The Boxer Rebellion 1900: China, West And Fight For Beijing

China. 1900. A secretive movement believes the spirits can protect its fighters from bullets. Foreigners are trapped inside Beijing. Eight nations prepare to invade.At the dawn of the twentieth century, China was an empire under enormous pressure. Decades of military defeats, unequal treaties, foreign concessions and expanding missionary activity had created deep resentment across the country.Then came the Boxers.Combining martial arts, popular religion and fierce opposition to foreign influence, the Boxers spread rapidly across northern China under the cry "Support the Qing, Destroy the Foreign." Churches were burned, Chinese Christians were massacred and thousands of Boxer fighters descended upon Beijing.Soon the foreign legations were surrounded.For fifty-five days, diplomats, civilians, soldiers and thousands of Chinese Christians fought to survive behind improvised barricades while Boxer fighters and Qing troops attacked their positions. With communications cut and the first rescue expedition defeated, nobody inside knew whether help would ever arrive.Beyond Beijing, an extraordinary coalition was assembling. Britain, Japan, Russia, the United States, France, Germany, Italy and Austria-Hungary joined forces. After bloody fighting at Tianjin, the Eight-Nation Alliance began its march towards the Chinese capital.What followed was invasion, siege, massacre, looting and revenge-and a humiliation that helped push one of the world's oldest imperial systems towards its end.The Boxer Rebellion: A Half Hour History tells the dramatic story of the uprising from its origins in the villages of northern China to the siege of Beijing, the international invasion and the devastating Boxer Protocol.Discover: - Why resentment against foreigners exploded across northern China- Who the Boxers really were- Why some believed spiritual rituals could protect them from bullets- Why Chinese Christians became the rebellion's principal victims- How the Seymour Expedition became trapped- What happened during the fifty-five-day siege of Beijing- How the Eight-Nation Alliance fought its way to the capital- Why Beijing was looted after the siege- How atrocities and reprisals were committed on both sides- Why the Boxer Rebellion helped weaken the Qing dynastyA concise, accessible account of one of the most extraordinary confrontations between China and the imperial powers.Eight nations. Fifty-five days under siege. One rebellion that changed China forever.