The
Great Wall winds through 936 miles of the Ningxia Hui Minority Autonomous Region. Dynasties from Warring States, Qin, Han, Sui, and Jin to Ming all left their own walls in this area. Within 314 miles, there are 706 watch towers, 282 fortresses and 1,065 platforms distributed densely on the wall. Chairman Mao's brave and proud utterance "You are not a true man if you haven't arrived at the Great Wall" was stated when he stood at Liupan Mountain in Ningxia and stared at the winding ancient walls below. Ningxia really deserves to be called "Hometown of the Great Wall" and "the Natural Museum of the Great Wall".
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Great Wall of Qin State in
Guyuan County |
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Erdaobian Great Wall of Sui Dynasty,
Yanchi County |
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The relics of the Great Wall in Ningxia are mainly the walls of Qin in Warring States and Ming. The wall of Qin in Warring States is the oldest wall relic in Ningxia as well as all over China. It zigzags over 124 miles starting from Jingning County in Gansu Province, northeast to Guyuan City in Ningxia and finally arriving at Zhenyuan County in the southeast. This section contains platforms of from three to ten feet tall every 219 to 328 yards. The construction of this section sacrificed many lives. In order to strengthen the wall, the king of Qin ordered laborers to first smash the yellow earth into powder, sift it, and then thoroughly steam it. The complicated working procedure and short construction period caused countless people to die from exhaustion.
The remains of Ming's Great Wall in Ningxia are composed of four sections: the west, the north, the east and Guyuan's inner side wall. The west wall goes along the
Yellow River from Zhongwei City northeastward to Helan Mountain. The east section begins at Lingwu County, goes south to Yanchi City and ends in Dingbian County in Shaanxi Province. The north section links the west and the east sections together. The total length measures about 0.8 miles and most sections were built from yellow earth. The Guyuan's inner side wall is located in Mahuangshan Village and travels from Mengcheng Village southeast to Yancheng City, moving towards the boundary of Shaanxi, Gansu and Ningxia. This section is unique in its style of construction. It was built by sharpening the hills into steep cliffs and channels which are difficult to overstep.
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Great Wall of Ming Dynasty in
Yanchi County, Ningxia |
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Hongguozi Great Wall of Ming Dynasty,
Shizuishan, Ningxia |
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Ningxia is suffering a great deal from desertification. Most walls in this area lie beside windy deserts. Many, especially the earth-rammed walls, are being severely destroyed by wind, rain, and human activities. Additionally, the areas which the walls traverse are remote and poor, so the Great Wall is not protected because of the lack of financial support. A solution to save this precious but quickly disappearing "dragon" is urgently required.
Further Reading:
Ningxia Travel Guide
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