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China, A Little History, Part 9

Boxer Rebellion

St. Joseph's Church in Beijing was destroyed during the Boxer Rebellion as a target of anti-Christian ire. The current church was rebuilt after the war. Beijing, China, Asia.
St. Joseph’s Church in Beijing was destroyed during the Boxer Rebellion as a target of anti-Christian ire. The current church was rebuilt after the war.

The infamous Boxer Rebellion.  But what was it?  Ultimately, it was a war between China and virtually the rest of the world’s powers.  Guess who won.  Hint:  it wasn’t China.

The Boxer Rebellion started off as sort of the opposite of the Taiping Rebellion.  The Taiping Rebellion began as an uprising by a somewhat irrational [Read more…]

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China, A Little History, Part 7

Second Opium War

The Tower of Buddhist Incense at the Summer Palace in Beijing. Like much of the Palace, it was destroyed by Anglo-French forces during the Second Opium War and subsequently rebuilt. Summer Palace, Beijing, China, Asia.
The Tower of Buddhist Incense at the Summer Palace in Beijing. Like much of the Palace, it was destroyed by Anglo-French forces during the Second Opium War and subsequently rebuilt.

15 years after winning the First Opium War, the British were growing antsy.  They wanted even more favorable trade conditions, including the definitive legalization of the opium trade, as well as the regulation of the coolie trade.  (Coolies were Chinese indentured servants—in effect, legal slaves—shipped off by the British to outlying spots of the British Empire and to Latin America.)  The British also believed that the Chinese were not keeping up with the [Read more…]