Peasant revolt in China against foreign influences, 1900.
The Chinese secret society I-ho ch'üan ("Righteous and Harmonious Fists", known to foreigners as the Boxers) came to strength in northern China during the late 19th century. It practiced rituals, including boxing techniques, which it believed gave its members supernatural powers and shielded them from the effect of bullets. Like other secret societies the I-ho chüan had the aim to topple the Ch'ing Dynasty and drive all foreigners out of China.
In 1898 a new Chinese government was controlled by conservatives who detested the presence of privileged foreigners and their influence. The government persuaded the I-ho chüan to join forces against the foreigners and drop the opposition to the Ch'ing Dynasty. In the northern province of Shensi Boxer bands were enrolled as semi-official militia under the title of I-ho t'uan ("Righteous and Harmonious Militia").
In 1899 the new militia began attacking Christian missionaries and their followers, who supported foreign interests and openly provoked the secret societies. By May 1900 the area around Beijing (Peking) was more or less under Boxer control, and the Imperial government openly supported the development. An international force of 2,100 soldiers, sent to put an end to the uprising, was turned back by Imperial troops. Boxer bands burned churches and foreign residences and killed suspected Christians in the streets.
When foreign troops seized a coastal fort in preparation for another attack, the Empress ordered all foreigners to be killed. The German minister was murdered and other foreigners kept under siege in their legations and in the Catholic cathedral. The siege, which began on 20 June, ended on 14 August with the arrival of an international military force. The foreign troops looted Beijing; the Empress and the court fled to Sian. After lengthy negotiations a protocol signed in September 1901 formally ended the hostilities and stipulated punitive reparations.
Not all provincial governors supported the Boxer Rebellion. Chang Chih-tung and the south of China in particular ignored the Imperial decree to kill all foreigners, recognizing that the presence of foreigners could be of assistance in the modernization of the country.