History of the inventor: On 14 November 1897, the German Reich occupied the Chinese port of Tsingtau and, in a contract with the Chinese Empire dated 6 March 1898, leased an area of 550 km² with Tsingtau as its centre for 99 years - the Kiautschou protectorate. The province of Schantung, to which the leased area actually belonged, was declared a German area of interest and a neutral zone. In this area the empire received concessions for the construction and maintenance of railway lines and mines. However, as early as 30 October 1895, the German Reich had the right to establish branches in the international contracted ports of Tientsin and Hankou, which had existed since 1859/60. And of course the empire, like the other great powers and other states involved in China trade, also maintained a legation in Beijing. German missions were also active in the interior of China, as were German merchants, especially in Shanghai. The German Reich was therefore indeed heavily involved in China and saw itself as such. Against this background, the xenophobic riots in China in Germany that began at the end of 1899 and quickly became more serious were perceived as a threat. The regent, Empress Cixi, remained ambiguous at first in her measures against the "fist fighters united in righteousness", referred to by the colonial powers as "boxers" for short, units of the imperial Chinese army partly allied themselves with them. The uprising continued to increase from January 1900 onwards, with excessive acts of violence against Chinese Christians and foreigners. From May 1900 the foreign landscapes in Beijing were threatened by insurgents, the railway lines from Beijing to the coast were attacked. The Gesandschaften therefore requested military support. In May 1900, the German Reich sent a contingent of the III Sea Battalion stationed in Tsingtau to Beijing, two further companies were ordered to Tientsin, and the cruiser squadron moved to the roadstead before the Taku forts at the mouth of the river Peiho. Meanwhile, the situation in Beijing continued to deteriorate and further troops were needed. In June 1900, the troops of the colonial powers in China formed an expeditionary corps led by the British admiral Seymour (2066 men). However, this was stopped in mid-June by Chinese troops (boxers and regular army) and had to turn back. The foreigners and Chinese Christians in Beijing had meanwhile barricaded themselves in the Gesandschaftsviertel and were cut off from the outside world. The allied colonial powers (USA, Great Britain, France, Germany, Italy, Austria-Hungary, Russia, Japan) stormed the Taku-Forts on June 17, the Chinese government ultimatively called on all foreigners to leave China on June 19. On 20 June the German envoy, Baron Clemens von Ketteler, was murdered in Beijing. By edict of 21 June, China effectively declared war on the Allies, but this was not reciprocated by them. The Allied troops withdrew to Tientsin at the end of June 1900. In Germany, on 25 June, a naval expedition corps of 2528 men (under Major General von Höpfner) was formed from the members of the naval infantry. In addition, on 3 July the order was given to set up an expedition corps of volunteers from the army (under Lieutenant General von Lessel). The Allies had agreed to form an international expeditionary corps, with Germany as commander-in-chief. On 12 August 1900, the former chief of the Great General Staff, Field Marshal Alfred Graf von Waldersee, was appointed commander-in-chief of the international armed force, which finally comprised 64,000 troops. Waldersee used the "Army Command East Asia" as a staff. The East Asian Expeditionary Corps set sail with its first parts on 27 July in Bremerhaven, when Emperor Wilhelm II gave the famous "Hun speech" at their farewell. With the 19,093 men of its East Asian Expeditionary Corps under Lieutenant General von Lessel, the German Reich provided almost a third of the international armed forces. Structure of the East Asian Expeditionary Corps: 3 infantry brigades to 2 infantry regiments with 9 companies each 1 fighter company 1 cavalry regiment to 4 escadrons 1 field artillery regiment to 3 divisions with a total of 8 batteries 2 light ammunition columns 1 battalion heavy field howitzers with 2 batteries 1 pioneer regiment with 9 companies each 1 hunter company 1 cavalry regiment to 4 escadrons 1 field artillery regiment to 3 divisions with a total of 8 batteries 2 light ammunition columns 1 battalion heavy field howitzers with 2 batteries 1 pioneerBattalion of 3 Companies 1 Railway Battalion of 3 Companies 1 Corps Telegraph Department 1 Medical Company 1 Munitions Column Department with 7 Munitions Columns 1 Train Command with 3 Supply Columns, 1 field bakery company, 6 field hospitals 1 stage command with 1 horse depot, 1 military hospital depot, 1 stage ammunition column, personnel for 3 war hospitals and one hospital ship, several supply stations Already on the 4th day of operations, the first day of operations was at the hospital. On August 1, the Allied troops (about 20,000 men) gathered in Tientsin had once again set out and this time were able to fight their way through to Beijing. On August 14, Beijing was taken and then plundered for three days. The Chinese government fled to the south. When the international troops under Waldersee arrived in China, the situation was essentially settled, Beijing and Tientsin were horrified. Numerous "punitive expeditions" for the final destruction of the Boxers followed, in which the East Asian Expeditionary Corps was also intensively involved. The Allied approach was characterized by excessive brutality and numerous riots against the civilian population. On January 10, 1901, the Regent accepted the conditions of the Allies as laid down in the "Boxer Protocol" signed on September 7, 1901. The East Asian Expeditionary Corps was disbanded on 17 May 1901 and transformed into the East Asian Occupation Brigade stationed at Beijing, Tientsin, Langfang, Yangtsun, Tangku and Shanghaikwan. Structure of the East Asian Occupation Brigade: 1 command staff with administrative authorities 2 infantry regiments with 6 companies each, of which 1 company mounted 1 escadron hunter on horseback 1 field battery 1 pioneer company with telegraph detachment 1 field hospital The East Asian Occupation Brigade was further reduced in size and restructured on 1 May and 11 December 1902. On 6 March 1906, the East Asian Occupation Brigade was also dissolved and replaced by a battalion-strength detachment. This was replaced on 5 April 1909 by a naval infantry unit, which was wound up in 1910. The East Asian Department in the Prussian Ministry of War (inventory PH 2) was organizationally responsible. Processing note: The holdings initially comprised only three AE, which together with the few files of the Schutztruppen formed the holdings of RW 51 Kaiserliche Schutztruppen and other armed forces overseas. In 2008, nine further AE of different origins were added and a separate portfolio RW 61 was now formed. The inventory was developed in February 2010. Description of the holdings: The holdings contain the documents of the East Asian Expeditionary Corps and the East Asian Occupation Brigade, as far as they are available in the military archives. Characterization of content: The inventory contains hardly any real material files. It consists mainly of several German-Chinese place name glossaries. Worth mentioning is a publication about the locations Langfang, Yangtsun, Tangku and Schanghaikwan with numerous illustrations. State of development: The inventory initially comprised only three AE, which together with the few files of the Schutztruppen formed the inventory RW 51 Kaiserliche Schutztruppen and other armed forces overseas. In 2008, nine further AE of different origins were added and a separate portfolio RW 61 was now formed. The inventory was developed in February 2010. Pre-archival order: The documents of the East Asian Expeditionary Corps and the East Asian Occupation Brigade must essentially be regarded as lost in the fire of the Army Archives in 1945. Only pieces that have survived by chance have been preserved. These were supplemented by documents from the environment of the two associations, the branches in Tientsin, Hankou and Beijing. Citation style: BArch, RW 61/...

Contains among other things: Military political reports, telegrams about the situation in China and Korea Memorandum concerning the seizure of the Kiautschou Bay Draft of a contract with China for the transfer of the Kiautschou Bay Contract between the Imperial German Government and the German-Asian Bank in Berlin for the takeover of the German branch in Tientsin

Contains among other things: Report on the result of an investigation of Kiautschou Bay in the summer of 1897 Remarks on the treatment of the land question in German territory in Kiautschou Bay Conclusion of a Separate Convention between the Imperial German and Imperial Chinese Governments on the strengthening of friendly ties and the development of economic and trade relations Memorandum on the German establishment in Tientsin and Hankau

Contains among other things: Conditions in Hankau Report on the maritime detachment Tientsin Fleet base in the Philippines and Sulu Islands Reports on Madeira, Canary Islands, Barka

Contains among other things: Necessity of setting up a Chinese troop, formation, organization and reports on this regulation concerning legal relations and disciplinary punishment of the Chinese members of the Chinese company Overview of the history and organization of the provisional government of the district of Tientsin

Contains among other things: Reports about visits and travel reports to Beijing and Tientsin Photographs about the arrival of Prince Leopold of Prussia in Tsingtau and a parade on the occasion of the visit of the governor of Schantung

Contains among other things: Magazine "La Quinzaine Coloniale", XV. Vol., No. 178 of May 25, 1904 (French) "Koloniale Zeitschrift", V. Vol., No. 12 of June 9, 1904 "Das wirtschaftliche Asien", Supplement to "Asien", Organ of the German-Asian Society, I. Vol, No. 2 of Nov. 1903 2nd Annual Report of the Department Tsingtau of the D e u t s c h e K o l o n i a l e s s c h e G e l l l s c h a f t of 1904 Municipal regulations for the branches Tientsin and Hankau Draft of a law amending the Consular Jurisdiction Act and the Protectorate Act Draft of a law on the issue of small shares in the districts of the Konusular Courts and in the protectorate Kiautschou Minutes of meetings of the Reichstag in July 1909, Apr. 1910, Oct. 1910

Contains among other things: S.M.S. "Hertha": Curacao, St. Thomas, Port of Spain, Bermuda, Ponta Delgada, Santiago de Cuba, Havana, Kingston, Vigo S.M.S. "Bremen": Port of Spain, Rio de Janeiro, Buenos Aires, Punta Arenas, Valdivia, Coronel, Chile, Valparaiso, Antofagasta, Tocopilla, Taltal, Coquimbo S. M. S. "Sea Eagle": Cape Town, Durban, Dar es Salaam S. M. S. "Victoria Luise": St. Thomas, San Juan de Portorico, Kingston, Havana, Haiti, Guantanamo, Ferrol, Horta, Bermuda S. M. S. "Hansa": Corfu, Palermo, Ferrol, Algiers S. M. S. "Corfu, Palermo, Ferrol, Algiers S. M. S.": S. Thomas, San Juan de Portorico, Havana, Haiti, Guantanamo, S. M. S. "Arcona": San Fancisco, Honolulu, Seattle, San Pedro, San Diego, Yokohama, Miyashima, Port Said, Cadiz, Colombo, Aden S. M. S. "Cormoran": Matupi, Herbertshöhe, Simpson Harbour, Empress Augusta River, Blanche Bay, Samoa, Suva S. M. S. "Buzzard": Mahé, Aden, Port Said, Malaga, Southampton S. M. S. "Freya": Port Said, Alexandria, Haifa, Beirut, Messina, Adana (consequences of the Armenian massacre), Naples, Algiers, Vigo S. M. S. "Panther": Duala, Cap Lopez, Loanda, Porto Alexandre, Southwest Africa S. M. S. "Condor": Samoa, Fiji Islands, Marshall Islands, Herbertshöhe, Caroline Islands, Japan, Palau, Admiralty Islands Squadrons of cruisers: Tientsin, Beijing, Hankau, Yangtze River, Situation in China, Hong Kong, Canton, Bangkok, Singapore S. M. S. "Sperber": Lome, Old Calabar, Sekondi, Axim, Greater Friedrichsburg, Liberia (uprising), Libreville, Belgian Congo, Angola, Southwest Africa S. M. S. "Nuremberg": Barcelona (political situation) S. M. S. "Iltis": Hong Kong

Contains: Map of the further surroundings of Beijing and Tientsin (Boxer Rebellion), 1900; travel experiences Arnold Lequis from China and Japan

Contains among other things: Shooting reports war classification and alarm order of the German security troop Tientsin 1911

Contains among other things: Statutes of the German Volunteer Troupe Tientsin and the German Volunteer Troupe Beijing