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Yulin Great Wall

As the table below indicates, the Great Wall has a long history. Construction started over 2,300 years ago and ended during the Ming Dynasty. Virtually every ruling entity during those years constructed additions to the wall.

Dynasty		Construction Year	Length (miles)	Description
Warring States	Wei	351 BC	Over 124	Built from rammed earth, the foundation measures 3.3 to 4.3 yards deep.
	Qin (King Huiwen's Rule)	324 BC	Over 267	This long section became the predecessor to the Ming's Great Wall.
	Qin (King Zhao's Rule)	271 BC	Unknown	There are three sections built with rammed earth. The foundation is 3.3 yards deep and most of the walls disappeared because of erosion.
Qin Dynasty		213 BC	Unknown	There are seven sections built with rammed earth. Today, there is very little left of the wall to see.
Sui Dynasty		585	Unknown	Starting at the end of Qin's wall, there are two walls that are parallel to each other.
Ming Dynasty		1436	Unknown	The Ming Great Wall was fortified with bricks and stones and new sections of wall were added as well.

Though many sections of the Great Wall are ruined through years, there are still relics of 36 Ming castles standing lonely along the Ming Great Wall, leaving us valuable practical materials to recall their past.

In the 1520's, Dada, one of the northern ethnic minorities, became powerful. They constantly invaded the Hetao area, a part of northern Shaanxi. In order to drive the intruders away, the Ming Court strengthened its frontier defenses by building walls on a large scale. Thirty-six castles were built to accommodate the troops stationed there. Many sections of the border wall (or Bian Qiang) have been in ruins throughout the years. There are, however, remnants of the thirty-six castles standing alone along the Ming Great Wall. The Ming Court anchored their hopes on these castles as one can see from their unique names.

Chang Le Bu (Change Le Castle)

Change Le means "Endless Happiness" and was built in 1489. Much of it has been destroyed. It is most unfortunate that stones laid in the outer wall were dismantled by local residents to build houses. The rammed earth north wall has collapsed, but luckily the south wall still stands.

Jian'an Bu (Jian'an Castle)

Jian'an means "To Build Peace" and was built in 1474 in what is today's City. Like Chang Le, the stones and bricks of Jian'an Castle were removed by local residents to build houses. However, the rammed earth wall has retained most of its original appearance unlike its counterpart at Chang Le. The east and south gates are the only ones left.

Da Bai Bu (Da Bai Castle)

Located in Shenmu County in Shaanxi, it was built from bricks and stones in 1607. Relics of both the west and east walls are still linked, but the east wall is severely damaged. Today, the castle serves at the location for a nearby primary school.