June 10, 1902

The foreigners believe them to be devil and barbarians, but are the "Boxers" really that bad? A younger member of the Harmonious Fists recites their slogan for me, "Support the Ching, destroy the foreigner." (1). In most ways this is what most of China should be doing, we should be resisting the foreign influence and supporting our monarch in this time of distress. What we have here is not a case of barbarism; it is a care of strong nationalism. They are called "Boxers" by the westerners because of their exercise rituals. They fused religion, theater, magic, and martial arts in their rituals (2). They often practiced shadow boxing or boxing with an imaginary partner, which they believed would protect them from bullets.

The original trace of the "Boxers" begins in the north province of Shantung, and their goal was to drive all foreigners from China. It started as a popular peasant protest in 1898 (3). In the beginning they only roamed the countryside, but as their anger grew against the foreigners they began to commit more radical acts against them. They were distressed with the bad economy and the foreign takeovers. Another aspect of the foreigners was the Christina missionaries that were beginning to emerge within China, and the new Chinese Christians. They thought that the Christians were sinners, "Their sins are numberless as the hairs of the head The will of heaven is that That foreign devils be decapitated", says the "Boxers" placard (4). They became upset with the new modernization taking place within their homeland and the tradition being destroyed by the new influences. When takes were raised in the 1900's they went to Beijing and began killing Europeans and the Chinese who supported them and burned churches. Altogether they killed "200 missionaries and their families plus 20,000 or more "secondary" devils." (5). This is known as the Boxer Rebellion and was a great internal struggle within China.

After the "Boxers" killed many people, the foreigners took initiative before the Chinese government and sent troops to crush this rebellion. The rebellion ended in last September in 1901 with a treaty including Russians, Japanese, Americans, British, and French (6). China was once again stuck paying for a spark of nationalism within its country. In many ways they tried to support the dynast more than go against. They even had the approval of the Emperor CiXi as it states in the "Boxer" Proclamation, "We fight by order of the Emperor and for the salvation of the Dynasty" (7). Although they were not successful and made the people pay even more taxes they showed that China would fight against a foreign takeover as much as possible. A main cause of the uprising from the "Boxers" was xenophobia and fear of the foreigners taking over. While this uprising was going on it was largely supported by the dynasty. They saw the "Boxers" as an "opportunity to divert popular discontent upon a scapegoat and a last mad hope of weeping out the foreigner altogether" (8).

Although their acts were wrong and hurt many innocent people the "Boxers" did a very noble and supportive deed of their country. They stood up for what they believed in and tried to change the way their country was headed. Although they were not successful and cause the taxes more they proved a point about saving their culture and protecting themselves from outside sources. I think they did noble acts and should be commended for their strong acts of bravery. Sarah Pike Conger said it best when she said, "I do not wonder that the Chinese hate the foreigner. The foreigner is frequently severe and exacting in this Empire which is not his own. He often treats the Chinese as though they were dogs and had no rights whatever- no wonder that they growl and sometimes bite." (9).

1. Diana Preston, The Boxer Rebellion (Walker and Company: New York, 2000) 22.

2. Library of Nations China (Time-Life Books: Virginia, 1986) 101.

3. Eileen H. Tamura, Linda K. Mernto, Noren W. Lush, and Francis K. C. Tsui, China Understanding It's History (Hawaii Press: Hawaii, 1998) 140-143.

4. Preston, 33.

5. Tamura, 140-143.

6. Barbara W. Tuchman, Still Well and The American Experience in China (The Macmillan Company: New York, 1945) 32-33.

7. Preston, 51.

8. Tamura, 140-143.

9. Preston, 3.

10. Spielvogel, Jackson J., World History The Human Odyssey (West Education Publishing: Cincinnati, 1998) 775-776.

1. Plante, Trevor K. "U.S. Marines in the Boxer Rebellion." [http://www.nara.gov/publications/prologue/boxer.html]. December 10, 200.

2. Plante, Trevor K. "U.S. Marines in the Boxer Rebellion." [http://www.nara.gov/publications/prologue/boxer.html]. December 10, 200.

3. Buschini, J. "The Boxer Rebellion." [http://www.smplanet.com/imperialism/fists.html]. 2000.