Defensive wall

Defensive walls were common from the ancient period into the medieval period. Generally, these are referred to as city walls, although there were also walls, such as the Great Wall of China and the Atlantic Wall, which extended far beyond the borders of a city and were used to enclose vast regions.

City walls were still occasionally used as late as the 19th Century although by this time they were generally of wood (rather than stone) construction and used only around small frontier settlements. City walls also had towers and were frequently surrounded by trenches.

The practice of building these massive walls had been developed sometime before the rise of the Sumerian Empire and was connected with the rise of city-states.

Oftentimes the walls proved impenetrable to attacking armies which then laid siege to the city.

Within walled cities, the poor and "noxious trades" were generally located near or outside the walls.

Table of contents

1 China 2 Croatia 3 England 4 France 5 Germany 6 Israel 7 Middle East 8 Morocco 9 Spain 10 Turkey 11 United States

China

• Great Wall of China

Chinese cities occasionally have remnants of city walls that were built in the Ming Dynasty and designed to withstand artillery bombardment. Chinese cities generally outgrew their walls, which fell into disrepair in the Qing dynasty. The walls of Xian are still well-preserved.

The walls of Beijing were demolished during the 1960s to open large streets around the city. A metro line also follows the location of the former city walls.

Walled villages can still be found in Mainland China and Hong Kong.

Croatia

• Dubrovnik City Walls - highly preserved city fortificatiom including towers, gate, rampart walk and two citadels guarding the docks.

England

The remnants of the city walls of York are both a shortcut above the streets and, as in many places, a tourist attraction.

• Chester, England

France

• Aigues-Mortes
• Carcassonne
• Maginot Line

Germany

• Brandenburg
• Neubrandenburg
• Rostock

The German Democratic Republic claimed that the Berlin Wall was not defensive; but rather was intended to prevent unauthorized emigration.

Israel

• The walls of Akko (Acre) - 18th century modern Ottoman fortification able to withstand cannons attack. The wall has been restored and now includes rampart for tourists.
• Israel is currently building a defensive wall to separate it from parts of Palestine. This is the topic of considerable debate.

Middle East

• Jerusalem's Old City Walls
• Jericho's Ancient City Walls - probably the most ancient stone wall ever discovered.

Morocco

In the 1980s Morocco built a system of sand wall defenses to keep back the Polisario.

Spain

Portions of a Roman wall are still standing in Barcelona, and many Spanish cities, such as Avila and Toledo, have medieval walls.

Turkey

• Istanbul

United States

Wall Street, in New York City, is named after New York's old city wall, long since dismantled.

See also:

• City gate
• Fortification
• Citadel
• Rampart
• List of walls
• Medieval fortification