The Great Wall of China—started in 221 BCE during the Qin dynasty, was built to keep the northern invaders from attacking China. This 5,488 miles long wall was built over a 2,000 year period by dynasties that devoted their time in its construction. While it did provide benefits such as protection and spread ideas to other empires, it wasn’t enough to outweigh the costs of money, lives, and isolation from families. Chinese people feared their archenemy—the Xiongnu, thinking that they will conquer China. They decided to build a massive wall to keep them away from taking over, but also wanted to keep a peaceful relationship. If people from China didn’t want to have warfare with Xiongnu and wanted to keep a peaceful relationship between each …show more content…
Most of the laborers who were taken to build the wall lost their lives due to various reasons. Soldiers from the Qin dynasty “died from hunger, sickness, and extreme heat or cold” and from the Han dynasty, the soldiers mainly died from the heavy fighting with the Xiongnu (document E). A poem written by an unidentified author from the Han dynasty explains the life of the soldiers who were protection the Great Wall (document F). They would fight with the Xiongnu in the north or the wall, and sometimes everyone had to face starvation because of the inability to harvest food. This was caused by peasants forced to join the military in order to keep the wall safe and some dying in the battles with Xiongnu which caused scarcity of peasants (document F). The author of the poem seems very proud of all the soldiers and it also seems that they aren’t disappointed to protect the wall at all. Boredom and loneliness was a problem for all the soldiers (document E). It would be better if there was a document that was a diary from a soldier or peasant that showed if they were glad to be serving China by protecting the wall or not. Even if some people were willing to serve China, they shouldn’t have experienced such brutal
The Great Wall was constructed by the Qin and Han dynasties. they built the Great Wall to be protected by the Xiongnu. However the benefits of building the Great Wall didn't outweigh the costs. According to Document C, evidence supports my claim by stating," According to poetry and legend, tens of thousands of soldiers died from hunger, sickness, and extreme heat or cold." This shows how the loss of soldiers happened by constructing the Great Wall they could've just have more soldiers protect around China.
The Great Wall did not work 100% of the time, but it still helped protect China. No, the Great Wall did not always keep the Mongols out, nor did it ensure the safety of every person. But what we do know is that if it weren’t for the Great Wall, China would not nearly be as successful as it is today. " Heavy fighting against the Xiongnu during much of the 2nd century BCE" (Document E).
#1 - Time/Length When Emperor Qin had the idea of building the sheer size wall that was built to increase security, impress visitors, and enhance the glory of china came with patience and a long time. It took over 2,500 years to complete the construction of the wall! According to the background essay’s timeline, so many segments of the wall have been started by different dynasties. They were always being extended, or torn down to repair and built anew. The first dynasty to start the wall was the Qin.
Prior to the reconstruction, the pre-existing wall from the Qin dynasty was outdated and no longer suited as a defensive wall in its condition. Consequently, this represented a time period in which China had no defense system, and demonstrated the danger that the nomadic tribes were to the Chinese. Specifically, Han dynasty historian Sima Qian states that the wall was built “so that the barbarians no longer ventured to come south to pasture their horses and their men dared not take up their bows to vent their hatred.” The nomadic tribes, especially the Xiongnu, were still in massive conflict with the Han dynasty, and the danger that the Xiongnu posed to the Chinese only grew.
Dear Emperor Qin I think building the Great Wall was a very bad idea. The Great Wall is a wall built to protect the citizens. Some people want the Great Wall to be there but, I don't think it is a good idea. They are wrong because a lot of people died and a lot of other things happened.
With that being said the wall also has its downsides. One of the biggest problems with the wall is how much it would cost to build. Also the amount of land the wall would take up, this may beckon an unwanted burden on landowners. The main problem of the wall is that it would signal just the opposite if the Statue of
One day, King Artaxerxes notices his sad face and wanted to know what was wrong. Nehemiah explains the situation of his beloved city. Artaxerxes allows him to return to his homeland to rebuild and supplies him with resources to accomplish the task. Nehemiah led the rebuilding of the wall in despite of the oppostion and accusations from Sanballat,
The Great Wall was made by the Qin and Han dynasty's to keep out invaders and other enemies. The benefits did outweigh the cost because it kept your city protected, it was harder for invaders to attack. They also put troops in the frontier areas of the Wall to increase the security level. According to document A it states that "the government will construct walled cities, well protected by high walls, deep moats, catapults, and thorns." This shows that the Qin and Han wanted to make it harder for the mongols to attack and that china wanted to be prepared for when other dangerous situations happen.
These invaders had wished to invade China but the wall made a
The Great Wall of Ancient China : Did the Benefits Outweigh the Costs? The Great Wall of China was built by the soldiers and the peasants, but they were controlled by the Han and the Qin Dynasty. The Wall was meant the keep the Mongols (intruders) out . In fact, however the benefits did not outweigh the cost of The Great Wall of China. According to document C it states " soldiers were forced to leave families and villages for several years" and " tens of thousands soldiers died from hunger, sickness, and extreme heat or cold. "
Although the Great Wall was built for protection, it did not do it’s job too well. The Xiongnu and Mongols from the north were able to build tall ladders, group together, and charge over a small section of the wall (Cope 163). However despite that fact, the Great Wall was still an important part of the Chinese because the Chinese Emperor was able to think of a method of a series of signal towers, which alerted from far away to the Chinese that a attack was coming and so they they were ready for it (Waldron 63). By having a pile of flammable black smoke powder, on each tower on the Great Wall, the Chinese Emperor was able to deceive an important strategy to make the Great Wall extremely useful (Waldron 64). When signs of a attack was coming,
In ancient China, the large mountains in the West and many seas surrounding China in the East, created natural barriers affecting the lives of the Chinese people. The Great Wall of China, built during the Qin Dynasty, plus all of the natural barriers, kept the
Later, in 786, another tiger came through the wall and wounded two people. A bear also visited a Buddhist church, in 831, before it was seized. There were also many deer who came through the wall. The walls were also rather expensive,
It was a project that went down into Ancient China's history; full of hardship, hard work, and sometimes, even death. The Great Wall of China was built over a 2,000- year period, and measures to 5,488 miles long. Who were the ones behind the biggest wall in the world? It was the Qin Dynasty (“chin”) and the Han Dynasty. Qin had ruled and lived from 221 until 206 BCE and the Han dynasty from 206 BCE until 220 CE.
Qin Shi Huang-di is often regarded as a great leader within history. However, he was also paranoid and got rid of anyone who disagreed with him, but without Qin, there might be no China. Furthermore, despite his mixed reputation today, he brought six warring kingdoms together to form the basis of a country that has lasted to this day, an impressive feat that was a huge turning point in Chinese history. Qin’s effect on China and by default, on the other countries of the world was enormous. In fact, his dynasty, the Qin dynasty, even gave China its name (“Shi Huangdi Becomes Emperor”).