Western name for members of a secret Chinese organization--Yi He Tuan (the Society of Harmonious Fists), which gathered intelligence on Westerners in China. The inspiration for such secret societies--distrust of foreigners--endured into modern times. The Boxers' xenophobia persisted, influencing the intelligence agencies of both the Chinese Nationalists and the People's Republic of China.

Boxers were rebels who promised to fight with fists of justice to overthrow the Manchu Dynasty and drive out the "long-nosed devils" (Westerners), who, according to the Boxers, were taking over China with the acquiescence of the Manchus. Only an antiforeign organization, the Boxers believed, could safely provide China with the secret service the nation needed.

Under the slogan, "protect the country, destroy the foreigner," in 1899 the Boxers began persecuting Chinese Christians and using spies and assassins to spread terror through much of China. In June 1900, the dowager empress submitted to Boxer power and ordered all foreigners killed. An international military force seized Peking, the Chinese capital, driving out the court and defeating the Boxers.