The Gathering at Xihua Gate

In the tense predawn hours of August 15, 1900, a remarkable assembly of Qing dynasty nobility and officials gathered outside the Xihua Gate of the Forbidden City. This was no ordinary court gathering—it represented a desperate flight from advancing foreign forces during what would become known as the Boxer Rebellion. Among those present were Prince Qing, Prince Su Shanqi, Prince Zhuang Zaiyun, Zaiyi, Zailan, Duke Zai Ze, Pu Lun, Grand Councilors Gang Yi and Zhao Shuqiao, and the Minister of the Imperial Household and Right Wing Commander of the Gendarmerie, Ying Nian.

This distinguished company, normally accustomed to elaborate ceremony and deference, now stood in hushed anxiety. Their world was collapsing around them as the Eight-Nation Alliance forces pressed toward the imperial capital. The Empress Dowager Cixi, the real power behind the Qing throne, appeared before them with uncharacteristic brevity. Her customary elaborate court rituals were reduced to simple acknowledgments—a telling sign of the gravity of the situation.

The Desperate Escape Plan

When Cixi surveyed the limited transportation available—merely a few carriages—her practical nature took command of the dire circumstances. In a scene that contrasted sharply with the usual opulence of the court, she made swift arrangements: Emperor Guangxu would ride with Pu Lun, while the designated heir apparent would ride on the running board of her own carriage. Her instructions were precise and revealing: all carriage curtains were to remain closed to avoid recognition, an acknowledgment that the imperial court was now in flight rather than in command.

The decision to exit through the Desheng Gate was strategic—this northern gate offered the most direct route away from the advancing foreign troops who were primarily approaching from the south and east. Prince Qing’s concern about Japanese soldiers controlling the city gates highlights the complex international nature of the conflict. The Boxer Rebellion had drawn military forces from Austria-Hungary, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Russia, the United Kingdom, and the United States, creating a multinational occupation of China’s capital.

A City in Collapse

The journey through Peking revealed the devastating reality of the situation. The imperial carriages moved “inch by inch” through crowds of refugees, taking nearly an hour to pass through the Desheng Gate. This painful progression through a city in chaos symbolized the crumbling authority of the Qing dynasty. When Cixi finally dared to glance backward, she saw the ultimate symbol of surrender—white flags flying over the city walls.

The fall of Peking represented more than just a military defeat; it signaled the failure of the Qing court’s support for the Boxer movement, which had sought to expel foreign influences from China. The imperial decision to align with the Boxers against foreign powers now resulted in the humiliating flight of the very leadership that had endorsed the movement.

The Tragedy of Xu Tong

While the imperial court fled westward, the consequences of the rebellion began to unfold within the captured city. Among the first casualties was Xu Tong, the Grand Secretary who had been a prominent supporter of the Boxers and an ardent anti-foreign conservative. His story represents the tragic intersection of personal conviction, family duty, and national collapse.

Xu Tong’s response to the city’s fall was shaped by the Confucian values that had guided his life. As a high-ranking official, he believed his duty required suicide rather than capture or collaboration. In a heartbreaking scene at the garden of the late Grand Secretary Bao Yun, Xu Tong prepared to hang himself, seeing this act as fulfilling his responsibility to “die for principle” following national calamity.

His arrangement of two nooses—one for himself and one for his third son, Xu Chengyu, who held high office—reflected the expectation that officials of certain ranks should follow their ruler in death. His instructions to his youngest son, Xu Chengxiong, to retreat to their ancestral home and never again serve in government revealed both his despair for the Qing dynasty’s future and his desire to preserve family continuity through withdrawal from public life.

The Complex Reality of Principle

The drama that unfolded between Xu Tong and his sons reveals the complex realities behind the ideal of “dying for principle.” While Xu Chengyu initially appeared ready to join his father in suicide, his subsequent actions tell a more complicated story. After helping his father to die, Xu Chengyu abandoned his own suicidal intentions, changed into common clothing, and attempted to flee to join the imperial court.

His capture by Japanese troops—and particularly his immediate kneeling surrender—stands in stark contrast to his father’s resolution. The Japanese identification of Xu Chengyu as the official who had supervised the execution of several officials wrongly accused of Boxer sympathies added historical irony to his capture. This man, who had sent others to their deaths for alleged disloyalty, now found himself unable to maintain his own professed principles when faced with mortality.

The Captives’ Dilemma

Xu Chengyu’s imprisonment with Qi Xiu, another high-ranking official, created a fascinating study in contrasting responses to capture. While Xu Chengyu immediately began plotting escape and crafting narratives about his intended loyalty to the throne, Qi Xiu expressed regret for his failure to commit suicide when he had the opportunity. Their conversation reveals the psychological complexity of occupation and capture—the struggle between principle and survival, between honor and practicality.

Xu Chengyu’s attempted manipulation of Qi Xiu—suggesting he would report Qi Xiu’s “unbending resolve” to the throne if helped to escape—demonstrates how quickly political instincts resurface even in captivity. His smooth transition from assisting his father’s suicide to plotting his own survival illustrates the human capacity for adaptation even in extreme circumstances.

Historical Context of the Boxer Crisis

To understand the significance of these events, we must examine the broader context of the Boxer Rebellion. The movement emerged from growing anti-foreign and anti-Christian sentiment in northern China during the late 1890s. The Boxers, officially known as the Society of Righteous and Harmonious Fists, gained influence by promoting martial arts and spiritual practices they believed made them immune to Western weapons.

The Qing court, under Empress Dowager Cixi’s leadership, made the fateful decision to support the Boxers in June 1900, effectively declaring war on foreign powers. This decision reflected both genuine anti-foreign sentiment and political calculation—the Boxers represented a popular movement that the weakening Qing dynasty hoped to harness for its own survival.

The siege of foreign legations in Peking from June 20 to August 14, 1900, became the central drama of the conflict, culminating in the international military expedition to relieve the legations and the subsequent capture of Peking.

Cultural and Social Impacts

The flight from Peking and its aftermath had profound cultural and psychological impacts on China. The sight of the imperial court—the Son of Heaven and his retinue—fleeing their capital represented an unprecedented humiliation. For centuries, the emperor had been considered the center of the celestial order, and his forced departure undermined the metaphysical foundations of Qing authority.

The suicide of officials like Xu Tong reflected the continuing influence of Confucian values that emphasized loyalty to the ruler above personal survival. Yet the behavior of others like Xu Chengyu showed how these ideals often conflicted with human self-preservation instincts. This tension between principle and practicality would continue to influence Chinese political culture through subsequent revolutions and transformations.

The foreign occupation of Peking and the Qing court’s flight also accelerated reforms that would ultimately lead to the dynasty’s collapse. The humiliation of 1900 made clear that China’s traditional system could not withstand foreign pressure, spurring calls for modernization and constitutional government that would culminate in the 1911 Revolution.

Legacy and Modern Relevance

The events of August 1900 continue to resonate in modern China’s historical consciousness. The Boxer Rebellion represents a crucial turning point in China’s relationship with the outside world—a traumatic encounter with foreign power that shaped Chinese nationalism for generations. The memory of foreign troops occupying China’s capital fueled both anti-imperialist sentiment and critical reflection on China’s weaknesses.

In contemporary historical assessment, the Boxer Rebellion is viewed with complexity—recognized both as an expression of popular resistance to foreign domination and as a movement influenced by superstition and xenophobia. The Qing court’s handling of the crisis is generally criticized as disastrous, combining strategic miscalculation with ineffective execution.

The personal stories from that period—like those of Xu Tong and his sons—remind us that historical events are ultimately experienced by individuals making difficult choices under extreme pressure. Their struggles with principle, survival, and family duty humanize a historical episode that is often discussed in abstract terms of imperialism and nationalism.

The flight from Peking marked not just the end of a military campaign, but the beginning of the end for imperial China itself. Within eleven years, the Qing dynasty would collapse, making way for a republic that would continue to grapple with the questions of modernization and national strength that the Boxer crisis had made so urgent.

The lessons of 1900—about the dangers of xenophobia, the importance of engagement with the world, and the necessity of internal reform—continue to inform China’s approach to international relations and development. The memory of that desperate flight from Peking serves as a permanent reminder of what can happen when a nation fails to adapt to a changing world while maintaining its core values and sovereignty.