從古至今，這世上有多少城墻巍然聳立，抵御過外族的入侵？又有多少城墻將一國之邦分作兩邊，這邊望著那邊，吟誦著“本是同根生，相煎何太急”？歷史早已久遠(yuǎn)，有些城墻也已不復(fù)當(dāng)年那般模樣，但那些遺留的斷壁殘?jiān)珔s仍舊讓世人為之驚嘆。

Hadrian’s Wall

Hadrian’s Wall was built， beginning in 122， to keep Roman Britain safe from hostile attacks from the Picts. It was the northernmost boundary of the Roman empire until early in the 5th century.

The wall， stretching from the North Sea to the Irish Sea （from the Tyne to the Solway）， was 80 Roman miles （about 73 modern miles） long， 8～10 feet wide， and 15 feet high. In addition to the wall， the Romans built a system of small forts called milecastles （housing garrisons of up to 60 men） every Roman mile along its entire length， with towers every 1/3 Roman mile. 16 larger forts holding from 500～1000 troops were built into the wall， with large gates on the north face. To the south of the wall the Romans dug a wide ditch， with six-foot high earth banks.

哈德良長城

哈德良長城于公元122年開始修建，用來防御皮克特人的惡意進(jìn)攻，保衛(wèi)羅馬帝國在不列顛的領(lǐng)土。5世紀(jì)初之前，它一直都是羅馬帝國最北端的邊界線。

哈德良長城從北海一直延伸到愛爾蘭海（從泰恩河到索爾韋灣），長80羅馬里（約為現(xiàn)在的73英里），寬8～10英尺，高15英尺。除城墻之外，羅馬人在整個(gè)城墻中每隔一羅馬里就建有一個(gè)名叫里堡的小要塞（能容納多達(dá)60人的駐防部隊(duì)），形成了一個(gè)堡壘網(wǎng)，其間每隔三分之一羅馬里還建有一座塔樓。哈德良長城上還建有16座較大的要塞，每座能容納500～1000名士兵，要塞的大門則都建在了城墻的北墻上。在城墻的南面，羅馬人還挖了一條很寬的壕溝，壕溝兩側(cè)的土堤都高達(dá)6英尺。

Israeli West Bank Barrier

The Israeli West Bank barrier is a separation barrier under construction by the State of Israel along and within the West Bank. Upon completion， the barrier’s total length will be approximately 700 kilometers. The barrier is built mainly in the West Bank and partly along the 1949 Armistice line， or “Green Line” between Israel and the Palestinian West Bank. According to the Israeli human rights organization B’Tselem， 8.5% of the West Bank area is on the Israeli side of the barrier， and 3.4% is on the other side.

以色列西岸隔離墻

以色列西岸隔離墻是由以色列沿約旦河西岸向內(nèi)建造的隔離墻。若全部建好，隔離墻全長將有大約七百公里。隔離墻主要建于約旦河西岸之上，有一部分則是沿著以色列和巴勒斯坦西岸的1949停火線（或“綠線”）修建的。按照以色列人權(quán)組織以色列占領(lǐng)區(qū)人權(quán)資料中心的說法，西岸地區(qū)有8.5%的地方在以色列隔離墻這邊，有3.4%的地方在隔離墻的那邊。

The Great Wall of China

Beginning in the 7th century BC， a series of massive defensive fortifications were constructed along China’s northern border. Built to protect China from northern attacks， the walls stretched for thousands of kilometers， many joining together to become the Great Wall of China. Over several centuries， the wall and thousands of supporting structures were built across mountains， deserts， and rivers， eventually stretching more than 20，000 kilometers in length. Sections of the wall near large cities are well-maintained， but sections in many remote areas are slowly being reclaimed by nature.

中國的長城

公元前7世紀(jì)，一系列大型防御工事開始沿著中國北部邊境修建，其目的是保護(hù)中國不受來自北部外族的侵略。這些城墻綿延數(shù)千公里，許多彼此相連，形成了中國的萬里長城。經(jīng)過幾個(gè)世紀(jì)，長城及其上千座支撐結(jié)構(gòu)沿著山脈、沙漠以及河流而建，最終綿延兩萬多公里。長城靠近大城市的那些部分都被很好地保留了下來，但是位于許多邊遠(yuǎn)地區(qū)的部分卻慢慢被大自然侵蝕掉了。

The Berlin Wall

The Berlin Wall was the physical division between West Berlin and East Germany. However， it was also the symbolic boundary between democracy and communism during the Cold War. The Berlin Wall was erected in the dead of night in 1961 and for 28 years kept East Germans from fleeing to the West. Its destruction （in 1989）， which was nearly as instantaneous as its creation， was celebrated around the world.

柏林墻

柏林墻曾是西柏林和東德之間一道實(shí)體的分隔墻。不過，它也曾是冷戰(zhàn)時(shí)期民主德國和聯(lián)邦德國之間的象征性邊界。柏林墻建于1961年的一個(gè)死寂之夜，在長達(dá)28年的時(shí)間里一直阻擋東德人逃往西德。它的拆毀（在1989年）幾乎和它的建成一樣神速，世界各地都慶祝了這一歷史時(shí)刻。

Walls of Constantinople

The Walls of Constantinople are a series of defensive stone walls that have surrounded and protected the city of Constantinople （today Istanbul in Turkey） since its founding as the capital of the Eastern Roman Empire by Constantine the Great. With numerous additions and modifications during their history， they were the last great fortification system of antiquity， and one of the most complex and elaborate systems ever built. Initially built by Constantine the Great， the walls surrounded the new city on all sides， protecting it against attack from both sea and land. The advent of gunpowder siege cannons rendered the fortifications vulnerable， leading to the fall of Constantinople to the Ottomans on 29 May， 1453 after a prolonged siege.

The walls were largely maintained intact during most of the Ottoman period， until sections began to be dismantled in the 19th century， as the city outgrew its medieval boundaries. Despite the subsequent lack of maintenance， many parts of the walls survived and are still standing today. A large-scale restoration programme has been under way since the 1980s， which allows the visitor to appreciate their original appearance.

君士坦丁堡城墻

君士坦丁堡城墻是一系列防御石墻，自從君士坦丁大帝把君士坦丁堡定為東羅馬帝國的首都，它就一直圍繞并保護(hù)著君士坦丁堡城（即今天土耳其的伊斯坦布爾）。經(jīng)過歷史上無數(shù)次的擴(kuò)建和修整，君士坦丁堡城墻成為古代最后一個(gè)大型防御系統(tǒng)，也是有史以來建造最為復(fù)雜精致的防御系統(tǒng)之一。該城墻最初由君士坦丁大帝下令建造，環(huán)繞著整個(gè)新城（編注：指君士坦丁堡城），抵御來自海上和陸地的進(jìn)攻。但是裝滿火藥的攻城大炮的出現(xiàn)讓這個(gè)防御系統(tǒng)變得不堪一擊，使君士坦丁堡城于1453年5月29日被長時(shí)間圍攻的奧斯曼人攻陷。

君士坦丁堡城墻在奧斯曼時(shí)期的大部分歲月里都保存完好。直到19世紀(jì)，因?yàn)槌鞘械囊?guī)模已經(jīng)超過了該市中世紀(jì)時(shí)期的大小，部分城墻才開始被拆除。盡管后來缺少維護(hù)，君士坦丁堡城墻的許多部分還是留存了下來，屹立至今。20世紀(jì)80年代以來，君士坦丁堡城墻一直在進(jìn)行大規(guī)模的修復(fù)，這使得前來參觀的人們可以欣賞到城墻最初的模樣。

Conwy Town Walls

Conwy’s Town Walls are a medieval defensive structure around the town of Conwy in North Wales. The walls were constructed between 1283 and 1287 after the foundation of Conwy by Edward I， and were designed to form a system of defense alongside Conwy Castle. The walls are 1.3 kilometers long and include 21 towers and three gatehouses. The project was completed using large quantities of laborers brought in from England； the cost of building the castle and walls together came to around 15，000， a huge sum for the period. Today the walls form part of the UNESCO world heritage site. Historians Oliver Creighton and Robert Higham describe the defenses as “one of the most impressive walled circuits” in Europe.

康威城墻

康威城墻是中世紀(jì)的一個(gè)防御建筑，環(huán)繞著位于北威爾士的康威城。這道城墻建于愛德華一世建立康威城之后的1283～1287年間，旨在形成一個(gè)環(huán)繞康威城堡的防御系統(tǒng)。該城墻長1.3公里，包括21個(gè)塔樓和3個(gè)門樓。工程動(dòng)用了大量從英格蘭引入的勞工才得以完成，建造城堡和城墻共花費(fèi)了大約1.5萬英鎊，這在當(dāng)時(shí)可是一筆巨款。如今，這些城墻是聯(lián)合國教科文組織世界遺產(chǎn)之一。歷史學(xué)家奧利弗·克賴頓和羅伯特·海厄姆稱這個(gè)防御系統(tǒng)是歐洲“最令人嘆為觀止的圍墻之一”。