Contents:
I.Backround
II.Boxer Forces
III.Allied Forces
IV.Boxer Losses
V.Allied Losses
VI.Conclusion
VII.Pictures

I.Backround

In 1900 an alliance between eight major powers, who would be fighting each other in a World War fourteen years down the road, was formed. The nations of Austria-Hungary, France, Germany, Great Britain, Italy, Japan, Russia, and the United States, fought to defeat a common enemy, the Boxers. The Boxers were a secreat Chinese society bent on driving the "foreign devils" out of China once and for all. No one seems to to know the exact origin of the Boxers (I Ho Ch'uan, which means Righteous Harmonious Fists), they may have been around in the 1700s, because Jesuit missionaries were expelled in 1747 due to Boxer influence. Why in 1900, the Boxers were able to raise so much power has never been answered.

The rise in Boxer support could be attributed to the amount of imperial support for the movement. Most notably, Prince Tuan and to a certain extent, the Dowager Empress, Tzu Hsi. This "unofficial" imperial support of the Boxer society was not the only contribution. China had recently suffered natural disasters, military, political, and economic sactions placed on them by the Western powers. China was defeated in 1894-1895 by Japan, with Japan emerging as the most powerful of the Asian powers. In 1896, Germany seized the ports of Kiaochow and Tsingtao after two German priests were killed. Russia demanded and recieved a lease on the ports of Port Arthur and Darien, Britain obtained Wei-Hai-Wei, and France seized Kwangchowwan. Additionally, the completion of the Tientsin-Peking railroad put thousands of Chinese workers out of work.

Chinese people began to turn to the secreat societies, which had always preached hatred of the western foreigners. Between 1898 and 1899 the Boxers began to emerge from the undreground and began preaching in the open. The Chinese government started off being Anti-Boxer, but eventually stopped. Military commanders and governors, who were Anti-Boxer were removed from command and replaced with Pro-Boxers. Between 1898-1899 the Boxers focused on attacking Chinese Christians, but on December 30, 1899 they killed a British missionary. The British and German governments immediatly issued strong protests, resulting in two Boxers being executed and a third imprisoned. The situation continued to worsen in early 1900, the Dowager Empress released an imperial edict. In this she stated that secreat societies were part of Chinese culture and were not criminal.

In the spring of 1900 the Boxers were out of control, they killed seventy Chinese christians and riots broke out all around Peking. On May 29, 1900 two British missionaries were attacked, with one being killed. The foregin ministers in Peking issued strong protests. The diplomats told the Chinese that they had twenty-four hours to put down the Boxers or they would call troops up from the coast. Before the Chinese government could reply, the diplomats learned that the telegraph line between Peking and Pao Ting Fu had been cut. The foreign diplomats ordered troops up from the coast, but were halted by the Chinese. On May 31 the troops were allowed to advance into Peking. Three hundred and forty troops arrived in Peking that night, followed by another 90 four days later. These were the last troops to enter Peking until August 14, 1900.

II.Boxer Forces