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The Boxer Rebellion took place in China during the Qing Dynasty (also called Manchu Dynasty and the last ruling dynasty of China) between the Righteous Fists of Harmony (義和團, called the "Boxers" by the foreigners) and the Dowager Empress Cixi (see Cixi, Dictionary label) against the allied foreign powers (listed in order of amount of assistance): Japan, Russia, Great Britain, France, United States, Germany, Italy, and Austria-Hungary.
The Boxer Rebellion was the outbreak of resentment against the influx of foreigners, especially missionaries, whom the Boxers felt were disrupting Chinese culture. Their slogan was 扶清灭洋 or "Support the Qing, destroy the Foreign". The peak of the rebellion took place in Beijing (北京,then Peking). About 3,000 foreigners and Chinese Christians were held hostage by the Boxers for about 55 days.
Following the rescue of the hostages by the allied international forces, China was forced to endure the demands of the Boxer Protocol, an agreement Empress Cixi was forced to sign that allowed foreign powers to remain in the capital and be treated as honored guests. These ambassadors were viewed as nothing but spies and a deep resentment sunk into the population.
In addition, the Boxer Protocol forced China to sink many thousands of dollars in debt due to wartime reparations, the traditional Chinese education system was replaced by a Westernized system of education, and it marked the end of dynastical rule. Japan’s role in subduing the rebellion made it a good ally in the foreign powers’ eyes and her influence grew in eastern Asia.
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