View source for Barbary Wars

{{Short description|Wars in North Africa between the United States and the Barbary States, 1801-1805, 1815}}
{{Hatnote|For the articles examining each war individually, see [[First Barbary War]] and [[Second Barbary War]]. For an earlier Barbary war, see [[Dutch–Barbary war]].}}
{{Infobox military conflict
| conflict          = Barbary Wars
| partof            = 
| image             = Burning of the uss philadelphia.jpg
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| caption           = [[USS Philadelphia (1799)|USS ''Philadelphia'']] burning at the [[Second Battle of Tripoli Harbor|Battle of Tripoli Harbor]] during the [[First Barbary War]] in 1804
| date              = [[First Barbary War]]: May 10, 1801 – June 10, 1805 

[[Second Barbary War]]: June 17–19, 1815
| place             = [[Barbary Coast]], [[North Africa]] (modern-day [[Libya]], [[Algeria]], and [[Morocco]])
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| combatant1        = {{flag|United States|1795}}<br />{{flagdeco|Sweden|naval}} [[History of Sweden (1772–1809)|Sweden]] <small>(1800–1802)</small><br />{{nowrap|{{flagicon image|Flag of the Kingdom of Sicily (simplified).svg}} [[Kingdom of Sicily|Sicily]]<ref>{{cite web|url=https://sicilyjournal.com/2020/02/feb-16th-1804-america-sicily-attack-tripoli-harbor/ | title=Feb 16th, 1804 America & Sicily attack Barbary Coast Pirates &#124; Sicily Journal | date=18 February 2020 }}{{self-published inline|date=November 2024}}</ref> <small>(1801–1805)</small>}}
| combatant2        = {{flagicon image|Flag of Algiers.jpg}} [[Ottoman Algeria|Algiers]]<br />{{nowrap|[[File:Maritime flag of Regency of Tripoli (18th century).svg|23px|border]] [[Ottoman Tripolitania|Tripolitania]]}}<br />{{nowrap|{{flagdeco|Morocco|1666}} [[Alawi Sultanate|Morocco]]<ref>{{cite book|author=Joseph Wheelan|title=Jefferson's War: America's First War on Terror 1801–1805|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=7kl8t_8WWb4C&pg=PA128|date=21 September 2004|publisher=PublicAffairs|isbn=978-0-7867-4020-8|pages=128–}}</ref> <small>(1802–1804)</small>}}
| commander1        = {{plainlist|
*{{flagicon|US|1795}} [[Thomas Jefferson]]
*{{flagicon|US|1795}} [[James Madison]]
*{{flagicon|US|1795}} [[Richard Dale]]
*{{flagicon|US|1795}} [[Richard Valentine Morris|Richard Morris]]
*{{flagicon|US|1795}} [[William Eaton (soldier)|William Eaton]]
*{{flagicon|US|1795}} [[Edward Preble]]
*{{flagicon|US|1795}} [[William Shaler]]
*{{nowrap|{{flagicon|US|1795}} [[Stephen Decatur]]}}
*{{flagicon|Sweden|naval}} [[Gustav IV Adolf of Sweden|Gustav IV Adolf]]
*{{flagicon|Sweden|naval}} [[Rudolf Cederström]]
*{{flagicon image|Flag of the Kingdom of Sicily (simplified).svg}} [[Ferdinand I of the Two Sicilies|Ferdinand III]]
}}
| commander2        = {{plainlist|
*{{flagicon image|Flag of Algiers.jpg}} [[Omar Agha]]
*{{flagicon image|Flag of Algiers.jpg}} [[Raïs Hamidou]]{{KIA}}
*[[File:Maritime flag of Regency of Tripoli (18th century).svg|22px|class=noviewer|border]] [[Yusuf Karamanli]]
*[[File:Maritime flag of Regency of Tripoli (18th century).svg|22px|class=noviewer|border]] Rais Mahomet Rous
*[[File:Maritime flag of Regency of Tripoli (18th century).svg|22px|class=noviewer|border]] Hassan Bey
*[[File:Maritime flag of Regency of Tripoli (18th century).svg|22px|class=noviewer|border]] Shadi Nazmi Reis
*{{flagicon|Morocco|1666}} [[Slimane of Morocco]]
}}
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}}
{{Campaignbox First Barbary War}}
{{Campaignbox Second Barbary War}}
The '''Barbary Wars''' were a series of two wars fought by the [[United States]], [[Sweden]], and the [[Kingdom of Sicily]] against the [[Barbary states]] (including [[Beylik of Tunis|Tunis]], [[Regency of Algiers|Algiers]], and [[Ottoman Tripolitania|Tripoli]]) and Morocco of [[North Africa]] in the early 19th century. Sweden had been at war with the [[Ottoman Tripolitania|Tripolitans]] since 1800 and was joined by the newly independent United States.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.libertyclassroom.com/warpowers/|title=Presidential War Powers: The Constitutional Answer|author=Woods, Tom|access-date=9 July 2014|website=Libertyclassroom.com}}</ref>{{rs?|date=March 2024}} The [[First Barbary War]] extended from 10 May 1801 to 10 June 1805, with the [[Second Barbary War]] lasting only three days, ending on 19 June 1815. The Barbary Wars were the first major American wars fought entirely outside the [[New World]], and in the [[Arab World]].<ref>{{cite web | url=https://grc-usmcu.libguides.com/battle-studies/barbary-wars#:~:text=The%20Barbary%20War%20%2D%20the%20first,plundered%20seaborne%20commerce%20for%20centuries | title=Research Guides: Battle Studies, Country Studies, & Staff Rides: Barbary Wars & the Battle of Tripoli }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Barbary Wars |url=https://history.state.gov/milestones/1801-1829/barbary-wars |website=history.state.gov}}</ref>

The wars were largely a reaction to [[Barbary pirates|piracy by the Barbary states]]. Since the 16th century, North African pirates had captured ships and even raided European coastal areas across the [[Mediterranean Sea]]. Originally starting out with the goal of capturing individuals for the domestic North African slave trade, the focus later shifted to kidnapping for ransom. By the 19th century, pirate activity had declined, but Barbary pirates continued to demand tribute from American merchant vessels in the Mediterranean. Refusal to pay would result in the capture of American ships and goods, and often the enslavement or ransoming of crew members.

After [[Thomas Jefferson]] became president of the U.S. in March 1801, he sent a [[U.S. Navy]] fleet to the Mediterranean to combat the Barbary pirates. The fleet bombarded numerous fortified cities in present-day Libya, Tunisia, and Algeria, ultimately extracting concessions of [[safe conduct]] from the Barbary states and ending the first war. 

During the [[War of 1812]], with the encouragement of the [[United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland|United Kingdom]],<ref name="Spencer C. Tucker">{{cite book|author=Spencer C. Tucker|title=The Encyclopedia of the Wars of the Early American Republic, 1783–1812: A Political, Social, and Military History [3 volumes] A Political, Social, and Military History|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=sApvBAAAQBAJ&pg=PA33|year=2014|publisher=ABC-CLIO |isbn=978-1-59884-157-2|pages=33}}</ref> the Barbary corsairs resumed their attacks on American vessels. Following the conclusion of the War of 1812 and America's peace with Britain, [[James Madison]], Jefferson's successor, directed military forces against the Barbary states in the Second Barbary War. Lasting only three days, the second conflict ended the need for further [[tribute]] from the United States, granted the U.S. full shipping rights in the Mediterranean Sea, and significantly reduced incidents of piracy in the region.<ref name="The Barbary Treaties 1786-1816">{{Cite web|url=https://avalon.law.yale.edu/19th_century/bar1815t.asp|title=Avalon Project - The Barbary Treaties 1786-1816 - Treaty of Peace, Signed Algiers June 30 and July 3, 1815|website=avalon.law.yale.edu}}</ref>

==Background==
The [[Barbary corsair|Barbary corsairs]] were [[Piracy|pirates]] and [[privateer]]s who operated out of North Africa, based primarily in the ports of Tunis, Tripoli, and Algiers. This area was known in Europe as the [[Barbary Coast]], in reference to the [[Berbers]]. The corsairs predation covered the Mediterranean, and extended south along [[West Africa]]'s Atlantic, even to the eastern coast of Brazil,<ref>A 44-gun Algerian corsair appeared at Río de la Plata in 1720. {{cite book |last1=Duro |first1=Cesáreo Fernández |authorlink1=Cesáreo Fernández Duro |title=Armada española desde la unión de los reinos de Castilla y de León |volume=6 |page=185 |date=1900 |publisher=Est. tipográfico 'Sucesores de Rivadeneyra' |language=es |hdl=2027/mdp.39015036698689 |hdl-access=free |oclc=581732884 }}</ref> into the [[North Atlantic Ocean]] raiding the coasts of Ireland and western Britain, and going as far north as Iceland, but they primarily operated in the western Mediterranean. In addition to seizing ships, they engaged in ''[[Razzia (military)|razzias]]'', raids on European coastal towns and villages, mainly in Italy, France, [[Spanish Empire|Spain]], and Portugal, but also in [[Kingdom of England|England]], [[Kingdom of Scotland|Scotland]], the [[United Kingdom of the Netherlands|Netherlands]], Ireland, and as far away as Iceland. The main purpose of their attacks was to capture Europeans for the [[Barbary slave trade|slave market]] in North Africa.<ref name="bbc.co.uk">{{cite web |last1=Davis |first1=Robert |title=British Slaves on the Barbary Coast |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/history/british/empire_seapower/white_slaves_01.shtml |work=BBC History |date=17 February 2011 }}</ref>

The Barbary states were nominally part of the [[Ottoman Empire]], but in practice they were operating independently and the Ottoman government in Constantinople was not involved.{{sfn|Fremont-Barnes|2006|p=20}}

===Attacks===
Since the 1600s, the Barbary pirates had attacked British shipping along the northern coast of Africa, holding captives for ransom or enslaving them. Ransoms were generally raised by families and local church groups, including the Roman Catholic Church. The British became familiar with [[captivity narratives]] written by Barbary pirates' prisoners and slaves.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Colley |first1=Linda |title=Captives: Britain, Empire, and the World, 1600-1850 |date=2004 |publisher=Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group |isbn=978-0-385-72146-2 }}{{pn|date=November 2024}}</ref>

During the [[American Revolutionary War]], the pirates attacked American ships. On December 20, 1777, Morocco's sultan [[Mohammed III of Morocco|Mohammed III]] declared that merchant ships of the new American nation would be under the protection of the sultanate and could thus enjoy safe passage into the Mediterranean and along the coast. The [[Moroccan-American Treaty of Friendship]] stands as America's oldest unbroken friendship treaty<ref>{{cite book |last1=Roberts |first1=Priscilla H. |last2=Roberts |first2=Richard S. |title=Thomas Barclay (1728-1793): Consul in France, Diplomat in Barbary |date=2008 |publisher=Associated University Presse |isbn=978-0-934223-98-0 |pages=206–223 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://2009-2017.state.gov/s/d/rm/rls/perfrpt/2002/html/18995.htm |title=Milestones of American Diplomacy, Interesting Historical Notes, and Department of State History |access-date=2007-12-17 |work=U.S. Department of State }}</ref> with a foreign power. In 1787, Morocco became one of the first nations to recognize the United States.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.defenselink.mil/news/newsarticle.aspx?id=41811 |title=Cohen Renews U.S.-Morocco Ties |access-date=2009-03-12 |format=mil |work=U.S. Department of Defense }}</ref>

Starting in the 1780s, realizing that American vessels were no longer under the protection of the British [[Royal Navy]], the Barbary pirates seized American ships in the Mediterranean. In 1785, the U.S. had disbanded its [[Continental Navy]] and therefore had no seagoing military force, its government agreed in 1786 to pay tribute to stop the attacks.{{sfn|Fremont-Barnes|2006|pp=32-33}} On March 20, 1794, at the urging of President George Washington, Congress voted to authorize the building of [[Original six frigates of the United States Navy|six heavy frigates]] and establish the [[United States Navy]], in order to stop these attacks and the demands for more and more money.{{sfn|Fremont-Barnes|2006|p=33}} The United States had signed treaties with all of the Barbary states after its independence was recognized between 1786 and 1794 to pay tribute in exchange for leaving American merchantmen alone, and by 1797, the United States had paid out $1.25 million or a fifth of the government's annual budget in tribute.{{sfn|Fremont-Barnes|2006|pp=36-37}} These demands for tribute imposed a heavy financial drain and by 1799 the U.S. was in arrears of $140,000 to Algiers and some $150,000 to Tripoli.{{sfn|Fremont-Barnes|2006|p=37}} Many Americans resented these payments, arguing that the money would be better spent on a navy that would protect American ships from the attacks of the Barbary pirates, and in the [[1800 United States presidential election]], [[Thomas Jefferson]] won against incumbent second President [[John Adams]] in part by noting that the United States was "subjected to the spoliations of foreign cruisers" and was humiliated by paying "an enormous tribute to the petty tyrant of Algiers".{{sfn|Fremont-Barnes|2006|p=7}}

==History==

=== United States Mediterranean policy ===
{{Main|Algerian–American War (1785–1795)}}

[[File:Brigantine_Polly_of_Newburyport_Captured_by_Algerine_Pirates,_1793._American_Ships_VII.jpg|left|thumb|''Brigantine Polly of Newburyport Captured by Algerine Pirates'', 1793]]
After [[Bourbon Spain|Spain]] concluded a peace treaty with Algiers in their [[Spanish–Algerian War (1775–1785)|last war]] in 1785, the Algerian corsair captains entered the waters of the Atlantic and attacked American ships, refusing to release them except for large sums of money. Two American ships, the [[schooner]] ''Maria'', and the ''Dauphin'' were captured by Algerian pirates in July 1785 and the survivors forced into slavery, their ransom set at $60,000. A rumor that [[Benjamin Franklin]], who was en route from France to [[Philadelphia]] about that time, had been captured by Barbary pirates, caused considerable upset in the U.S.<ref>[[David McCullough]], ''[[John Adams (book)|John Adams]]'' (Simon & Schuster Paperbacks), 2001, p. 352.</ref>

The establishment of the U.S. Constitution in 1789 empowered the federal government to levy taxes and maintain a military, authorities previously absent under the Articles of Confederation. The nascent nation's first naval vessels were commissioned in 1794 to counter Algerian piracy.<ref>{{Cite web |last=U.S. Department of State. |date=November 2, 2024 |title=Barbary Wars |url=https://history.state.gov/milestones/1801-1829/barbary-wars |website=U.S. Department of State, Office Of The Historian}}</ref>

[[Thomas Jefferson]], who was elected to the presidency twice, was inclined to the idea of confronting Algiers with force.<ref name=":17">{{Cite book |last=Nowlan |first=Robert A. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=MlNWU1e9ppUC&pg=PA141 |title=The American Presidents, Washington to Tyler: What They Did, What They Said, What Was Said About Them, with Full Source Notes |date=2014-01-10 |publisher=McFarland |isbn=978-1-4766-0118-2 |pages=141 |language=en}}</ref> He wrote in his autobiography:<ref>{{Cite book |last=Cogliano |first=Francis D. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=aZazAwAAQBAJ&pg=PA69 |title=Emperor of Liberty: Thomas Jefferson's Foreign Policy |date=2014 |publisher=Yale University Press |isbn=978-0-300-17993-4 |pages=69 |language=en}}</ref>

{{Blockquote|text=I was very unwilling that we should acquiesce in the European humiliation of paying a tribute to those lawless pirates and endeavored to form an association of the powers subject to habitual depredations from them.}}
[[File:Map_of_Algiers.png|thumb|Map of Algiers during the Barbary wars, by [[Samuel Dunn (mathematician)|Samuel Dunn]] (1794)]]
A proposal was made to put up a coalition of naval [[warship]]s from nations at war with the [[Barbary states]], provided that naval operations would be directed against Algerian vessels in particular, and then impose a maritime [[blockade]] on North Africa.<ref>{{Harvsp|Cogliano|2014|p=68}}</ref> When this proposal was presented to the concerned countries, France refused, and Spain apologized for not accepting it, because of its recent treaty with Algiers. The proposal was favored by [[Kingdom of Portugal|Portugal]], [[Sovereign Military Order of Malta|Malta]], [[Kingdom of Naples|Naples]], [[Republic of Venice|Venice]], [[Denmark–Norway|Denmark]] and [[Kingdom of Sweden (1721-1809)|Sweden]]. But the project failed when the [[United States Congress|U.S. Congress]] objected to it for fear of its high financial costs, and more Algerian ships attacked American ships because of their lack of association with Algiers by any treaty in this period.<ref name="noor-book_353974">{{Harvsp|بوعزيز|2007|p=59}}</ref> Thus, on February 1, 1791, the U.S. Congress was forced to allocate $40,000 to free American captives in Algiers.<ref>{{Harvsp|Cogliano|2014|p=74}}</ref> But two years later, it passed the "[[Naval Act of 1794]]" on the need to establish a defensive naval fleet, but stipulated in one of its articles that the project be stopped if an agreement was reached with Algiers.{{sfn|Fremont-Barnes|2006|p=35}}

During the presidency of [[George Washington]] (April 30, 1789 – 1797), and after America failed to form an American-European alliance against the [[Maghreb]] countries, the U.S. announced its desire to establish friendly relations with Algiers in February 1792, and reported this to the Dey Hassan III Pasha, like how Great Britain bought peace and security for its ships.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Washington |first=George |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=hIlLAAAAYAAJ |title=The Papers of George Washington: September 1791-February 1792 |date=2000 |publisher=University Press of Virginia |isbn=978-0-8139-1922-5 |pages=403 |language=en}}</ref>

=== United States pays tribute to Algiers ===
[[File:معاهدة_الجزائر_(5_سبتمبر_1795).pdf|left|thumb|[[Treaty of Peace and Friendship between the United States and the Regency of Algiers|Treaty of Peace and Amity]] between the United States of America and Hasan Pasha, Dey of [[Regency of Algiers|Algiers]], his [[Divan|dîwân]], and his subjects: a scan of the original document handwritten in [[Osmanli]], signed September 5, 1795 in Algiers]]
When the American government began negotiating with Algiers,<ref name="Parton1872">{{cite magazine |last=Parton |first=James |date=October 1872 |title=Jefferson, American Minister in France |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=oUk6AQAAMAAJ&pg=PA413 |magazine=Atlantic Monthly |volume=30 |page=413}}</ref> the Dey asked for $2,435,000 as the price for the peace contract and the ransom of the prisoners,<ref>{{Harvsp|بوعزيز|2007|p=60}}</ref> then reduced the amount to $642,500 and $21,000 in military equipment that is presented to Algiers every year. Reconciliation took place between the two parties, and the ''dey'' pledged to work with [[Beylik of Tunis|Tunisia]] and [[Ottoman Tripolitania|Tripoli]], to also sign this treaty, and peace would be achieved for America in the entire Mediterranean basin. On September 5, 1795, American negotiator Joseph Donaldson signed a [[Treaty of Peace and Friendship between the United States and the Regency of Algiers|peace treaty]] with the ''dey'' of Algiers, with 22 articles that included an upfront payment of $642,500 in specie (''silver coinage'') for peace, the release of American captives, expenses, and various gifts for the ''dey's'' royal court and family.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Farber |first1=Hannah |title=Millions for Credit: Peace with Algiers and the Establishment of America's Commercial Reputation Overseas, 1795–96 |journal=Journal of the Early Republic |date=2014 |volume=34 |issue=2 |pages=187–217 |id={{Project MUSE|544540}} |doi=10.1353/jer.2014.0028 }}</ref> America suffered another humiliation when it sent tribute carried by the large armed [[frigate]] "[[USS George Washington (1798)|USS ''George Washington'' (1798)]]" to Algiers; Dey Mustapha Pasha forced U.S. commodore [[William Bainbridge]] to hoist an Ottoman Algerian flag over his warship before sailing to [[Constantinople]] carrying tribute to the Ottoman sultan in 1800.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Ray |first=William |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=UYRK0xK6gA0C&pg=PR16 |title=Horrors of Slavery, Or, the American Tars in Tripoli |date=2008 |publisher=Rutgers University Press |isbn=978-0-8135-4413-7 |pages=xvi |language=en}}
*{{Cite book |last=Oliver |first=Andrew |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=rmpjEAAAQBAJ&pg=PT50 |title=American Travelers on the Nile: Early US Visitors to Egypt, 1774-1839 |date=2015-01-01 |publisher=American University in Cairo Press |isbn=978-1-61797-632-2 |pages=50}}
*{{Cite book |last=Williams |first=Thomas |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=QJUCX7RcFW8C&pg=PA91 |title=The American Spirit: The Story of Commodore William Phillip Bainbridge |date=2010-10-18 |publisher=AuthorHouse |isbn=978-1-4520-7267-8 |pages=91 |language=en}}</ref> As Lieutenant and consul [[William Eaton (soldier)|William Eaton]] informed newly appointed [[United States Secretary of State|Secretary of State]] [[John Marshall]] in 1800, "It is a maxim of the Barbary States, that 'The Christians who would be on good terms with them must fight well or pay well.'"<ref>{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=4aIDAAAAYAAJ |title=The life of the late Gen. William Eaton |publisher=E. Merriam & Co. |year=1813 |pages=[https://archive.org/details/lifelategenwill00prengoog/page/n192 185]}} (principally collected from his correspondence and other manuscripts)</ref> 

America paid to Algiers during the presidency of George Washington and his successor, [[John Adams]] (1797-1801), $1,000,000, or a fifth of the government's annual budget, in tribute.{{sfn|Fremont-Barnes|2006|p=35}}

===First Barbary War (1801–1805)===
[[File:Stephen_Decatur's_Conflict_with_the_Algerine_at_Tripoli,_during_the_boarding_of_a_Tripolitan_gunboat_on_3_August_1804.tif|right|thumb|''Stephen Decatur's Conflict with the Algerine at Tripoli'', during the boarding of a Tripolitan gunboat on 3 August 1804]]
{{Main|First Barbary War}}

The First Barbary War (1801–1805), also known as the Tripolitian War or the Barbary Coast War, was the first of two wars fought by the alliance of the United States and several European countries<ref>{{cite web |date=2000 |title=Tripolitan War |url=http://www.encyclopedia.com/history/asia-and-africa/north-african-history/tripolitan-war |access-date=February 11, 2017 |publisher=[[Encyclopedia.com]] (from The Oxford Companion to American Military History)}}</ref><ref name="VeteranMuseum">{{cite web |title=War with the Barbary Pirates (Tripolitan War) |url=http://www.veteranmuseum.org/war-history/war-barbary-pirates-tripolitan-war |access-date=February 11, 2017 |website=veteranmuseum.org}}</ref> against the [[Northwest Africa]]n [[Muslim]] states known collectively as the Barbary states. These were Tripoli and Algiers, quasi-independent entities nominally belonging to the Ottoman Empire, and (briefly) the independent [[Alaouite dynasty|Sultanate]] of [[Morocco]]. This war began during Thomas Jefferson's term when he refused to pay an amount that greatly increased when he became president. A U.S. naval fleet was sent on May 13, 1801, under the command of Commodore [[Richard Dale]]. Other notable officers in the fleet included [[Stephen Decatur]], assigned to the frigate {{USS|Essex|1799|6}} and [[William Bainbridge]] in command of ''Essex'' which was attached to Commodore [[Richard Dale]]'s squadron which also included {{USS|Philadelphia|1799|2}}, {{USS|President|1800|2}} and {{USS|Enterprise|1799|2}}.<ref>[[Barbary Wars#CITEREFHarris1837|Harris, 1837]] pp.63–64, 251</ref>[[File:NH 65536-KN.jpg|thumb|Painting depicting the bombardment of Tripoli on 3 August 1804]]The ship ''Philadelphia'' was blockading [[Tripoli Harbor|Tripoli's harbor]] when she ran aground on an uncharted reef. Under fire from shore batteries and Tripolitan [[gunboat]]s, Captain [[William Bainbridge]] tried to refloat her by casting off all of her guns and other objects that weighed her down. The ship was eventually captured and the crew taken prisoners and enslaved. To prevent this powerful warship from being used by the Barbary pirates, the ship was later destroyed by a raiding party of American Marines and soldiers and allied sailors from the armed forces of [[Ferdinand I of the Two Sicilies|King Ferdinand]] of Sicily, led by Stephen Decatur.<ref>[[Barbary Wars#Tucker|Tucker, 1937]] p.57</ref><ref>[[Barbary Wars#Mackenzie|MacKenzie, 1846]] pp.331–335</ref>

A treaty was reached on June 30, 1805, under which America paid Algiers $60,000 ransom for the prisoners,<ref name=":17" /> and agreed to continue sending gifts to the ''dey'' and replace its consul with another one, then withdrew its fleet from the Mediterranean in 1807.<ref>{{Harvsp|بوعزيز|2007|p=61}}</ref> 

=== Second Barbary war ===
{{Main|Second Barbary War}}

[[File:Decatur_and_the_Dey_of_Algiers_(1881).jpg|right|thumb|Commodore Decatur and the ''dey'' of Algiers Haji Ali Pasha]]
When the [[War of 1812|war broke out]] between America and Britain in 1812, the regent on the British throne, [[George IV]], sent a letter to Dey [[Haji Ali (Dey of Algiers)|Haji Ali Pasha]] (1809-1815) confirming to him the bonds of friendship that united the two countries and declaring his country's readiness to defend Algiers against every aggressor as long as these ties remained. By that he intended to win over Algiers to Britain against America, or at least convince Algiers to adopt a position of [[Neutral country|neutrality]].<ref name=":18">{{Harvsp|Fremont-Barnes|2006|p=76}}</ref> Thus, the countries of Europe and the United States of America failed to ally against the countries of the Islamic Maghreb and Algiers in particular, and the matter so remained until the [[Napoleonic Wars]] ended in 1815. James Madison recommended that Congress declare the "existence of a state of war between the United States and the Dey and Regency of Algiers."<ref name=":18" /><ref name="auto1">{{cite web |last1=Elsea |first1=Jennifer K. |last2=Weed |first2=Matthew C. |date=April 18, 2014 |title=Declarations of War and Authorizations for the Use of Military Force: Historical Background and Legal Implications |url=https://sgp.fas.org/crs/natsec/RL31133.pdf |access-date=17 March 2023 |work=Congressional Research Service}}</ref> While Congress did not formally declare a state of war, they did pass legislation, enacted on March 3, 1815, that authorized the president to use the U.S. Navy, "as judged requisite by the President" to protect the "commerce and seamen" of the United States on the "Atlantic Ocean, the Mediterranean and adjoining seas."<ref name="auto1" /> Congress also authorized the president to grant the U.S. Navy the ability to seize all vessels and goods belonging to Algiers. The legislation also authorized the president to commission [[privateers]] for the same purpose.<ref name="auto1" />
[[File:Commodore_Decatur’s_Squadron_capturing_the_Algerian_pirate_ship_Mashuda,_on_17_June_1815_(NH_63488).jpg|thumb|Commodore Decatur's Squadron capturing the Algerian pirate ship Mashuda, on 17 June 1815. Mashuda, flagship of the Algerian Navy]]
During the reign of the Dey [[Omar Agha|Omar Pasha]] (1815-1817), American-Algerian relations worsened when the Dey began to demand an increase in the annual tribute. The Americans went to Algiers to fight under Commodore [[Stephen Decatur]],<ref name=":18" /> which culminated in the [[Battle off Cape Gata]] and the death of the famous [[Barbary corsair|corsair]] captain [[Raïs Hamidou]]. A letter to the ''dey'' followed on April 12, 1815 informing him of America's decision to enter into war against him and giving him the choice between peace and war after reminding him of the horrors of war and the advantages of peace and understanding.<ref>{{Harvsp|Fremont-Barnes|2006|p=77}}</ref> In the year 1816, Dey Omar answered this letter and offered America the renewal of the previous treaty concluded during the reign of Hassan Pasha (1791-1798). Madison answered him on August 21 and asked him to resume negotiations. These were renewed and ended with a peace agreement in favor of America. The ''dey'' was forced to pay $10,000 in compensation and to renounce all that America had been paying him.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Treaty of Peace, Signed Algiers June 30 and July 3, 1815 |url=https://avalon.law.yale.edu/19th_century/bar1815t.asp |access-date=February 4, 2022 |website=avalon.law.yale.edu |quote=ARTICLE 2d It is distinctly understood between the Contracting parties, that no tribute either as biennial presents, or under any other form or name whatever, shall ever be required by the Dey and Regency of Algiers from the United States of America on any pretext whatever.}}</ref>

==Effect in United States==
{{See also|Original six frigates of the United States Navy}}
When the United States military efforts of the early 19th century were successful against the pirates, partisans of the [[United States Democratic-Republican Party|Democratic-Republicans]] contrasted their presidents' refusals to buy off the pirates by paying tribute with the failure of the preceding [[United States Federalist Party|Federalist]] administration to suppress the piracy. The Federalist Party had adopted the slogan, "Millions for defense, but not one cent for tribute," but had failed to end the attacks on merchant ships. From 1796 to 1797 French raiders seized some 316 merchant ships flying American colors. To counter this ongoing advent, three frigates, {{USS|United States|1797|6}}, {{USS|Constitution}} and {{USS|Constellation|1797|6}}, were built to answer the call for security.<ref>{{Harvsp|Simmons| 2003|p=20}}</ref>

==See also==
* [[Algeria–United States relations]]
* [[American-Algerian War (1785-1795)]]
* [[Libya–United States relations]]
* [[Morocco–United States relations]]
* [[Ottoman Empire–United States relations]]
* [[Tunisia–United States relations]]
* [[Turkey–United States relations]]

==References==
{{reflist|30em}}

==Bibliography==
* {{cite book |last=Allen |first=Gardner Weld |ref=Allen |year=1905 |title=Our Navy and the Barbary Corsairs |url=https://archive.org/details/ournavybarbaryco00alle_0 |publisher=<br />Houghton Mifflin & Co., Boston, New York & Chicago |pages=[https://archive.org/details/ournavybarbaryco00alle_0/page/354 354]}} [https://archive.org/details/ournavyandbarba01allegoog E'book]
* {{cite book | last = Fremont-Barnes | first = Gregory | title= The Wars of the Barbary Pirates |location=London | publisher = Osprey | year = 2006 | url = https://archive.org/details/alshlwy141_yahoo_1805}}
* {{cite book |last=Harris |first=Gardner W. |year=1837 |title=The Life and Services of Commodore William Bainbridge, United States Navy |url=https://archive.org/details/lifeandservices01harrgoog |publisher=<br />:Carey Lea & Blanchard, New York |pages=[https://archive.org/details/lifeandservices01harrgoog/page/n260 254]}}. [https://archive.org/stream/lifeandservices01harrgoog#page/n14/mode/2up E'book]
* {{cite book |last=Leiner |first=Frederic C. |year=2007 |ref=Leiner |title=The End of Barbary Terror, America's 1815 War Against the Pirates of North Africa |publisher=Oxford University Press |pages=240 |isbn=978-0-19-532540-9}} [http://www.oup.com/us/catalog/general/subject/HistoryAmerican/Early19thCentury/?view=usa&ci=9780195325409 Book (<small>par view</small>)] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121019174425/http://www.oup.com/us/catalog/general/subject/HistoryAmerican/Early19thCentury/?view=usa&ci=9780195325409 |date=2012-10-19 }}
*{{cite book |last=Mackenzie |first=Alexander Slidell |title=Life of Stephen Decatur: a commodore in the Navy of the United States |url=https://archive.org/details/bub_gb_B7BCAAAAYAAJ |ref=Mackenzie  |year=1846 |publisher=C. C. Little and J. Brown, 1846}}
*{{cite book |last=Simmons |first=Edwin H. |title=The United States Marines: A History |url=https://archive.org/details/unitedstatesmari0000simm_r8b9 |url-access=registration |publisher=Naval Institute Press |year=2003 |pages=[https://archive.org/details/unitedstatesmari0000simm_r8b9/page/405 405] |isbn=9781557508683}}, [https://archive.org/details/unitedstatesmari0000simm_r8b9 Book (par view)]
*{{cite book |last=Tucker |first=Spencer |title=Stephen Decatur: a life most bold and daring |ref=Tucker |year=2004 |publisher=Naval Institute Press, 2004, Annapolis, Maryland |pages=245 |isbn=1-55750-999-9}} [https://books.google.com/books?id=1ETOxH58_kUC& Book (par view)]
** {{Cite book |last=بوعزيز |first=يحيى |url=https://bplpdjelfa.dz/opac/index.php?p=show_detail&id=3970&keywords= |title=الموجز في تاريخ الجزائر - الجزء الثاني (Brief history of Algeria - Part Two) |publisher=ديوان المطبوعات الجامعية |year=2007 |location=الجزائر |isbn=978-9961-0-1045-7 |language=Ar}}

==Further reading==
{{refbegin|30em}}
* Allison, Robert. ''The Crescent Obscured: The United States and the Muslim World, 1776-1815'' (2000)
* Bak, Greg. ''Barbary Pirate: The Life and Crimes of John Ward'' (The History Press, 2010) about [[Jack Ward]] in earlier times.
* {{cite journal |last1=Banham |first1=Cynthia |last2=Goodin |first2=Brett |title=Negotiating Liberty: The Use of Political Opportunities and Civil Society by Barbary State Captives and Guantánamo Bay Detainees |journal=Australian Journal of Politics & History |date=June 2016 |volume=62 |issue=2 |pages=171–185 |doi=10.1111/ajph.12243 |hdl=1885/109251 |hdl-access=free }}
* Boot, Max. ''The Savage Wars of Peace: Small Wars and the Rise of American Power.'' New York: Basic Books, 2002. {{ISBN|0-465-00720-1}}
* {{cite journal |last1=Bow |first1=C. B. |title=Waging War for the Righteous: William Eaton on Enlightenment, Empire, and Coup d'état in the First Barbary War, 1801–1805 |journal=History |date=December 2016 |volume=101 |issue=348 |pages=692–709 |doi=10.1111/1468-229X.12324 }}
* Castor, Henry. ''The Tripolitan war, 1801-1805; America meets the menace of the Barbary pirates'' (1971) [https://archive.org/details/tripolitanwar18000cast online]
* Chidsey, Donald Barr. ''The wars in Barbary; Arab piracy and the birth of the United States Navy'' (1971) [https://archive.org/details/warsinbarbaryara00chid/page/n7/mode/2up online], popular history
* {{cite journal |last1=Colás |first1=Alejandro |title=Barbary Coast in the expansion of international society: Piracy, privateering, and corsairing as primary institutions |journal=Review of International Studies |date=2016 |volume=42 |issue=5 |pages=840–857 |doi=10.1017/S0260210516000152 |jstor=26618692 }}
* {{cite journal |last1=Crane |first1=Jacob |title=Barbary(an) Invasions: The North African Figure in Republican Print Culture |journal=Early American Literature |date=2015 |volume=50 |issue=2 |pages=331–358 |doi=10.1353/eal.2015.0036 |jstor=24476792 }}
* {{cite journal |last1=Crane |first1=Jacob |title=Peter Parley in Tripoli: Barbary Slavery and Imaginary Citizenship |journal=ESQ |date=2019 |volume=65 |issue=3 |pages=512–550 |doi=10.1353/esq.2019.0013 |id={{Project MUSE|743371}} }}
* Davis, Robert C. ''Christian slaves, Muslim masters: white slavery in the Mediterranean, the Barbary Coast, and Italy, 1500-1800'' (2004) [https://archive.org/details/trent_0116405722392 online]
* Edwards, Samuel.  ''Barbary General: the life of William H. Eaton''  (1968) [https://archive.org/details/barbarygeneralli00gers online], popular history
* {{cite journal |last1=Fullmer |first1=Jason |title=Jeffersonian Nationalism vs. Enlightenment: Securing American Core Values amidst the Barbary Wars, 1801–1809 |journal=Crescast Scientia |date=2016 |pages=37–54 |url=https://www.uvu.edu/hps/docs/crescat/2016/2016crescat.pdf#page=47 }}
* Gawalt, Gerard W.  "America and the Barbary pirates: An international battle against an unconventional foe." ''Thomas Jefferson Papers'' (Library of Congress, 2011) [https://web.archive.org/web/20171027125639/http://solaleworks.com/islam/America_and_the_Barbary_Pirates.pdf online].
* Jamieson, Alan G. ''Lords of the sea: a history of the Barbary corsairs'' (Reaktion Books, 2013).
* Kilmeade, Brian and Yeager, Don. "Thomas Jefferson and the Tripoli Pirates" (Sentinel, 2015)
* Kitzen, Michael L. S. ''Tripoli and the United States at War: A History of American Relations with the Barbary States, 1785-1805'' (McFarland, 1993).
* Lambert, Frank. ''The Barbary Wars''. (Hill and Wang, 2005).
* Lardas, Mark. ''American Light and Medium Frigates 1794–1836'' (Bloomsbury Publishing, 2012).
* London, Joshua E. ''Victory in Tripoli: How America's War with the Barbary Pirates Established the U.S. Navy and Shaped a Nation''. (John Wiley & Sons,  2005). {{ISBN|0-471-44415-4}}
* Mullen, Abigail. ''To Fix a National Character: The United States in the First Barbary War, 1800-1805''. (Johns Hopkins University Press, 2024)
* {{cite journal |last1=Murphy |first1=Martin N. |title=The Barbary Pirates |journal=Mediterranean Quarterly |date=2013 |volume=24 |issue=4 |pages=19–42 |doi=10.1215/10474552-2380524 |id={{Project MUSE|532906}} }}
* Oren, Michael B. ''Power, Faith, and Fantasy: America in the Middle East, 1776 to the Present'' (2007)
* {{cite journal |last1=Page |first1=Kate |title=Those Pirates and Muslim Barbarians: The American Public View of the Barbary Nations and the United States Participation in the Barbary War |journal=Fairmount Folio: Journal of History |date=2011 |volume=13 |url=https://journals.wichita.edu/index.php/ff/article/view/134 }}
* {{cite book |doi=10.1163/9789047404286 |title=Barbary Corsairs |date=2005 |last1=Panzac |first1=Daniel |isbn=978-90-474-0428-6 }}
* Peskin, Lawrence A. ''Captives and Countrymen: Barbary Slavery and the American Public, 1785–1816'' (Johns Hopkins University Press. 2009). 256pp
* {{cite journal |last1=Rejeb |first1=Lotfi Ben |title='The general belief of the world': Barbary as genre and discourse in Mediterranean history |journal=European Review of History |date=February 2012 |volume=19 |issue=1 |pages=15–31 |doi=10.1080/13507486.2012.643607 }}
* {{cite book |last1=Ribeiro |first1=Jorge Martins |chapter=Conflict and peace in the Mediterranean: barbary privateering in the late 18th and early 19th centuries |pages=159–176 |hdl=10216/86826 |hdl-access=free |editor1-last=D'Angelo |editor1-first=G. |editor2-last=Martins Ribeiro |editor2-first=J. |date=2016 |title=Conflicts in the Mediterranean Basin |location=Fisciano, Italy |publisher=ICSR Mediterranean Knowledge |isbn=978-88-99662-01-1 }}
* {{cite journal |last1=Sayre |first1=Gordon M. |title=Renegades from Barbary: The Transnational Turn in Captivity Studies |journal=American Literary History |date=2010 |volume=22 |issue=2 |pages=347–359 |doi=10.1093/alh/ajq009 |jstor=40800561 }}
* {{cite journal |last1=Schifalacqua |first1=John |title=James Madison and America's First Encounter with Islam: Tracing James Madison's Engagement with Barbary Affairs Through the 1st Barbary War |journal=Penn History Review |volume=21 |issue=1 |date=2014 |ssrn=3287536 }}
* Tinniswood, Adrian. ''Pirates of Barbary: Corsairs, Conquests and Captivity in the Seventeenth-Century Mediterranean'' ( Riverhead, 2010), about the earlier period.
* {{cite book |last1=Turner |first1=Robert F |chapter=President Thomas Jefferson and the Barbary Pirates |pages=157–172 |editor1-last=Elleman |editor1-first=Bruce A. |editor2-last=Forbes |editor2-first=Andrew |editor3-last=Rosenberg |editor3-first=David |title=Piracy and Maritime Crime: Historical and Modern Case Studies |date=2010 |publisher=Naval War College Press |isbn=978-1-884733-65-9 }}
* {{cite journal |last1=Vick |first1=Brian |title=Power, Humanitarianism and the Global Liberal Order: Abolition and the Barbary Corsairs in the Vienna Congress System |journal=The International History Review |date=8 August 2018 |volume=40 |issue=4 |pages=939–960 |doi=10.1080/07075332.2017.1344723 }}
* {{cite book |last1=Walther |first1=Karine V. |title=Sacred Interests: The United States and the Islamic World, 1821-1921 |date=2015 |publisher=UNC Press Books |isbn=978-1-4696-2540-9 }}
* Whipple, A. B. C. ''To the Shores of Tripoli: The Birth of the U.S. Navy and Marines''. Bluejacket Books, 1991. {{ISBN|1-55750-966-2}}
* {{cite journal |last1=Wolfe |first1=Stephen |title=Borders, Bodies, and Writing: American Barbary Coast Captivity Narratives, 1816-1819 |journal=American Studies in Scandinavia |date=September 2011 |volume=43 |issue=2 |pages=5–30 |doi=10.22439/asca.v43i2.4374 }}
* Wright, Louis B. and Julia H Macleod. ''The First Americans in North Africa: William Eaton's Struggle for a Vigorous Policy Against the Barbary Pirates, 1799–1805'' (Princeton UP, 1945), 227pp
{{refend}}

===Secondary sources===
* {{cite book |editor1-last=Baepler |editor1-first=Paul |title=White Slaves, African Masters: An Anthology of American Barbary Captivity Narratives |date=1999 |publisher=University of Chicago Press |isbn=978-0-226-03404-1 }}

==External links==
* [http://www.clements.umich.edu/exhibits/online/barbary/barbary-introduction.php The Barbary Wars at the Clements Library]:An online exhibit on the Barbary Wars with images and transcriptions of primary documents from the period.
{{Pirates}}

[[Category:Barbary Wars| ]]
[[Category:19th-century conflicts]]
[[Category:History of international relations]]
[[Category:History of the foreign relations of the United States]]
[[Category:19th century in Africa]]
[[Category:1800s in the United States]]
[[Category:1815 in the United States]]
[[Category:Piracy in the Mediterranean]]
[[Category:Wars involving the United States]]
[[Category:United States Marine Corps in the 18th and 19th centuries]]
[[Category:Anti-slavery military operations]]