1900 - Chinese Martyrs at Dai Xian

June – July 1900

Dai Xian, Shanxi

A group of Boxers before they commenced their murder spree in Shanxi Province.

The city of Dai Xian (formerly Taizhou) is located in northern Shanxi Province. Although no missionaries lived in the town in 1900, there were a number of Christians in the area due to the efforts of itinerant evangelists. The number of believers martyred at Dai Xian would have been much larger if not for the efforts of an assistant of the magistrate, who boldly risked his life to save Christians.

One of the first believers to die was the 50-year-old mother of Zhen Jidao. The whole Zhen family tried to flee when the Boxers marched towards their home, but Mrs. Zhen was unable to go far and was captured. The Boxers, without a word, hacked her to death with their swords. They then pursued the other family members like wolves chasing their prey. Soon,

“Zhen Jidao himself, the father, and brother were found, and taken to the temple. To prevent their running away, the soles of their feet were burnt with hot irons, and then they were taken in a cart to Dai Xian, where they were to be tried by the Boxer chief.”[1] As the cart was travelling past the magistrate’s office, the assistant ran outside onto the road, and “rescued the three men, and kept them under his own care till the trouble had blown over. In this way this man saved the lives of more than ten Christians.”[2]

Dao Hong and his family lived in a village not far from Dai Xian. The whole family, from Dao’s 90-year-old grandmother down to his ten-year-old daughter, fled into the mountains and scattered in various directions. Two women and the young girl were discovered hiding in an abandoned graveyard by the Boxers. Someone rushed to the city to inform the magistrate who, “without waiting for his horse, hurried out on foot with his attendants, rescued the women, and arrested the Boxer leader. He was too late to save the life of the child, who soon died from her injuries.”[3]

Fifty-year-old Wang Shi was attacked in his own house on June 3rd. One of his hands was severely injured. A rich man with considerable influence had used the Boxer chaos as an excuse to persecute Wang, whom he harboured a grudge against. When Wang was dragged before the magistrate at Dai Xian he refused to respond to the accusations and was sentenced to several hundred blows with a bamboo cane. As he was being led to prison, a mob of Boxers suddenly rushed upon Wang and dragged him outside the city. The first thrust of the sword was done by the hand of the bitter rich man, then all the Boxers attacked Wang Shi like crazed savages, cutting him to pieces.

Zhou Fengxi (aged 47) was a shop-owner in Dai Xian. When the Boxer troubles were at their height he tried to escape from the city by climbing over a wall. He fell and broke a leg, and was carried back to his shop. His business partners were afraid they would be implicated if the Boxers discovered them harbouring a Christian, so they urged Zhou to commit suicide by swallowing opium. Zhou Fengxi refused, saying he would rather be handed over to the Boxers. His colleagues then forced the opium down Zhou’s throat, killing him through their cowardice.

In all, just four Chinese Protestants were martyred in the Dao Xian area, thanks largely to the efforts of the magistrate’s assistant to uphold the law. Such bravery was rarely seen throughout China in 1900, as most officials chose to abdicate their authority and allow the Boxers to do as they pleased.