The watchtower at Zhengyangmen was damaged by fire in 1900 during the Boxer Rebellion. The Hui and Dongxiang Muslim Kansu Braves under Muslim General Ma Fulu engaged in fierce fighting during the Battle of Peking (1900) at Zhengyangmen against the Eight-Nation Alliance. Ma Fulu and 100 of his fellow Hui and Dongxiang soldiers from his home village died in that battle. Indian soldiers used wood from the damaged tower as firewood that winter. The gate was reconstructed in the latter years of the Qing dynasty. Internal Affairs minister Zhu Qiqian ordered the barbican dismantled in 1915 to ease traffic congestion. The watchtower and gate tower were saved from demolition in 1965 on the orders of then premier Zhou Enlai.