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 W. Esherick is Emeritus Professor, History at University of California, San Diego. He is the author of Ancestral Leaves: A Family Journey through Chinese History (UC Press) and co-editor of Chinese Local Elites and Patterns of Dominance and The Chinese Cultural Revolution as History, among many books.