Great Wall

Labor Force

The labor force used by various dynasties for the construction of the walls was no less impressive than the wall itself. The well-organized defenses of the Great Wall were built by the arduous work of millions of workers. For example, when the Great Wall was first brought together under the direction of General Meng Tian over a period of 10 years during the Qin Dynasty, 300,000 troops were used. In addition to the frontier soldiers, the builders included conscripted laborers and convicts in exile. Later in 555 A.D. under the Northern Qi Dynasty, a 450-kilometre section of the wall was built from Nankou, Beijing, to Datong, Shanxi. 1.8 million people were forced to join the ranks of the laborers. Owing to the arduous work and poor conditions both for living and construction, a lot of people died in the course of this project. Some of their remains were even buried in the wall.