The Boxer Rebellion

The last historical movement that shaped the mood of the Chinese people at the time of my parents’ entry to China was the grass roots rebellion against foreigners and the privileged status they enjoyed in China at the time. It was also a rebellion against Quing government’s programs to abide by treaties with Western nations giving special protections and privileges to foreign interests in China.

The incident that sparked the boxer Rebellion was the decision of a local Chinese court to rule in favor of the expropriation of a Buddhist temple to be converted to a Roman Catholic church. The anti-foreign, anti government uprising soon spread throughout much of China. In essence, it reflected resentment at the humiliation imposed on the Chinese people by the treaties agreed to by the government giving privileged and prerogatives to foreigners. Before the government regained control 270 foreign missionaries in parts of china and as many as 18,000 Chinese who had become professing Christians were killed.

The peace agreement between the Quing government and foreign powers reinforced the resentment and humiliation of the Chinese people further by imposing an indemnity of 450 million “taels” of silver payable over several years to some 12 foreign governments whose interests in China were affected. This represented an amount some twice the total revenues of the federal government of China at the time! To its credit, The United States returned its full share of the indemnity to China and earned substantial goodwill as a result.