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Eight-Nation Alliance
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The Eight-Nation Alliance was an alliance made up of Austria-Hungary, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Russia, the United Kingdom, and the United States whose armies invaded China while putting down the Boxer Uprising in China in August 1900. The troops were sent after the Boxers attacked and murdered Chinese Christians and foreign missionaries across north China, then converged on Beijing and besieged foreign diplomats and civilians who had taken refuge in the Legation Quarter.
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The Eight-Nation Alliance was an alliance made up of Austria-Hungary, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Russia, the United Kingdom, and the United States whose armies invaded China while putting down the Boxer Uprising in China in August 1900. The troops were sent after the Boxers attacked and murdered Chinese Christians and foreign missionaries across north China, then converged on Beijing and besieged foreign diplomats and civilians who had taken refuge in the Legation Quarter. After their initial landing failed, the Allied armies eventually lifted the siege, then looted and pillaged the capital.
At the end of the campaign, the imperial government was forced to sign the unequal Boxer Protocol of 1901.
Leading factors
At the end of the 19th century, resentment towards foreigners was on the rise due to continued foreign involvement within China, extraterritorial legal and trading privileges and influence over China, with Empress Dowager Cixi's passive approval. The Chinese coastline was cut up into spheres of influence for each of the eight nations. Invasion by the Eight-Nation alliance was carried out throughout the entire Eastern region of China.
Pillage and destruction of ancient, cultural artifacts and buildings created resentment. These resentments grew to the extent that destruction and violence against foreign companies, personnel, and even items such as violins, automobiles, phone lines etc. was carried out. Diplomats were assassinated, businesses vandalized and items were set on fire in the streets. Although the Qing government formally condemned these violent actions, they failed to prosecute the people that carried out the acts.
With their commercial interests in China under threat and the necessity to relieve the joint legations under siege in Beijing by the Boxers, the eight-nation alliance sent troops to suppress the uprising.
Events
Troops of the eight countries invaded and occupied Beijing on August 14, 1900. Empress Dowager Cixi, the Emperor, and higher officials fled the Imperial Palace for Xi'an, and sent Li Hongzhang for peace talks.
Missionaries followed the Eight-Nation alliance closely. Roman Catholic Vicar Apostolic of North Chihli Pierre-Marie-Alphonse Favier (1837-1905) was accused of taking an estimated 1,000,000 Liang silver (around 50 million grams) from one civilian house in Wangfujing.
Alfred von Waldersee stated in November 1900, "the cost of the demolish and robbery to China will never be calculated. But the number must be tremendous.""the numbers of rapes, barbarity, slaughter and incendiarism which happened this time was countless as well. This is another reason of suffering for civilians."
Participants of the Eight-Nation Alliance were responsible for the ransacking and pillaging of many historical artifacts of Chinese origin, and instigated the burning of many prominent Chinese buildings in an effort to rout the Boxer rebels. "Following the taking of Peking, troops from the international force, except British and American, looted the capital city and even ransacked the Forbidden City, with many Chinese treasures finding their way back to Europe."
Austro-Hungarian contribution
As a member of the Allied nations, the Austro-Hungarian Navy sent two training ships and the cruisers SMS Kaiserin und Königin Maria Theresia, SMS Kaiserin Elisabeth, SMS Aspern, and SMS Zenta and a company of marines to the North China coast in April 1900, based at the Russia concession of Port Arthur.
In June they helped hold the Tianjin railway against Boxer forces, and also fired upon several armed junks on the Hai River near Tong-Tcheou. They also took part in the seizure of the Taku Forts commanding the approaches to Tianjin, and the boarding and capture of four Chinese destroyers by Capt. Roger Keyes of HMS Fame. In all K.u.K forces suffered only several casualties during the rebellion.
After the uprising a cruiser was maintained permanently on the China station and a detachment of marines was deployed at the embassy in Peking.
Lieutenant Georg Ritter von Trapp, made famous in the musical The Sound of Music, was decorated for bravery aboard the SMS Kaiserin und Königin Maria Theresa during the Rebellion.
Chinese view
This event has been largely associated with shame and as foreign aggression. The reaction of the Boxers against foreign imperialism in China is regarded by later historians as patriotic. The Eight-Nation Alliance is seen by revisionist historians as a planned invasion into China by western imperialists, coveting the wealth of China, with the Chinese military of the time being weak .
In January 2006, Freezing Point, a weekly supplement to the China Youth Daily newspaper, was closed partly due to its running of an essay by Yuan Weishi, a history professor at Zhongshan University, who criticized the way in which the Boxer Rebellion and 19th century history about foreign interaction with China is now portrayed in Chinese textbooks and taught at school.
See also
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