Ma Haiyan was a muslim General of the Qing Dynasty

Qing Dynasty

The Qing Dynasty was the last dynasty of China, ruling from 1644 to 1912 with a brief, abortive restoration in 1917. It was preceded by the Ming Dynasty and followed by the Republic of China....

. Originally a Salar rebel, he defected to Qing government during the Dungan revolt and helped crush revolt Dungans.

He was the father of Ma Qi

Ma Qi

Ma Qi was a Chinese Muslim warlord in early 20th century China.-Early life:His grandfather Sa-la Ma , is a Salar. He was born in 1869 in Daohe, now part of Linxia, Gansu, China. His father was Ma Haiyan...

 and Ma Lin (warlord)

Ma Lin (warlord)

Ma Lin, , chairman of the government of Qinghai ; brother of Ma Qi. A Muslim born in 1873, Linxia, Gansu, China, he mainly succeeded to the posts of his brother, being general of southeastern Gansu province, as well as councillor of the Qinghai provincial government and acting head of the...

. He fought against the foreign eight nation alliance in the Boxer Rebellion

Boxer Rebellion

The Boxer Rebellion, also called the Boxer Uprising by some historians or the Righteous Harmony Society Movement in northern China, was a proto-nationalist movement by the "Righteous Harmony Society" , or "Righteous Fists of Harmony" or "Society of Righteous and Harmonious Fists" , in China between...

, defeating them at Battle of Langfang

Battle of Langfang

The Seymour Expedition, also known as the First Intervention, was an attempt by a multi-national military force to march to Beijing and protect the diplomatic legations and foreign nationals in the city from attacks by Boxers in 1900...

, and died of natural causes while he and the Kansu Braves were escorting the Imperial family to safety. His son Ma Qi took over his posts.