The Yuanmingyuan was not burned by Eight-Nation Alliance, but burned by the allied forces of Britain and France in 186. Yuanmingyuan is a large-scale imperial garden in China in the Qing Dynasty. It is located in Beijing. It consists of Yuanmingyuan and its attached gardens, Chunyuan Garden and Qichun Garden (later renamed Wanchun Garden). It is known as the "Garden of Ten Thousand Gardens".

The Yuanmingyuan was built in 177 (the 46th year of Kangxi), covering an area of 3.5 square kilometers, with a building area of 2, square meters and more than 15 scenic spots. It was originally given to Yin Zhen, the fourth son of Emperor Kangxi. Kangxi inscribed "Yuanmingyuan" for it, and "Yuanming" was the name of Yongzheng. After Yongzheng ascended the throne in 1722, the original Garden was expanded, and the Zhengda Guangming Hall, Qinzheng Hall and many value rooms of the Cabinet, Sixth Department and military department were built in the south of the Garden, hoping to "avoid the noise and listen to politics" here in summer.

On October 6th, 186, the British and French allied forces burned the Yuanmingyuan. Emperor Tongzhi wanted to repair it, but was forced to stop because of financial difficulties. After Eight-Nation Alliance, Yuanmingyuan was destroyed by warlords and hit by bandits, and finally became a ruin. Afterwards, according to the investigation of Qing officials, some buildings of Qingyi Garden in Wanshou Mountain, Jingyi Garden in Xiangshan Mountain and Jingming Garden in Yuquan Mountain were burned. Yuanmingyuan and its nearby Qingyi Garden, Jingming Garden, Jingyi Garden, Changchun Garden and Haidian Town were all burned.