1900年清政府“对外宣战”说驳正

Did the Qing Government Officially Declare War Against Foreign Powers in Gengzi Incident?

1900年6月21日清政府对外宣战的传统说法是错误的,没有根据的。6月21日慈禧以光绪皇帝名义下达给内阁的"上谕",其实只是慈禧对清王朝内部关于"和战剿抚"问题争论的决断和表态,属于内部性质的谕旨。有人把它解读为"宣战诏书"是讲不通的。因为它既没有对外公开颁布,也没有送达任何国家政府或使臣,而且其措辞写法也根本不像宣战诏书的样子。因此,所谓清政府对外宣战的说法不能成立。实际上,在当时的中外媒体、有关的外交往来函电、列强的反应以及国际公法的视角中,也都找不到清政府对外正式宣战的证据。

It is mistaken and groundless to say that the Qing government declared war against foreign powers on June 21, 1900. On that day, Cixi issued an imperial decree to the Grand Secretariat in the name of Emperor Guangxu. But it was only her statement about the issue of war and peace to the Qing court, an internal decree. It is groundless to regard it as an imperial edict to declare war, because it was neither proclaimed to the public and nor sent to any diplomatic envoy or government of the foreign countries, and its wording was not like an imperial declaration of war. Actually there was no evidence that the Qing government declared war against foreign powers, and no evidence has been found in Chinese and foreign media, correspondence and telecommunications of diplomatic intercourse, the reaction of the foreign powers, or public international law.