Question

The Boxers The imperial court responded to this foreign threat by giving aid to various secret societies. Traditionally, secret societies had been formed in opposition to imperial government; as such, they were certainly a threat to the Ch'ing government. However, anti-foreign sentiment had risen so greatly in China that the Empress Dowager believed that the secret societies could be the vanguard in a military expulsion of Europeans. This policy reached its climax in 1900 with the Boxer Rebellion. The Boxers, or "The Righteous and Harmonious Fists," were a religious society that had originally rebelled against the imperial government in Shantung in 1898. They practiced an animistic magic of rituals and spells which they believed made them impervious to bullets and pain. The Boxers believed that the expulsion of foreign devils would magically renew Chinese society and begin a new golden age. Much of their discontent, however, was focused on the economic scarcity of the 1890's. They were a passionate and confident group, full of contempt for authority and violent emotions.

Why did the Empress Dowager allow the Boxers to exist?



A) She wanted them to make her rich.


B) She wanted use the foreigners to get rid of the Boxers.


C) She wanted to use the Boxers to get rid of the foreigners.


D) She thought the Boxers were peaceful.

Answer 1

The Empress Dowager allowed the Boxers to exist because she wanted to use them to expel foreign influences from China, aligning with her political objectives.

Step-by-step explanation:

The Empress Dowager Cixi permitted the existence of the Boxers because she believed they could help expel foreign influence from China. Option C) She wanted to use the Boxers to get rid of the foreigners is the correct answer. The Boxer Rebellion was a significant historical event where the Boxers, a nationalistic secret society in China, initiated an uprising with ambitions to eliminate all foreign forces and influences. Despite the risks, the Empress Dowager saw an opportunity in this ideology to end foreign dominance in China, which aligned with her own political objectives. As a result, instead of suppressing the Boxers, she supported their cause against the foreigners.

Answer 2

I think the answer could be D