Edward Hobart Seymour Admiral of the Fleet Sir Edward Hobart Seymour , GCB , OM , GCVO ( 30 April 1840 – 2 March 1929 ) , was a Royal Navy officer who became Commander - in - Chief , China Station . Early life . Born the grandson of Rear - Admiral Sir Michael Seymour , 1st Baronet and son of the Rev . Richard Seymour , Edward Seymour was educated at Radley College and Eastman ' s Royal Naval Academy , Southsea and went on to join the Royal Navy in 1852 . Career . He served in the Black Sea during the Crimean War . After the end of the Crimean War , still a midshipman , he was appointed to the HMS " Calcutta " , flagship of his uncle Sir Michael Seymour , on the China Station . He took part in the capture of Canton in December 1857 and then , in HMS " Chesapeake " , he took part in the attack on the Taku forts in September 1860 . Commander - in - Chief of the China Station . In December 1897 , Seymour was appointed Commander - in - Chief of the China Station , though he did not assume command until 18 February 1898 . His flagship was the battleship HMS " Centurion " . Service there was peaceful until the Boxer Rebellion when Seymour took command of a 2 , 000 man international force which marched overland to Peking in an attempt to relieve the legations under siege there . and protect the Western and Japanese residents of that city from the Boxers . The Chinese repulsed Seymour ' s force en route and forced him to retreat to Tianjin . ( See Seymour Expedition ) From 1898 to 1899 he was the military commissioner of Weihaiwei . The Seymour Expedition . Background . The Boxers were an anti - Christian , anti - foreign rural mass movement . Their objective was to rid China of foreign ( Western ) influence . In May and early June 1900 they advanced on Beijing . The Qing government of China was equivocal about the Boxers , fearing that they might become anti - Qing . The Boxers were a serious threat to Western and Japanese citizens and Chinese Christians living in Beijing , Tianjin , and other areas of northern China . The diplomatic Legations ( Embassies ) in Beijing requested that marines be sent to protect them and more than 400 from eight countries arrived in Beijing on 31 May . However , as the threat from the Boxers increased , it become apparent that additional soldiers were needed . On 9 June , Sir Claude Maxwell MacDonald the British Minister cabled Vice Admiral Edward Hobart Seymour , commander of the British Navy ' s China fleet , that the situation in Beijing " was hourly becoming more serious " and that " troops should be landed and all arrangements made for an advance to Peking [ Beijing ] at once . " On receipt of MacDonald ' s message , Seymour assembled within 24 hours a lightly armed force of 2 , 000 sailors and marines from Western and Japanese warships and prepared to embark for Beijing from Tianjin , 75 miles away , by train . His force consisted of 916 British , 455 Germans , 326 Russians , 158 French , 112 Americans , 54 Japanese , 41 Italians , and 26 Austrians . Seymour ' s Chief of Staff was Captain John Jellicoe . The Commander of the Americans in the expedition was Captain Bowman H . McCalla . The diplomats in Beijing anticipated that Seymour would arrive there on 11 June , but , instead , all communications were cut and the Seymour Expedition disappeared in the interior of China . Advance toward Beijing . Seymour commandeered five trains in Tianjin and departed for Beijing with his entire force the morning of 10 June . The first day the soldiers travelled twenty five miles without incident , crossing a bridge at Yancun over the Hai River unopposed although Chinese General Nie Shicheng and thousands of his soldiers were camped there . The next few days went slowly as Seymour had to repair railroad track and fight off Boxer attacks as his trains advanced . On 14 June , several hundred Boxers armed with swords , spears , and clumsy gingal s attacked Seymour twice and killed five Italian soldiers . The Americans counted 102 Boxer bodies left on the battlefield at the end of one battle . Seymour continued to repair track and advance very slowly . On 18 June , Seymour ' s army was suddenly attacked by several thousand well - armed Chinese Imperial soldiers – who had not opposed Seymour ' s passage a few days early . The foreign troops , especially the Germans , fought off the attack , reportedly killing hundreds of Chinese at a loss of seven dead and 57 wounded . However , the need to care for the wounded , a shortage of supplies and ammunition , and the likelihood of additional Chinese attacks forced Seymour and his officers to decide to retreat to Tianjin . The unexpected attack on Seymour by the Chinese army was prompted by an allied European and Japanese attack on the Dagu Forts two days previously . As a result of the attack in Dagu , the Chinese government had decided to resist Seymour ' s army and kill or expel all foreigners in northern China . The Retreat . Seymour turned his five trains around and headed back toward Tianjin . But , he found the bridge across the Hai River he had crossed a few days before now destroyed by the Boxers or the Chinese army . Seymour and the other officers then had a decision to make for the army : to cross the river by boat and walk 18 miles to Tianjin along the railroad or follow the river 30 miles to Tianjin . The sailors , perhaps more comfortable near water , chose to follow the river – although the railroad route was shorter and ran through open country . Along the heavily populated river banks were Boxer - infested villages every one - half mile . Seymour ' s retreat down the Hai River was slow and difficult , covering only three miles the first day . Additional casualties included Jellicoe who suffered a near fatal wound . By 22 June , the soldiers were out of food and down to less than 10 rounds of ammunition per man – except for the Americans who had brought ample ammunition . But , " there was no thought of surrender , " said Lt . Wurtzbaugh . " The intention was to fight to the last with the bayonet . " Seymour ' s 2 , 000 soldiers might have perished along the river except for good luck . On 23 June , six miles from Tianjin , Seymour came across the Xigu fort and arsenal which inexplicably was nearly undefended by Chinese soldiers . The foreign soldiers took refuge in the arsenal which contained a wealth of arms and ammunition and some food . Realizing its mistake in leaving the arsenal undefended , the Chinese army attempted to dislodge Seymour , now well - armed , but were unsuccessful . A Chinese servant of the British slipped through to Tianjin and requested rescue for Seymour . Two thousand allied soldiers marched out of the city to the arsenal on 25 June and next day escorted Seymour ' s men back to Tianjin . The Chinese did not oppose their passage . A missionary reported their arrival in Tianjin . " I shall never forget to my dying day , the long string of dusty travel - worn soldiers , who for a fortnight had been living on quarter rations , and fighting every day … the men were met by kind ladies with pails of tea which the poor fellows drunk as they had never drunk before – some bursting into tears . " Seymour ' s casualties were 62 dead and 232 wounded . The Seymour Expedition was " a serious failure . " Similar to many Western military officers Seymour underestimated his Chinese opponent , trusting that he would encounter little opposition en route to Beijing . Seymour ' s command . As of March 1901 , Seymour ' s command on the China Station in March 1901 consisted of : < nowiki > * * < / nowiki > Ordered home . ‡ Temporarily attached to China Station . Later life . Seymour was promoted to Admiral 24 May 1901 , and left China for the United Kingdom after transferring the command of the China station to Vice - Admiral Sir Cyprian Bridge . " Centurion " departed Hong Kong on 3 July 1901 and arrived at Portsmouth on 19 August 1901 , where she was welcomed by the Commander - in - Chief Admiral Sir Charles F . Hotham , and thousands of people lining the beach and pier . Admiral Seymour was honoured by a visit to the ship by the Lords of the Admiralty , and struck his flag on board the " Centurion " 21 August 1901 . In late September he was received in a personal audience by King Edward VII , who presented him with the insignia of a Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath ( GCB ) , which Seymour had been appointed in November the previous year . He was later promoted to Admiral of the Fleet . At the time of his death , he was the last living of the original ( 1902 ) members of the Order of Merit . Seymour Road . Seymour Road in the area of the Mid - levels , within Victoria City on Hong Kong Island was named after Edward Seymour .