the first Ming defences there in 1368, but it was not until the national humiliation of the Tumu Incident that it became a first line of defence. The present wall at the site dates from the early 16th century. Mount Badaling, the most popular tourist site on the Great Wall today, and the one invariably chosen by visiting politicians for their photo-calls, lies just to the north of Juyongguan. Building took place there in 1539 and 1582. A diversion off the Inner Great Wall occurs just before Pingyingguan, where a long spur heads due south along the line of the Hebei/Shanxi border. There is one well-defended pass along this dead-end route called the Niangziguan (Princess’s Pass).
The Xuanfu and Datong Commands had responsibility for the Outer Great Wall, which divides Shanxi province from the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region. Some sections of very ancient pre-Ming walls have survived in Inner Mongolia, including the wall built by the state of Zhao in the Warring States Period. The extant section was built of compressed earth and is about 2m high. It is one of the oldest relics of the Great Wall. A preserved section of the Qin Great Wall, constructed out of dry stonework, is to be found south of Hohhot. The Great Wall built under the Jurchen Jin dynasty dates to the 12th or 13th century. The Jurchen people had a different way of building their border defences. They began by digging a ditch and using the earth excavated from it to build an earthwork parapet.
A strong tower on the Great Wall at Mutianyu. This example has an upper storey with two levels of loopholes and merlons. There is a pitched roof and prominent drainage spouts.
Pingxingguan, Yanmenguan and Ningwuguan were vital passes along the Inner Great Wall that fell under the jurisdiction of the Taiyuan Command. Long before the Ming Great Wall was built General Yang Ye of the Song dynasty won an important victory in the Yanmenguan against the Kitans. In 1644 the rebel leader Li Zicheng won a victory at Ningwuguan.
The Inner and Outer Great Walls rejoin just before the pass of Pianguan, and the Yellow River, which forms the border between Shanxi province in the east and Shaanxi to the west, is soon crossed. Here Yu Xulin built his successful wall in 1474 to divide the Ordos plateau from the fertile loess land to the south and east within the broad loop of the Yellow River. In time this grew to be a double defence line under the Yansui Command based at Yulin, where there is also a prominent separate beacon tower called the Zhenbei (Pacify the North) Tower, the biggest along the Great Wall. Yulin was of great importance to the Ming. By 1403 it had become a fortified citadel and part of the Great Wall served also as one of the Yulin city walls.
Mount Badaling, the most popular tourist site on the Great Wall today and the one invariably chosen by visiting politicians for their photo-call, lies just to the north of Juyongguan. Building took place there in 1539 and 1582. (Photograph by Ian Clark)
Jiayuguan, the great castle at the western end of the Ming Great Wall, c.1644
Dating from 1372,Jiayuguan is perfectly integrated into the Great Wall system. This reconstruction shows it from the south. Two spurs from the Great Wall come out to form the outer wall of the castle. The Great Wall then continues on its way from the southwestern corner. The main castle is trapezoidal in shape and has two gates. The eastern gate is called the Guanghuamen (Bright Gate) while the western one is the Royuanmen (Gate for Conciliation with Remote Peoples). Both gates are entered through identically shaped narrow arched passages through courtyards with a 90-degree turn. On top of the actual gatehouses are some very imposing three-storey towers, while a similar structure lies just in front of the eastern gate at ground level. The western gate has an additional line of defence in the shape of the outer wall, which is here another narrow passage with a gate tower above it. To the east is a temple and even a theatre for the troops guarding the Great Wall. The commander’s headquarters lie within the main courtyard.
The Ningxia and Guyuan Commands covered an intricate system of inner and outer defences through Ningxia province. With the turbulent Yellow River at its east and backed by mountains on the west, the Ningxia Great Wall, controlled from Yinchuan, provided a vital defence line within a tight bend. There is also a further line of defence to the south under the Guyuan Command, which rejoins the main Wall before Wuwei.
The so-called ‘Hexi Corridor’ through Gansu province is bordered on the north by the Gobi Desert and follows the ancient route of the Silk Road. The Gansu command was based at modern Zhangye, and covered the most westerly section of the Ming Great Wall. Its most prominent landmark lies near the Taolai River in the shape of the spectacular fortress of Jiayuguan. The actual end of the Ming Great Wall is to be found perched literally on top of a cliff overlooking the Taolai River in Gansu province. No more dramatic terminus can be imagined, but in fact the Great Wall of the Han dynasty continues at least 320km further west. This is the Yumenguan, or Jade Gate Pass, so called from the precious jade said to have been taken through it. The walls of the Jade Gate fortress and the Great Wall in its vicinity were built from rammed earth. It developed into a bustling market area, although by Ming times it had fallen into ruin.
But even this is not quite the end. Further west we find the marshy depression known as Lop Nur. It was once a lake, and its northern tip marks the very end of wall-building, although some beacon towers have been identified even further west and traces of a long wall may yet be discovered. It is now the area used by the Chinese as a nuclear test site, a strangely ironic touch for the final traces of the world’s greatest defence project.
The zhang qiang (transverse walls) at Jinshanling provided a useful series of defensive barriers if an enemy gained access to the walkway.
A view of the Simatai section of the Great Wall, from the point where it joins the Jinshanling section and soars up from the reservoir. The line of the Wall that extends from this point contains some of the most dramatic features along the structure’s entire length.