During the summer of 1900, the Boxer Rebellion reached its peak as anti-foreign insurgents laid siege to the International Legation Quarter in Beijing. Cut off from telegraph communications, Western capitals were desperate for news regarding the survival of their diplomats, soldiers, and civilians. On July 16, 1900, the British newspaper Daily Mail published a shocking, exclusive report claiming that the legations had fallen and all foreigners had been brutally massacred after running out of ammunition.
The story, written by Shanghai correspondent Frederick Moore based on unverified local rumors and a forged telegram, detailed heroic last stands and gruesome atrocities. The horrific report was immediately reprinted across Europe and North America, causing global mourning and triggering outrage. Memorial services were planned in London, and military commanders called for extreme retaliation.
In reality, the legations were still holding out, and diplomats were actively negotiating with Chinese authorities. The fake cable almost triggered severe premature military reprisal and threatened to collapse fragile ceasefires before the Eight-Nation Alliance relief force finally arrived weeks later to find the besieged foreigners alive.