The Western Wall is located in Jerusalem, beside the Temple Mount’s western retaining wall.
The wall is a surviving section of the retaining structures associated with the expanded Second Temple complex. Herod the Great began a major enlargement of the Temple Mount in the late first century BCE. Roman forces destroyed the Second Temple in 70 CE, but portions of the surrounding retaining walls remained.
The Western Wall became a major Jewish prayer and pilgrimage site. Worshippers traditionally place written prayers between its stones, although the site’s significance does not depend on those notes. The large open plaza in front of the wall was created after 1967 and is used for prayer, ceremonies, and public gatherings.
The wall is sometimes called the Wailing Wall, but “Western Wall” is the standard English name preferred in many Jewish contexts. It is not itself the surviving wall of the Temple building; it is part of the Temple Mount’s supporting structure.