The Great Wall of China

Short History Of...

Noiser

History

4.8 • 4.1K Ratings

🗓️ 12 May 2024

⏱️ 52 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

The Great Wall of China is one of the architectural wonders of the world. Stretching for over 21,000km - as far as London to New York and back, twice - it follows what used to be the border between China and Mongolia. Built over a period of 2,000 years by millions of conscripted workers, it’s been the subject of myths and legends for centuries. But who really built the Great Wall, and how? Is it true that those who died at the Wall were buried within it? What purpose did it serve? And can this incredible structure really be seen from space? This is a Short History Of the Great Wall of China. A Noiser production, written by Fiona Veitch-Smith. With thanks to William Lindesay, a geographer, explorer, conservationist, and leading expert on the Great Wall of China. Get every episode of Short History Of a week early with Noiser+. You’ll also get ad-free listening, bonus material, and early access to shows across the Noiser network. Click the Noiser+ banner to get started. Or, if you’re on Spotify or Android, go to noiser.com/subscriptions. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.0	It's 2-10 BC.
0:02.0	The Yin Mountains in northern China,
0:05.0	with the Gobe Desert to the north,
0:07.0	and the agricultural lands of Hubei Province to the south,
0:10.0	are a buzz with activity.
0:17.0	Guarded by the Emperor soldiers, tens of thousands of conscripted men,
0:20.0	civilians and convicts,
0:22.0	are hacking granite slabs from a cliff face.
0:25.3	The work is hard and the conditions poor.
0:29.7	A young man in his early 20s, recently married, hails from a village on the outskirts of Beijing.
0:36.2	He was once a scholar, but right now he's taking a break from exhausting manual labor. Sitting in the shade of a shallow cave, he eats his meager
0:46.6	ration of wheat cake. It's tasteless and dry, sticking to his palate, but he eats it anyway, knowing it's all he'll get for the next
0:54.7	eight hours.
0:56.7	Swallowing a mouthful of water, he tries to take his mind off his unsated hunger by focusing
1:02.0	on his surroundings.
1:06.0	There are carved pictures on the walls,
1:08.0	ancient drawings that speak to him of an existence
1:12.0	beyond the labor he is forced to perform up here.
1:15.7	He stands, tracing his fingertips across the designs on the cool rock,
1:20.5	carvings of men on horseback hunting antelope wild ox and boar.
1:25.0	It's these people that the great wall he's building is meant to keep out.
1:31.0	They are wild men, frightening men.
	...

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