What makes the Great Wall of China so extraordinary - Megan Campisi and Pen-Pen Chen

Translator: Silvia Miguélez Reviewer: Mario Cal

A 13,000 mile dragon of earth and stone

Un dragón de terra e pedra de case 21.000 km

winds its way through the countryside of China

serpentea polo campo da China

with a history almost as long and serpentine as the structure.

cunha historia case tan longa e serpentina como a estrutura.

The Great Wall began as multiple walls of rammed earth

A Gran Muralla comezou coma múltiples muros de terra batida

built by individual feudal states during the Chunqiu period

construídos por distintos estados feudais no periodo Chunqiu

to protect against nomadic raiders north of China and each other.

para protexerse dos asaltantes nómades do norte da China e entre si.

When Emperor Qin Shi Huang unified the states in 221 BCE,

Cando o emperador Qin Shi Huang unificou os estados no 221 a.C.

the Tibetan Plateau and Pacific Ocean became natural barriers,

a meseta tibetana e o océano Pacífico convertéronse en barreiras naturais,

but the mountains in the north remained vulnerable

pero as montañas do norte seguiron sendo vulnerables

to Mongol, Turkish, and Xiongnu invasions.

ás invasións mongolas, turcas, e dos xiongnu.

To defend against them,

Para defenderse deles,

the Emperor expanded the small walls built by his predecessors,

o emperador ampliou as pequenas murallas feitas polos seus predecesores,

connecting some and fortifying others.

conectando algunhas e fortalecendo outras.

As the structures grew from Lintao in the west

Mentres as estruturas crecían desde Lintao no oeste

to Liaodong in the east,

ata Liaodong no leste,

they collectively became known as The Long Wall.

no seu conxunto se lles coñecía coma a Longa Muralla.

To accomplish this task,

Para realizar esta obra,

the Emperor enlisted soldiers and commoners,

o emperador alistou soldados e plebeos,

not always voluntarily.

non sempre voluntariamente.

Of the hundreds of thousands of builders recorded during the Qin Dynasty,

Dos centos de miles de construtores rexistrados na dinastía Qin,

moitos eran campesiños reclutados á forza

many were forcibly conscripted peasants

and others were criminals serving out sentences.

e outros eran delincuentes cumprindo condenas.

Under the Han Dynasty, the wall grew longer still,

Baixo a dinastía Han a muralla medrou máis aínda,

reaching 3700 miles,

chegando case aos 6.000 km,

and spanning from Dunhuang to the Bohai Sea.

estendéndose desde Dunhuang ata o mar de Bohai.

Forced labor continued under the Han Emperor Han-Wudi ,

O traballo forzado seguiu baixo o emperador Wu de Han,

and the walls reputation grew into a notorious place of suffering.

e as murallas colleron a reputación dun lugar de sufrimento.

Poems and legends of the time told of laborers buried

Poemas e lendas da época falaban de obreiros enterrados

in nearby mass graves,

en fosas comúns próximas,

or even within the wall itself.

ou mesmo dentro da propia muralla.

And while no human remains have been found inside,

E aínda que non se atoparon restos humanos no seu interior,

grave pits do indicate that many workers died

hai fosas que indican que moitos obreros morreron

from accidents, hunger and exhaustion.

de accidentes, fame e esgotamento.

The wall was formidable but not invincible.

A muralla era formidable pero non invencible.

Both Genghis and his son Khublai Khan managed to surmount the wall

Gengis e o seu fillo Kublai Kan conseguiron superar a muralla

during the Mongol invasion of the 13th Century.

durante a invasión mongol do século XIII.

After the Ming dynasty gained control in 1368,

Despois de que a dinastía Ming tomase o control no 1368,

they began to refortify and further consolidate the wall

comezaron a refortalecer a muralla e a consolidala aínda máis

using bricks and stones from local kilns.

utilizando ladrillos e pedras de fornos locais.

Averaging 23 feet high and 21 feet wide,

Cunha media de 7 m de alto e 6,4 de ancho,

the walls 5500 miles were punctuated by watchtowers.

as murallas duns 9000 km estaban marcadas por torres vixía.

When raiders were sighted,

Cando se vían asaltantes,

fire and smoke signals traveled between towers

os sinais de lume e fume viaxaban entre as torres

until reinforcements arrived.

ata que chegaban os reforzos.

Small openings along the wall let archers fire on invaders,

Pequenas aberturas na muralla permitían aos arqueiros disparar aos invasores,

while larger ones were used to drop stones and more.

mentres que as grandes usábanse para tirar pedras, e máis cousas.

But even this new and improved wall was not enough.

Pero nin sequera esta muralla nova e mellorada bastou.

In 1644, northern Manchu clans overthrew the Ming

No 1644, os clans manchúes do norte derrocaron aos Ming

to establish the Qing dynasty,

para establecer a dinastía Qing,

incorporating Mongolia as well,

incorporando tamén Mongolia.

Thus, for the second time,

Así, por segunda vez,

China was ruled by the very people the wall had tried to keep out.

China foi gobernada pola mesma xente que a muralla intentara manter fóra.

With the empire's borders now extending beyond the Great Wall,

Agora que as fronteiras do imperio chegaban máis aló da Gran Muralla,

the fortifications lost their purpose.

as fortificacións perderon o seu propósito.

And without regular reinforcement, the wall fell into disrepair,

E sen reformas regulares, a muralla comezou estar en mal estado,

rammed earth eroded,

a terra batida erosionada,

while brick and stone were plundered for building materials.

e se saqueaban ladrillos e pedras para usar de materiais de construción.

But its job wasn't finished.

Pero o seu traballo non rematara.

During World War II,

Na Segunda Guerra Mundial,

China used sections for defense against Japanese invasion,

China usou partes dela coma defensa contra a invasión xaponesa,

and some parts are still rumored to be used for military training.

e aínda se rumorea que algunhas partes se usan para adestramento militar.

But the Wall's main purpose today is cultural.

Pero hoxe, o obxectivo principal da muralla é cultural.

As one of the largest man-made structures on Earth,

Como unha das maiores estruturas da Terra feitas polo ser humano,

it was granted UNESCO World Heritage Status in 1987.

foi declarada Patrimonio Mundial da UNESCO no 1987.

Originally built to keep people out of China,

Orixinalmente construída para manter á xente fóra de China,

the Great Wall now welcomes millions of visitors each year.

a Gran Muralla recibe agora millóns de visitantes ao ano.

In fact, the influx of tourists has caused the wall to deteriorate,

De feito, a afluencia de turistas fixo que a muralla se deteriorase,

leading the Chinese government to launch preservation initiatives.

o que levou ao goberno chinés a lanzar iniciativas para preservala.

It's also often acclaimed as the only man-made structure visible from space.

Tamén é a miúdo aclamada como a única estrutura

feita polo ser humano visible desde o espazo.

Unfortunately, that's not at all true.

Desafortunadamente, iso non é certo.

In low Earth orbit, all sorts of structures,

Na órbita terrestre baixa, todo tipo de estruturas son visibles,

like bridges, highways and airports are visible,

como pontes, autoestradas e aeroportos,

and the Great Wall is only barely discernible.

e a Gran Muralla apenas pode percibirse.

From the moon, it doesn't stand a chance.

Desde a Lúa, non ten ningunha posibilidade.

But regardless, it's the Earth we should be studying it from

Pero é desde a Terra desde onde debemos estudala

because new sections are still discovered every few years,

porque aínda se descobren novas seccións cada poucos anos,

branching off from the main body

ramificándose do corpo principal

and expanding this remarkable monument to human achievement.

e ampliando este notable monumento ao logro humano.