The Eight-Nation Alliance (simplified Chinese: 八国联军; traditional Chinese: 八國聯軍; pinyin: bāguó liánjūn) was an alliance of Austria-Hungary, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Russia, the United Kingdom, and the United States whose military forces intervened in China to suppress the anti-foreign Boxers and relieve the siege of the diplomatic legations in Beijing (Peking).
Contents |
The Boxers, a peasant movement, had attacked and killed foreign missionaries, nationals, and Chinese Christians across northern China. The Qing government and Imperial Army supported the Boxers and under the Manchu general Ronglu, besieged foreign diplomats and civilians taking refuge in the Legation Quarter.[1] After failing in its initial attempt to relieve the Legation Quarter, in August 1900 the Allied force marched to Beijing from Tianjin, defeated the Qing Imperial Army Wuwei Troop in several engagements, and brought an end to the Boxer Rebellion and the siege. The members of the Alliance then occupied Beijing and looted and pillaged the capital.[2][3] The forces consisted of approximately 45,000 international troops. At the end of the campaign, the Qing Imperial government signed the Boxer Protocol of 1901.[4]
The compound in Beijing remained under siege by the Wuwei Rear Troop of the Chinese army and some Yihetuan or Boxers, from 20 June - 14 August. A total of 473 foreign civilians, 409 soldiers from eight countries, and about 3,000 Chinese Christians took refuge in the Legation Quarter.[5] Under the command of the British minister to China, Claude Maxwell MacDonald, the legation staff and security personnel defended the compound with small arms and one old muzzle-loaded cannon discovered and unearthed by Chinese collaborators who turned it over to the allies;[6] it was nicknamed the International Gun because the barrel was British, the carriage was Italian, the shells were Russian, and the crew was American.
Also under siege in Peking was the North Cathedral, the Beitang of the Catholic Church. The Beitang was defended by 43 French and Italian soldiers, 33 foreign Catholic priests and nuns, and about 3,200 Chinese Catholics. The defenders suffered heavy casualties especially from lack of food and Chinese mines exploded in tunnels dug beneath the compound.[7]
| Forces of the Eight-Nation Alliance (1900 Boxer Rebellion) Left to right: Britain, United States, colonial Australia, British India, Germany, France, Austria, Italy, Japan. (no Russians depicted) |
|||
| Countries | Warships (units) |
Marines (men) |
Army (men) |
| Japan | 18 | 540 | 20,300 |
| Russia | 10 | 750 | 12,400 |
| United Kingdom | 8 | 2,020 | 10,000 |
| France | 5 | 390 | 3,130 |
| United States | 2 | 295 | 3,125 |
| Germany | 5 | 600 | 300 |
| Austria–Hungary | 4 | 296 | |
| Italy | 2 | 80 | |
| Total | 54 | 4,971 | 49,255 |
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 (Beijing).
Lieutenant Georg Ludwig von Trapp, made famous in the musical The Sound of Music, was decorated for bravery aboard the SMS Kaiserin und Königin Maria Theresia during the rebellion.
Britain provided 12,000 troops of which a large part were Indian troops. Several of Britain's Australian colonies also sent contingents of naval and army personnel. South Australia sent its entire navy; the gunboat HMCS Protector. [8]
Two German missionaries were murdered in China in 1897. Germany's reaction was to seize Kiaochow with the port of Tsingtao for use as a naval base and trading port. Tsingtao was governed and garrisoned by the Imperial German Navy. The garrison consisted of Naval Artillery batteries and the 3rd Sea battalion of Marine Infantry.
When the Boxer Rebellion broke out in the Summer of 1900 III. Seebatallion sent a small group of soldiers to Peking and Tientsin to try to protect German interests, while the majority stayed to prevent attacks against Tsingtao. The siege of the foreign legations in Peking soon convinced Germany and other European Powers that more forces were urgently needed to be sent to China. The first troops to arrive from Germany were the I. and II. Seebatallione, soon followed by the East Asian Expeditionary Corps.
French Forces were dispatched from French Indochina.
Italian forces were initially made up from sailors from warships. However, a larger contingent was later dispatched from Italy.
The Japanese provided the largest contingent of troops; 20,840, as well as 18 warships. Of the total number, 20,300 were Imperial Japanese Army troops of the 5th Infantry Division under Lt. General Yamaguchi Motoomi, the remainder were 540 naval rikusentai from the Imperial Japanese Navy.
Russia supplied the second largest force after Japan. This was made up mainly from garrisons at Port Arthur and Vladivostok.
In the United States, the suppression of the Boxer Rebellion was known as the China Relief Expedition. The United States was able to play a major role in suppressing the Boxer Rebellion largely due to the presence of American forces deployed in the Philippines since the US annexation of the Philippines. Of the foreign troops under siege, there were fifty-six American sailors and marines from USS Oregon and USS Newark.[9] The main American formations that were deployed were 9th Infantry and 14th Infantry regiments, elements of the 6th Cavalry regiment, the 5th Artillery regiment, and a Marine battalion.
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.
"Following the taking of Peking, troops from the international force, looted the capital city and even ransacked the Forbidden City, with many Chinese treasures finding their way back to Europe."[10]
Not just the participants in the Eight-Nation Alliance but also many Chinese were responsible for the ransacking and pillaging of many historical artifacts of Chinese origin.[11]
An unknown number of people believed to be Boxers were beheaded both during and after the uprising. This became the subject of an early short film.[12]
A U.S. Marine wrote that he saw German and Russian troops, bayonet women after raping them.[13]
In Beijing, Bishop Pierre-Marie-Alphonse Favier posted a bulletin: in the first 8 days after August 18, Catholic Christians may steal life necessities, and declared that robbing within 50 taels of silver need neither reporting nor compensation.[14] On December 14, 1900, a French newspaper quoted a soldier's statement: "We are open to the Church from the North palace, the priests go with us, ... they encourage us murder, robbery, robbing ... we are doing for the priests. We were ordered to do whatever we want in the city for three days, kill if want to kill, take if want to take, and the actual looting of the eight days."[15]
Atrocities were also carried out by the Boxers themselves. A large number of Christians were killed before the rebellion. A group of Orthodox Christian killed are still commemorated as the Holy Martyrs of China.[16]