Piracy

“It was written in their Koran, that all nations which had not acknowledged the Prophet were sinners, whom it was the right and duty of the faithful to plunder and enslave; and that every Muslim who was slain in this warfare was sure to go to paradise. He said, also, that the man who was the first to board a vessel had one slave over and above his share, and that when they sprang to the deck of an enemy's ship, every sailor held a dagger in each hand and a third in his mouth; which usually struck such terror into the foe that they cried out for quarter at once.” ~ Tripoli's envoy, Ambassador Sidi Haji Abdrahaman, 1786, in London, to US negotiators Thomas Jefferson, Ambassador to France, and John Adams, Ambassador to England.

The United States has a long history with African piracy. Why we tolerate it, today, I haven’t an idea, but a definite opinion. I doubt the Navy or Marines have changed.

After being inaugurated president, Thomas Jefferson sent Naval frigates to the Barbary Coast to deal with the pirates preying on American commerce. In August 1801, USS Enterprise defeated the Tripolitan Corsair Tripoli. Through 1802-03, Jefferson pressed the issue by deploying USS Argus, USS Chesapeake, USS Constellation, USS Constitution, USS Enterprise, USS Intrepid, USS Philadelphia and USS Syren, to the area. In October 1803, USS Philadelphia ran aground on an uncharted reef while pursuing an enemy vessel, was taken intact, and moved to Tripoli harbor. In February 1804, Navy Lt. Stephen Decatur recaptured and set fire to the ship, then captured the city. In April 1805, Marine Lt. Presley O’Bannon turned the war with his capture of Derna. In June 1805, a negotiated treaty ended the First Barbary War.

In 1807, Algiers again began raiding American ships and holding American seamen hostage, but dealing with them was delayed by the 1812 War with Britain. In 1815, the Second Barbary War began. In March of that year, Stephen Decatur, now Commodore, returned with a force of ships, capturing two Algierian ships, and negotiated a treaty with the Dey of Algiers. The treaty specified compensation from the Dey as well as the release of Americans and European hostages. When Decatur moved to Tunis to negotiate a similar treaty and enforce the existing treaty with Tripoli, the Dey repudiated the treaty. In 1816, a combined Anglo-Dutch fleet bombarded Algiers into submission, sending the threat from Barbary pirates into history.

Because of the Barbary pirates, Congress authorized the building of six frigates in 1794, including the USS United States, USS Constellation, and "Old Ironsides," the USS Constitution. From the actions in the First Barbary War, Stephen Decatur became the first American military hero since the Revolutionary War. Presley O’Bannon inspired the line of the Marine Hymn “to the shores of Tripoli,” the adoption of the Mameluke sword worn by Marine officers, and has had three Navy Destroyers named after him. The Marine Corp adopted uniforms with leather high collars for protect against saber slashes, leading to the nickname "Leathernecks." The Tripoli Monument, now at Annapolis, was the first US military monument and honors the heroes of the First Barbary War.

Is it not time for the Third Barbary War? It should be a short one. The Navy and Marine Corp are up to it, protecting the sea lanes is their job. The question remains: Do the politicians have the stones? With everyone in the world, especially the pirates, there is doubt.
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The USS Bainbridge (DDG-96) coming to aid of the Maersk Alabama is named for Commodore William Bainbridge, who commanded USS Phildelphia when she ran aground and was captured by the Algerians in 1803. Bainbridge spent 1803 to 1806 as a hostage of the Barbary pirates. Later, he commanded USS Constitution, Old Ironsides, and during the 1812 War, engaged HMS Java, sinking her. During the engagement, Java shot away the Constitution's helm, so Bainbridge salvaged the Java's helm before Java sank. Today, the helm of Old Ironsides is the one taken from Java.