A Historian's Look at the Boxer Rebellion Practice To understand history, scholars use a variety of primary source and secondary source materials. Historians often use primary sources to create secondary sources that present a historical interpretation. Later, other historians may study these secondary sources to create even more secondary sources, such as textbooks, magazine and newspaper articles, and historical books. This process results in a deeper and richer understanding of history. In this activity, you'll read one historian's interpretation of the Boxer Rebellion. You will use this text to analyze the author's approach to historical interpretation.