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Military of the Powers during the Boxer Rebellion, with their naval flags, from left to right: Italy, United States, France, Austria-Hungary, Japan, Germany, United Kingdom, Russia. Japanese print, 1900.

The Eight-Nation Alliance (Simplified Chinese: 八国联军; Traditional Chinese: 八國聯軍; pinyin: bāgúo liánjūn) was an alliance of 8 nations (Austria-Hungary, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Russia, the United Kingdom, and the United States) which put down the Boxer Rebellion in China in 1900. The military contingent from the United States was called the China Relief Expedition.

At the end of the campaign, the imperial government was forced to sign the unequal Boxer Protocol of 1901.

At the end of the 19th century, resentment towards foreigners was on the rise due to continued foreign involvement within China, stripping China of her resources and her pride, with Empress Dowager Cixi's passive approval. Social differences and the technology gap encouraged these sentiments. These resentments grew to the extent that action 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 crimes, and it is thought that they encouraged them from behind the scenes.

Citing the necessity of protecting their citizens, these eight foreign countries sent troops to quell the rebels. But the true motives behind it were the opportunity of further access to the Chinese market, expansion of their colonies, and exploitation of the Chinese.

Troops of the eight countries arrived, entered 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.

During their occupation of China, they ransacked many houses and committed various atrocities against civilians, including rape and murder.

Troops and participants of the Eight-Nation Alliance were largely responsible for the ransacking and pillaging of many historical artifacts of Chinese nationalist origin, such as those found in the Summer Palace, and instigated the burning of many prominent Chinese buildings.

This event has been largely viewed by the Chinese around the world with shame and as foreign aggression. It has been made into film a few times that essentially played upon Chinese nationalist sentiments. [1] For more details from the Chinese perspective, see Boxer Rebellion.

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