The five forts game of thrones series#

This is the official beginning of China’s long imperial period, which does not end until 1911 with the overthrow of the Qing dynasty. After Qin Shihuang finally defeated all other major states, he declared himself emperor over all of China (for the first time ever) (3). Sima Qian writes that the kings of states such as Han, Zhao, and Wei ordered their court to “build long walls” 筑长城 zhu changcheng (pronounced juu chang-chung) to repel possible northern steppe invaders. There were multiple walls already built by various states, and the construction of these walls is recorded in China’s first imperial history, Sima Qian’s Records of the Grand Historian. Qin Shihuang was king of the state of Qin during China’s long Warring States period (475–221 BCE), where multiple states ruled by kings battled for dominance and preservation. When China became an empire in 221 BCE, the first emperor of China, Qin Shihuang (“First Emperor of Qin,” pronounced cheen sure-hwang), ordered for the Great Wall to be built and those already in existence to be maintained. Warring States period states (Before Qin’s conquest)

The five forts game of thrones series#

Looking at parallels between the Great Wall, Five Forts, and the Wall in the north, we can make predictions about the future Long Night in the series and better understand walls within A Song of Ice and Fire. At intervals along the wall there are guard towers, which are strategically placed so that they could send fire signals to warn of an attack (as seen in the opening scene of Disney’s Mulan). Some settled in China, while some stole what they could, returning to the other side of the wall before they caught the attention of Chinese authorities. During China’s imperial history, steppe peoples often breached the walls. The wall has multiple parts, with space often left unguarded throughout history (especially in mountainous areas). But to say “Great Wall” (2) as if it is all one long wall is a misnomer. When Americans and Westerners think of the Great Wall, they think of a single stone wall that is kept up and impressive. The Great Wall is one of the most well-known historical tourist sites in the world, and is famous for being the only human made structure that can be seen from space (turns out that this is not true, but the myth persists). This topic was chosen over three others in a Twitter poll I created (1). This essay is the first in a multi-part series on Yi Ti and the lands of the Jade Sea.