The Origins of the Boxer Uprising

In the summer of 1900, bands of peasant youths from the villages of north China streamed into Beijing to besiege the foreign legations, attracting the attention of the entire world. Joseph Esherick reconstructs the early history of the Boxers, challenging the traditional view that they grew from earlier anti-dynastic sects, and stressing instead the impact of social ecology and popular culture.

Joseph Esherick is Professor of History, University of Oregon, and author of Reform and Revolution in China: The 1911 Revolution in Hunan and Hubei (California, 1976).