Beijing has a lane called Dongjiaomin Xiang — a little over 1,500 metres, the longest lane in Beijing. In September 1901, a treaty set this area aside for the exclusive use of the foreign legations, defended by each power itself, with Chinese people not permitted to live inside it. A street in the middle of a Chinese city where Chinese people could not live. Where did that treaty come from? · The drought that summer: Yulu, governor-general of Zhili — "rain has been scarce"; Shandong — "insects have eaten the crops to nothing"; Henan — "for a thousand li, not a bird is seen" · The other war, fought for decades: Yuan Shikai's report, January 1900 — five months, seventeen districts and counties, 146 cases involving missionaries and converts · The Boxers: the rising at Liyuantun, Guan County, 26 October 1898; into the inner city on 13 June 1900, when eleven churches burned in one day · The death of von Ketteler: west mouth of Xizongbu Hutong, 20 June 1900; the man who fired was Enhai, Shenjiying musketry unit · How many inside the siege: 432 / 409 / 882 — **three figures, three bases**, not three contradictions (two waves of guards / men defending the quarter at the start / soldiers plus foreign civilians) · The fire at the Hanlin: 23 June; B. L. Putnam Weale's eyewitness account from inside the quarter · The numbers of one book: over nine thousand volumes under Qianlong → under five thousand by 1875 → eight hundred when Weng Tonghe checked in 1894 · The edict: later generations call it the "declaration of war"; it names no country, only "them"; whether it is a formal declaration — two positions stand, both set out · Why the shells went wide: Li Yuerui's *Chunbing Shi Yecheng* — Ronglu: "either way, the sound of the guns will be heard inside" · The defending side: over four hundred guards; the heaviest gun was one captured from the attackers; 55 killed and about 135 wounded over 55 days · The wall at the North Cathedral: Dai Haibin counted over four hundred dead, 120 of them children; far more died of disease and hunger than of gunfire · Eleven churches in June: Chongli's report, Bishop Favier's diary, Zhongfang Shi's *Gengzi Jishi*; the Christian death toll varies widely, all set side by side · After 14 August: Waldersee's report, Zhongfang Shi's diary, Simpson on French machine-gun fire — **destruction on both sides given equal length** · The treaty: 7 September 1901; twelve articles, nineteen annexes; four provisions — indemnity, legation quarter, forts and troops, prohibition of hostility to foreigners · "One tael per person" is not the treaty text: Article 6 says "450 million taels of customs silver" — a later reading against the population figure · Is it still there today: Dongjiaomin Xiang is still Beijing's longest lane (listed 2001, thirteen buildings); the North Cathedral is still in use; the arch in Zhongshan Park has changed its name three times · ★ What we could not find, we say so: a civilian death toll for Beijing, the primary text of Boxer spirit-possession, and the total siege force — no reliable source found Full transcript and bibliography: https://sylogs.com/media Our own tools (not part of the film): new users get 7 days of full access https://sylogs.com/tools ⚠️ The narration is synthetic speech; the on-screen cards are made by this series. ⚠️ Background photographs are public domain or CC-licensed. Source and licence are printed at the bottom left of every card. —— Shenzhou: China's Living Heritage China is often called a mysterious country. That is half true — and half our own doing. Outsiders see us through a layer of distance; we, just as often, fail to explain ourselves clearly. This series adds no layer of mystery; it clears the gauze from both sides. Not a travel film, and not a history film — we go place to place, looking at where each name came from, what the place produced, who came out of it, and what it left behind. #Shenzhou #Beijing #BoxerRebellion #LegationQuarter 00:00 Intro and cold open: the street Chinese people could not live on 00:45 Act One · The drought that summer 01:40 Act One (cont.) · The other war, fought for decades 03:06 Act One (cont.) · The Boxers 04:20 Act One (cont.) · Those few days 04:55 Act Two · The death of von Ketteler 05:51 Act Two (cont.) · How many inside the siege 06:44 Act Two (cont.) · The fire at the Hanlin 07:36 Act Two (cont.) · The numbers of one book 08:10 Act Two (cont.) · Ceasefire, and the North Cathedral 08:58 Act Three · The edict 10:55 Act Three (cont.) · Why the shells went wide 12:16 Act Three (cont.) · The defending side 13:17 Act Three (cont.) · The wall at the North Cathedral 13:52 Act Four · Eleven churches in June 15:32 Act Four (cont.) · After 14 August 17:04 Act Four (cont.) · How many died 17:21 Act Four (cont.) · The treaty 19:48 Act Five · That street 20:48 Act Five (cont.) · The cathedral and the arch 22:30 Act Five (cont.) · The money 23:22 Closing: back to the street we began with 24:17 About sylogs.com ▶ Subscribe to the YouTube channel: one month of the paid tools on sylogs.com, free Log in at sylogs.com and comment "Subscribed on YouTube" on the video page to claim it.