China
The World's Seventh Wonder

The Great Wall of China is one of the biggest and most ancient of many famous cultural and political fortifications in world history. It is also of the most visited tourist attractions in China. The reputation of the Great wall as the most magnificent, widest and longest structure made of stone and brick (you can see it from the moon, it is said) has spread worldwide over time. The West discovered China and its Great Wall in the 17th century. Of course, some disturbing aspects of the Great Wall were not that much publicized, especially in official tourist guides and historical textbooks. Let’s say that some details were overlooked.
Over centuries, China, the Empire of the Centre, had felt the need for a solid, not-to-be-crossed stronghold. It had to protect its culture from the Northern barbarian (Mongolian) tribes. At that time, no gunpowder and cannons barrier could suffice to repel the nomad warriors. The idea of lines of fortification was much alive then in China. It had been in the mind of the rulers, for centuries, for thousand years even. Not surprisingly, the Great Wall of China became ongoing intervention and investment for the ambitious empire.
The building of the first wall was started in the year 221 BC under the rule of the mighty emperor Shi Huandi. The construction works in many sectors were achieved in 204 BC. The length of the wall was almost 2,000 kilometers. It was claimed that around 3,500,000 people had been laboring on the wall – among them, many political and military prisoners. The Great wall, erected in only seventeen years, had huge economical and social consequences for the whole country. About 70% of the active population was involved in the building of the wall, directly or indirectly. It led to the decrease on the food production and misery due to increased taxes. After the death of the tyrannous emperor, the wall project was stopped. Within ten years, the Great Wall was in ruin, useless for any protection.
There were some minor interventions over centuries. Still, it is only during the Ming dynasty era (14th century) resumed, after some 1,300 years of abandon. The Ming dynasty came into power in 1368, after a long period of Mongolian rule in China. The Ming emperors were eager to control their territory. Thus, the Wall would be bigger, more imposing and beautiful than all the previous constructions. The defense system was based on watchtowers, water dams, and firearms. It was said invincible. After the Ming era, when its military and economic power had peaked, China went through a long recession. West occupation, Opium Wars… brings us to the birth of the Chinese Republic in 1911. Nationalists, Communists, Japan and Second World War… 1949 marked the birth of the People’s Republic of China.
Today, the Great Wall is promoted as one of the World’s Seven Wonders. Such qualification should not make forget that it also symbolize death and blood. As most of the other World’s Wonders, it was constructed thanks to slavery and forced labor. Hundreds of thousands of people died in the huge imperial project, but who remembers them? Only the names of the initiators of the Great Wall have been recorded by history. The biggest tourist attraction of China is at the same time an enormous mass grave where many of the world most important leaders have posed for the camera: Richard Nixon, Josip Broz Tito or George Bush. For Chinese, pride and fascination, that the Great Wall has come to crystallize through history, have replaced the memory of rebellions and suffering of their people.
Nowadays, the remnants of the Great Wall go through renovation in order to reconstruct the past appearance. However, the main part of the monument is in ruin. The Great Wall of China reflected the kind of authority and government that the Chinese people have been accustomed to and accepted, without any ideological stance. The Great Wall: an artificial barrier cutting China off from the rest of the world for centuries; too ambitious and too demanding a construction who took a huge toll on human lives, may they be political and war prisoners exposed to brutality, famine, and slavery, or imperial soldiers who had to work in extreme weather conditions; a gigantic propaganda device at the intention of foreign politicians… Of course, saying something like this about the Great Wall would be almost a sin, especially in China.