The Boxer Rebellion in China began in 1900 , and a number of western nations — including many European powers , the United States , and Japan — soon sent forces as part of the China Field Force to protect their interests . In June , the British government sought permission from the Australian colonies to dispatch ships from the Australian Squadron to China . The colonies also offered to assist further , but as most of their troops were still engaged in South Africa , they had to rely on naval forces for manpower . The force dispatched was a modest one , with Britain accepting 200 men from Victoria , 260 from New South Wales and the South Australian ship HMCS Protector , under the command of Captain William Creswell . Most of these forces were made up of naval brigade reservists , who had been trained in both ship handling and soldiering to fulfil their coastal defence role . Amongst the naval contingent from New South Wales were 200 naval officers and sailors and 50 permanent soldiers headquartered at Victoria Barracks , Sydney who originally enlisted for the Second Boer War . The soldiers were keen to go to China but refused to be enlisted as sailors , while the New South Wales Naval Brigade objected to having soldiers in their ranks . The Army and Navy compromised and titled the contingent the NSW Marine Light Infantry .