Children's revolt in China. History of China. XIX century. Yihetuan Boxer Rebellion

China until the 19th century. was a closed country, where it was difficult for not only immigrants from Asia, but also Europeans to enter. But already at the beginning of the 19th century. Foreign states began to penetrate into the Celestial Empire and pursued an active colonial policy in this part of the world. As a result, the country's domestic markets, which came under the influence of the British government, were taken under control. At that time, China was ruled by the Qing dynasty, which could not do anything against the equipment and weapons of Britain, which managed to conquer the territory of the entire state. Battles were lost on the battlefields - military, political and diplomatic.

The situation in the country was developing dangerously - popular uprisings constantly broke out, the economic crisis worsened, and the struggle against the invaders intensified. Thus, socio-political movements gradually spread throughout China, the goal of which was to eliminate foreigners from the Celestial Empire - the British, Americans, and Japanese.

The most active and well-organized societies that opposed the colonialists were:

Dadaohui;
Yihetuan;
Yihequan;
Yiminhui.

All organizations were secret and fought for justice and the liberation of the country. Most members of the societies were involved in a sport that was very similar to modern boxing. Therefore, foreigners called the Chinese boxers or quan, i.e. those who did physical exercise.

Ideology

The "Boxers" or rebels believed in magic spells, therefore, the ideological basis of their struggle was religious, mysterious, mystical. By pronouncing magic spells, the rebels believed that they were gaining supernatural abilities. In particular, they believed that their faith protected them from firearms, from injuries from sabers, daggers, knives and other types of bladed weapons. Therefore, among the Chinese population, members of secret societies had a reputation as invulnerable and invincible.

Causes and prerequisites of the uprising

China, before the arrival of Europeans, developed according to its own traditions, which was reflected in all spheres of traditional Chinese society. But then significant changes began to occur, which affected, first of all, the transformation of the life of the entire country. Therefore, a prerequisite for the beginning of the Boxer Rebellion(English: Boxer Rebellion, Chinese: 义和团运动) became economic factor, since the arrival of foreign companies caused significant changes in the life of the country's population. First, a network of railways was built. Secondly, laid telegraph lines. Thirdly, mineral deposits began to be developed.

The results of such activities of American, German, Japanese, Austro-Hungarian, British, and French companies were the following radical changes in the economic sphere:

Traditional crafts began to become a thing of the past and a large number of people were left without work;
Boatmen and porters, who were engaged in delivering goods over long distances, were not their lot;
The runners who delivered news and goods to different parts of the vast Chinese empire were also left without money;
Artisanal mining began to decline as large-scale development of industrial basins began.

These factors were also intensified by other circumstances:

The famine that swept China, which was one of the most significant at the end of the 19th century;
Crop failures;
Droughts and floods;
Overpopulation;
Speeches against the activities of missionaries;
Clashes with government troops and armies of other states;
The arbitrariness of German military personnel who were engaged in mass robberies, looting, and violence;
The inactivity of local officials, many of whom profited from peasants and workers.

All this contributed to the fact that public discontent became massive and involved a large number of people who destroyed railways, killed priests, merchants, blew up mines, etc. The impetus for the uprising was the reforms of Emperor Guangxu, which began in 1898. The ruler’s initiatives already caused discontent in government circles, so the emperor was quickly removed from power, and his place was taken by his wife, Empress Ci Xi. And if she strongly supported the beginning uprising, then her husband was categorically against radical methods struggle. He hoped that in carrying out his reforms it was the peasants who would be his support and allies. Considering that the number of rebels in winter period 1899-1900 reached one hundred thousand, troops began to flow into China. The armies conducted maneuvers, exercises, and built fortifications around the embassies.

In response, the “boxers” launched an active propaganda campaign, trained everyone, preparing to seize important objects, including Beijing.

Goals of the Boxer Rebellion

Against the destruction of traditional patriarchal society;
For the return and preservation of Chinese national life;
Against the rule of the Manchu Dynasty, which conquered China.

These goals were supported by Empress Ci Xi, who issued a special decree for this purpose, assigning rewards for the murders of foreigners.

Participants of the uprising

Social base Yihetuan Uprising was very diverse. In particular, impoverished peasants, artisans who went bankrupt, workers, and soldiers who returned from the fronts fought against the foreign colonialists.

The behavior of the rebels was not exemplary, since they attacked villages, robbed, and killed local residents.

The Ihetuans believed that they were invulnerable and would not be harmed by bullets or shells, so this was even stated in the organization’s charter. There was also a code of 10 rules that all participants in the uprising must adhere to. The charter was drawn up with the assistance of the imperial government, which insisted on including the following items in the charter:

Submit to command in everything;
Provide assistance to other participants in the uprising;
Uphold the principles of Buddhism;
Do not commit crimes, do not rob;
Participate in battles;
Give the property to local authorities;
Kill Christians;
Do not attack other rebels.

Ensure that these rules are followed special people who were subordinate to the command. For disobedience - arrest, punishment or death.

Beginning of the Boxer Rebellion

The protests began in 1898, when rebels attacked engineers and workers working on the construction of the Chinese Eastern Railway. At the same time, the Boxers began to persecute the missionaries. This was followed by the killing of foreigners and Chinese who accepted and practiced Christianity. Pogroms swept the entire country - except railways, sabotage and damage campaigns were carried out in various workshops, bridges, government institutions, the apartments and houses of Europeans and Americans were infiltrated.

To support the rebels, Empress Ci Xi appointed her son Duan-wan as head of the cabinet. Similar actions by the Chinese ruling dynasty caused serious concern on the part of the Russian Empire and the United States. Attempts were made to capture the port of Dagu, but the troops were defeated. After this, the Chinese imperial house took a course of full and direct support for the rebels, simultaneously starting a war against foreign invaders.

Battle for the Embassy Quarter

Government support intensified the struggle for the goals proclaimed by the rebels. Moreover, they received support from the government in the form of food resources, weapons and permission to have complete freedom of action. The dynasty supported its actions with a decree, which noted that the “Boxers” were fulfilling their patriotic duty. On June 20, 1900, two events occurred that are known in history as the siege of the Embassy Quarter in Beijing. At first it was blocked, and then the rebels killed the German ambassador to China.

Almost five hundred foreign citizens, four hundred military personnel from different countries world, the Chinese who professed Christianity. The Yihetuan people received military support from government forces. Together they managed to hold the siege of the quarter until mid-August 1900, which lasted 56 days. Due to the fact that the embassy buildings were located in different places in the quarter, the besieged created two fortified areas:

The first included the embassies of the United States, the Russian Empire and Great Britain;
In the second - Spain, Japan, Germany and France.

All women and children were placed in the British embassy, where the shelling did not reach.

The embassy area was constantly bombarded with cannons, placing them on a convenient section of the city wall. The Boxers were unable to gain a foothold in other positions, since the besiegers were well armed and could fire back. The main attack on the block came from Mongolskaya Square, which happened every night. But the attempts were rejected.

The offensive of international troops against the rebel Chinese began on July 15, when Russian troops crossed the Amur and invaded Manchuria, where fighting began with the Chinese government army and the Boxers. He was supported by an expeditionary force staffed with troops from different countries. In particular, from the Russian Empire, France, USA, Great Britain, Austria, Italy, Japan. The first attempt to capture the port of Tianjin was a failure, but the second was successful - on August 14, 1900.

From August 4 to 14, the international joint forces broke through to Beijing, and after blowing up the gates, they entered the city. It lasted several hours street fighting which ended in the complete defeat of the rebels. On the foreign side, the deaths were mainly military personnel and civilians.

During the siege, China officially declared war on Western countries, which happened on June 21, i.e. the day after the siege of the quarter began.

The capture of Beijing became possible after the British troops were defeated by the rebels, after which the Boxers went through Manchuria to the capital of the state. Along the way, there were mass pogroms and killings of Christians, including the Chinese. According to testimony, the Yihetuan people killed old people, women, children, mutilated the corpses, burned them, cut them open, and gouged out their eyes.

After the siege was lifted, the Empress secretly fled from the Imperial Palace to western regions countries, and the allied troops staged mass robberies and looting. Jewelry, art objects, and gold began to be exported from China.

Almost immediately, most of the Chinese capital was occupied by Allied troops, who began to establish their own order. They managed to drive the rebels out of the palace, which made it possible to clear all of Beijing from the “Boxers.” Participants in the uprising began to advance in Manchuria, reaching the city of Blagoveshchensk. In this part of the country fighting resumed between the Yihetuans and Russian troops.

In order to suppress the uprising in rebellious China, foreign countries sent new troops here. Germany alone formed a contingent consisting of soldiers and officers, the total number of which reached 20 thousand. They were commanded by Field Marshal von Waldersee.

Blagoveshchensk and battles in the Amur region

In this region, strategically important for China and Russia, the participants in the uprising began their actions even before the capture of Beijing. Locality was an easy target, since after the outbreak of the rebellion in the Middle Kingdom, all troops of the Russian Empire were withdrawn to guard important facilities of the Chinese Eastern Railway. Its construction was initiated Russian government, and therefore the laying of rails and sleepers was carried out under the control of military personnel.

The Ihetuan people believed that Blagoveshchensk could be captured, so they launched attacks on it from the village of Sakhalyan (Sakhalin). From here shelling was carried out on ships that sailed along the Amur River. When the shelling was carried out for the first time, the population considered this behavior of the Chinese to be a provocative action. But repeated actions caused panic in the city, which was fueled by proclamations of the “Boxers”. Agents of the rebels reported that a massive capture of Blagoveshchensk was being prepared. Support was provided by local Chinese; there were about five thousand of them in the city. Their number increased due to the Chinese living in the surrounding towns and small villages.

The rebels helped local residents organize into groups that robbed armed stores. Everyone was accepted into the squads - peasants, city dwellers, merchants, industrialists, military men, and the rebels helped them learn to wield weapons, dividing them into coastal protection detachments. But the number of self-defense units was not large - only about a thousand people. Active fighting broke out here only after the liberation of Beijing.

Defeat of the uprising

Having liberated Beijing, the troops of the Russian Empire began to advance on the Amur. They quickly managed to drive out the rebels, all Chinese, occupying all of Manchuria. The empress also dealt a blow to the rebels, who saw that the “boxers” were losing and could not cope with the allied forces. Therefore, she went over to the side of the foreign coalition, and under their pressure, she issued a decree on the need to fight the rebels throughout China. The offensive began throughout the country - in Tanjin, Shanhaiguan, Mukden.

An agreement was signed that the restoration of civilian Russian rule could begin here;
Withdrawal of Chinese government troops;
Restoration work iron sheet on the China Eastern Railway.

At this time, the coalition member countries began to develop plans for the future of China. In particular, the following agreements were reached:

Germany and Great Britain pledged to resist the expansion of foreigners into the Middle Kingdom;
Japan, like other European countries, blackmailed Qi Xi, putting forward new ultimatums every day.

During the suppression of the uprising, false “boxers” appeared in China, among whom the empress included those who organized and provoked battles between the Chinese army and the Yihetuans, as well as who robbed, killed, and set fire to the houses of the Chinese population and officials. They were “companyed” by coalition troops, who plundered all the villages they entered, killing civilians as well.

At the beginning of 1901, groups of rioters who survived secretly entered Manchuria, where they created the Army of Honesty and Justice. There were more than 200 thousand people in it, led by Wang Heda and Dong Yi. The activity of this army continued until the very end of 1902, although the bulk of the Yihetuan were exterminated back in 1901. This was especially true of Beijing and the outskirts of the capital, after which partisan warfare began a war that engulfed the provinces of Heilongjiang and Liaoning. The official end date of the uprising is December 1901, and the resistance lasted for almost another year. Allied troops began to withdraw from China only in the fall of 1901.

Results and significance

Even before the final defeat of the bulk of the rebels, several members of the coalition - Austria-Hungary, Great Britain, Japan, the Russian and German Empires, the USA, Japan, France, Italy - drew up and submitted a common note to the imperial government of China. On the basis of this agreement, the evacuation of the Allied troops was then carried out, and the Final Protocol, which in historiography is also called the “Boxer Protocol,” was signed. The document was signed by Empress Ci Xi, the countries mentioned above, as well as Spain, the Netherlands and Belgium. The conditions were unequal, so China found itself in a very worse position than it was at the end of the 19th century. Among the main conditions, it is worth noting the following:

Find the culprit who killed the German ambassador at the very beginning of the uprising. A special envoy had to apologize to the German Emperor. A monument to the fallen Ambassador von Ketteler was to be erected in China;
Japan also made similar demands, since a member of their diplomatic mission also died in the Embassy Quarter in Beijing;
The government was to find and then kill all the Boxer leaders;
It was necessary to restore, reconstruct and update plundered Christian cemeteries throughout the entire Qinn Empire, replace monuments and erect new ones;
It was prohibited to import ammunition and weapons into the country. This ban was supposed to last for 2 years;
In the Embassy Quarter there were to be detachments to guard all embassies, and the security of government institutions was also strengthened;
The troops of the countries that signed the Final Treaty were to be stationed in China;
In the city of Dagu, all forts and defensive structures were to be destroyed;
The Chinese government did not have the right to collect taxes;
All religious organizations and those that acted against citizens of other states were banned;
Allied countries received the right to build twelve strong points from the Chinese capital to the sea;
China had to pay a huge amount of indemnity, the amount of which was 450 million liang of silver. This figure was established based on the fact that one Liang is one Chinese. The weight of the liang was 37.3 grams. The indemnity shares were distributed as follows: the United States and Japan received 7% each, a little more than 11% went to Great Britain, almost 16% to France, 20% to the German Empire, and 30% to the Russian Empire, minor shares were received by Italy, Spain, Belgium, and the Netherlands. and others. In order for China to fulfill its obligations, the payment period was extended until 1939, with the condition that the amount increase each year by 4%. Therefore, just over 982 million liang were paid out before World War II. The United States was able to get more, attributing this to its losses in the fight against the rebels. The remaining amount was put into a specially created fund to assist Chinese students and develop various educational programs, and the USSR renounced the remaining amount in 1919. Indemnity payments to Germany and the Austro-Hungarian Empire ceased in 1917, when China declared war on these countries. In the mid-1920s. Japan and Great Britain gave up their shares. Payments continued only for Italy and France.

Russian empire Port Arthur, Liaondong Peninsula, also received the right to control the Chinese Eastern Railway, which passed through Manchuria. At the same time, Russia withdrew its army from this region.

The uprising brought nothing to the ordinary Chinese, who again fell into the “millstone” of the government. It began to carry out reforms that affected the military, educational and administrative spheres. The transformations lasted for seven years - 1901-1908, which were interrupted by the Russian-Japanese War, the Japanese invasion of Manchuria, Korea, the northern provinces of China, conflicts in Mongolia and on the Sino-Soviet border.

The so-called “Boxer Rebellion” of 1900–1901 cost the lives of more than 130,000 Chinese civilians (including 30,000 Christians) and several thousand foreigners. The winners, in turn, executed both the true “boxers” and those allegedly involved. Their number is not known exactly.

For some reason I always thought that the Chinese Boxer Rebellion was an uprising of the Chinese people under the leadership of martial artists - who, accordingly, with bare hands fought against imperialism - and since they did not have firearms - many martial artists died and took with them to the grave many, many secrets of the martial arts of China. But in reality this is, of course, an ordinary stamp.

(Children and very impressionable people are better off not watching, of course)

But the reality turned out to be somewhat different.

I accidentally came across photographs about the executions of Chinese boxers and was simply amazed by this strange, ordinary and simply transcendental, but at the same time some kind of everyday cruelty captured in these photographs - the executions of boxers. This is something beyond ordinary cruelty. There is some kind of routine and emptiness in the views - and all this against the backdrop of conspicuous poverty and dirt and dust. This is the real embodiment of the darkness of consciousness - these photographs of the executions of Chinese boxers. (And it turns out that the “Chinese boxers” themselves apparently did no less terrible things - they just didn’t have cameras)

The threat of the territorial division of China gave rise to a movement for reform and renewal of the country, which declared itself after the unsuccessful war with France. The reformers demanded “to change the existing order, to penetrate into the soul of the people.” The reform movement especially intensified after the war with Japan, but the reforms that began in 1898 with the goal of “eradicating the old and spreading the new” were immediately stopped by supporters of preserving the old order.

In 1899, a movement began in China ihetuan directed against foreign domination. Yihetuans were the members of the rebel groups “Fist for Justice and Peace” - hence the name given to this movement by foreigners - "Boxer Rebellion". The rebels' oath required “not to violate the orders of parents, not to violate existing laws, to expel foreigners, to kill bribe-taking officials.” The Yihetuan saw their goal as “to protect China, drive out overseas robbers, destroy local Christians and thus save their compatriots from suffering.”

The Yihetuan uprising began in the German “zone of influence”, but soon spread beyond its borders. The rebels occupied Beijing and achieved government support for their actions. Material from the site

On June 21, 1900, China declared war on foreign powers, who sent an international punitive expedition in response. Foreign troops captured Beijing, subjecting the city to looting and destruction. A German soldier wrote home: “What is happening here, Dear Mom“It’s impossible to describe - the murders and massacres taking place are so insane.”

Under the terms of the pacification protocol, signed in September 1901, China undertook to pay a huge indemnity, punish those responsible for the murders of foreigners, allow armed guards for embassies, and provide even broader economic rights to foreigners.

Pictures (photos, drawings)

On this page there is material on the following topics:

History textbooks tend to present events in a fragmented format. Consecutive paragraphs divide the historical panorama into disparate information, separately describing foreign policy, the internal socio-economic situation, and the greatest achievements in the cultural sphere are indicated by a dry enumeration. As a result, several facts from one’s own history are remembered, often without dates or names, but with a clear understanding of who is friend and who is enemy.

Collecting individual fragments into the overall picture is not easy. But it is necessary to objectively understand the logic of historical movement and the subtext of daily news. Multiplying scientific knowledge, developing artistic traditions, creating world religions, tens of thousands of people historical years I never learned to live without war. could become a symbol of the human genius of creation in the name of war.

Yihetuan Rebellion

The end of the 19th century finally connected the planet with a single economic node. And the flapping of the wings of the “financial butterfly” on the London Stock Exchange gave rise to peasant unrest in the northern part of Chinese lands. One poor province was able to drag half the world into a military conflict. How is this possible? There are several reasons (external, internal, spontaneous):

1. European colonial expansion. The industrial development of the western part of the world required new markets and sources of profit. These problems were solved at the expense of “civilizational colleagues” who did not keep up with technical progress. The penetration of numerous European representatives into the traditional way of Chinese society, who treated local culture and traditions without respect, aroused well-deserved hostility from the indigenous population. Residents of the northern provinces experienced the changes especially hard, where the accelerated construction of railways and factories left thousands of people unemployed manual labor. Roads were laid through sown fields, residential buildings and village cemeteries. Traditional Chinese industry was being destroyed by a surplus of European, Japanese and American manufactured goods.

2. The defeat of China in the First Opium War of 1842. The signing of a humiliating treaty made the Celestial Empire a Western semi-colony, unable to pursue an independent political line. The disrespectful attitude of foreigners was exacerbated by the indecisive internal politics. The Qin Dynasty, which created and preserved many architectural designs, was unable to protect its people from international expansion.

3. Drought. Several years of poor harvests in a row and the outbreak of a cholera epidemic became the final point. The people associated all disasters with the appearance of “overseas devils.”

Under such conditions, numerous rebel groups began to form: Yihetuan, Yihequan, Yiminhui, Dadaohui, etc. The fight against foreigners quickly reached the northeastern provinces. The members of the detachment considered themselves just wars and sacred fighters. All members of the detachment were united by hatred of foreigners.

Soon "Yihetuan" became a common name for everything liberation movement. Its ranks quickly swelled with tens of thousands of poor peasants, artisans, demobilized soldiers, as well as women and teenagers. The people's militia had its own charter, which laid down the rules correct behavior for a true Yihetuan. Many wrestlers observed specific religious and mystical rituals. The main goals of the participants in the uprising were adjusted throughout the war, but the majority leaned towards three main tasks:

1. Save the country from European invaders.

2. Expel or destroy all non-Christians, including Chinese Christians.

3. The overthrow of the Qing dynasty.

The literal translation of the squad of honesty and justice is Yihetuan - squad and fist. Difficulties in translation transformed the word “fist” into “boxing”, which gave the Yihetuan uprising a second name - “Boxer”.

The failure of Emperor Guangxu's reforms gave rise to discontent among ruling circles, which was supported by Empress Dowager Cixi. Today this name is known thanks to her magnificent residence - built long before the events described, but the flowering of its landscape architecture is due to her.

Major events 1897–1902

November 1897. Local clashes begin between dissatisfied residents and the Chinese army and foreign troops, who ruin the population, sometimes devastating entire provinces.

June 1898. Local officials can no longer cope with the scale of the situation. The entire north of the country is out of control.

November 2, 1899. The leader of the Yihetuan movement called on the entire country to fight the occupiers and the Qing dynasty. This day is considered the beginning of the Yihetuan uprising. The number of freedom fighters reached about 100,000 people.

Winter 1900. The scale of the movement and uncertainty in power force diplomats and numerous missionaries to ask for military reinforcements.

May 1900. The Ihetuan burned several buildings belonging to the Russian Orthodox mission. In response to anti-Christian actions, the Russian Empire is strengthening its military presence in China.

June 1900. The Yihetuan people entered. The reprisal against foreign occupiers was supported by the Chinese army. The Western press has long written about the inhumane and causeless killings of peaceful Christians.

August 1900. Coalition forces took Beijing. The largest palace complex in the world - - became a victim of the Boxer Rebellion. In addition to countless casualties, the world's artistic heritage was damaged.

September 7, 1901. Signing of the “Boxer Protocol” between the Chinese government and 11 countries.

December 1901. Russian army destroyed the remnants of the "honesty and justice" detachment in Manchuria, which is considered the end of popular resistance.

Empress Cixi left the capital on the eve of the assault, fleeing to the city of Xi'an, better known as the burial place of the great Emperor Shi Huang and his unsurpassed. Following the ruler, the army retreated, surrendering Beijing without a fight.

The Yihetuan uprising was suppressed, and the life of the Chinese people deteriorated significantly. The Celestial Empire was obliged to pay indemnity, execute all rebels, and established a number of military restrictions. Even before the conclusion of the peace treaty, discord began in the allied camp, which created the preconditions for Russo-Japanese War 1904

The traditional closeness of eastern society, careful attitude towards its cultural heritage, and incomparable hard work helped preserve the great. A unique country that has existed since the times Ancient World, was able to take a leading position in the century high technology, thanks to his wisdom.

Having carried out a series of military reforms and changes in the field of education, the great eastern empire was able to defeat the enemy and restore its position in the region. Thousand-year history China has known many invaders and wars, but it always recovered because it knew how to follow the flight of a butterfly.

In November 1899, the Yihetuan Uprising broke out in China. This popular uprising was directed against the foreigners who had invaded the Celestial Empire. The murders of European missionaries led to the Western powers declaring war on China.

Reasons and goals

At the end of the 19th century, the Qing Empire was living out its days in China. Despite the catchy name, this state could not resist the influence of Western powers. The British were the first to arrive in Beijing. They settled not only in the capital, but also in strategically important ports. The Europeans were most interested in their own trading influence in the East Asian region, which promised huge profits.

Japan faced a similar problem. In the second half of the 19th century, reforms began in this country designed to rebuild society and the economy in a Western manner. In China, such transformations failed. The policy of isolationism from the Europeans also led to nothing.

Peasant discontent

At first, the Western powers were limited to trade privileges. But in the same second half of the 19th century they began to seize Chinese ports. Through them, a stream of foreign missionaries poured into the country, preaching, among other things, Christianity.

All this did not please the common conservative population. In addition, at the beginning of the 1890s. The peasants suffered from several droughts and other natural disasters, which completely deprived them of their already small farms. The discontent of the poor led to the outbreak of the Yihetuan uprising in China. In historiography it is also known as Boxer.

Spontaneous uprising

The name “ihetuan” was assigned to members of the formed detachments that participated in the fight against foreigners. At first these formations were scattered and spontaneous, but over time they united into a common nationalist patriotic movement. The Yihetuan Rebellion was primarily directed against foreign missionaries and Christian Chinese. Members of the detachments practiced mystical and religious rituals borrowed from traditional Chinese cults. Another mandatory attribute of the rebels was regular fist fighting. It is because of this that they began to be called “boxers.”

Impoverished artisans, bankrupt peasants, soldiers demobilized from the army, and even teenagers and women joined the ranks of the Yihetuan. The latter fact especially surprised Europeans, who were not used to seeing something similar in their homeland. Yihetuan uprising (especially in initial stage) was not subject to anyone's control. In the conditions of the ensuing anarchy, detachments often attacked not only foreigners, but also simple peasant villages. Such raids ended in robberies. This is partly why many people in China did not support the Yihetuan.

Charter of the movement

The Yihetuan had their own set of 10 rules, the implementation of which was mandatory. This charter was permeated with mysticism, which was characteristic feature the whole movement. For example, the “boxers” believed that they were invulnerable to shells and bullets. This idea was even recorded in the charter.

At the same time, the Ihetuan explained the death of their comrades from bullet wounds by saying that only the rebel who had lost faith in his true gods could die. Such betrayal was punished by the spirits turning away from the soldier. Such logic made it possible to maintain high discipline in detachments full of superstitious people. Over time, looting was condemned among the “Boxers” and punished by military leaders. The soldiers had to hand over any stolen property (including from foreigners) to local authorities. The attitude towards Chinese Christians remained principled. The heretic had to renounce his new faith, otherwise he would die.

Consolidation of government and rebels

The first local performances of the Yihetuan took place back in 1897. However, it took another couple of years for the movement to acquire a truly significant scale. In November 1899, the Chinese government tried to calm the country with reforms, but they failed. The initiator and inspirer of the new course, Emperor Guangxu, was removed from power. His aunt Cixi began to rule. She openly supported the rebels.

Before this, the imperial army was sent to the epicenter of the protests in northern China. She suffered several defeats. Under the circumstances, the central government and the radicals concluded a truce and began to wage a joint war against foreigners. Before this, the goals of the Yihetuan uprising were also to overthrow the government, which had taken the path of pro-Western reforms. Now these slogans have been removed. By the end of 1899, the number of rebels reached 100 thousand people.

The fire is breaking out

Most of the foreigners were in Beijing, where, in addition to everything else, there was also a diplomatic quarter. However, there were large European diasporas in other cities: Liaoyang, Girin, Yingkou, Mukden, etc. They became the main centers of tension. Disgruntled Chinese carried out pogroms and murdered missionaries. The Yihetuan (Boxer) uprising forced reinforcements to be sent to the Celestial Empire. Russia, which had a huge border with China, was especially active in this sense.

Reinforcements began to arrive in the Qing Empire from Vladivostok and Port Arthur. At the first stage of the uprising by Russian forces in the region was commanded by Evgeniy Alekseev. Later he was replaced by Nikolai Linevich. Meanwhile, unrest in China grew more and more serious. The mob set fire to European churches, including orthodox churches, and schools. At the end of May, a huge army of “Boxers” moved towards Beijing. On June 11, this army entered the capital and committed a terrible bloodshed, the victims of which were many foreigners. The Yihetuans managed to overtake a detachment of Americans and British, which landed in Tianjin and went to the rescue of their compatriots in Beijing. Gradually, all the powers that had power in China were drawn into the conflict. own spheres influence. These were the USA, Germany, Japan, Austria-Hungary, Russia, Great Britain, Italy, France Spain, the Netherlands and Belgium.

Bloodshed in Beijing

For some time, the Chinese authorities, realizing that they were on the verge of big war, tried to negotiate with the Europeans. The maneuvers of the Qing government between foreign powers and the rebels could not be endless. it was necessary to decide which side she would finally take. On June 21, she officially declared war on the Europeans and Japan. The decisive factor influencing her decision was the pogrom committed by the Yihetuan in the embassy quarter of Beijing the day before. During this act of intimidation, the German ambassador to China was killed.

The Empress entered into an alliance with the rebels primarily because she feared disgruntled peasants more than foreigners. This fear was justified. The reasons for the Yihetuan uprising were hatred of Christians. On the night of June 24, 1900, this fury led to the killing of all Chinese who professed the Western religion in Beijing. The terrible event became known in Europe as a new one. Later, the victims of that massacre were canonized by the Orthodox Church.

Defeat of the rebels

On August 2, the Allied forces launched an attack on Beijing. On the 13th, Russian units appeared on the outskirts of the city. The Empress urgently left the capital and moved to Xi'an. The Yihetuan Rebellion (Boxer Rebellion) in China reached its climax. The defeat of the malcontents in Beijing would mean that the entire campaign against foreigners is doomed.

The assault on the capital began on August 15. The very next day Beijing found itself in the hands of the allied powers. Now Manchuria became the main center of bloodshed. In October this northern region was completely occupied by Russian troops. This operation finally suppressed the Yihetuan uprising. The consequences of foreign intervention were unclear to both the Chinese government and allied countries. Even before the rebels were finally defeated, the European powers began behind-the-scenes dividing up the Qing pie.

Results

On September 7, 1901, defeated China concluded the so-called “Final Protocol” with the Western powers. The treaty included provisions that further worsened the position of the Qing Empire. The Chinese government pledged to punish all the leaders of the rebellion, demolish several of its forts, hand over 12 cities to foreigners, and ban all organizations whose activities were directed against Europeans.

The conditions were enslaving, but the Chinese authorities had no strength to resist these demands. The Yihetuan Rebellion, in short, made the contradictions in the region even stronger and more complex. Ultimately, after 11 years, they led to the fall of imperial power in China.