The Chinese had recognized the rights of the missionaries only because of the superiority of Western naval and military power. Many Chinese associated the missionaries with Western imperialism and resented them, especially the educated classes who feared changes that might threaten their position. As the foreign and missionary presence in China grew, so also did Chinese resentment of foreigners. The Boxers were a peasant mass movement, stimulated by drought and floods in the north China countryside. The Qing dynasty took the side of the Boxers, besieged the foreigners in Beijing in the Siege of the International Legations and was invaded by a coalition of foreign armies, the Eight Nation Alliance. The greatest loss of missionary lives was in Shanxi where, among others, all 15 members of the Oberlin Band were executed.