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169-739: Peace treaty The First Barbary War (1801–1805), also known as the Tripolitan War and the Barbary Coast War , was a conflict during the 1801–1815 Barbary Wars , in which the United States and Sweden fought against Ottoman Tripolitania . Tripolitania had declared war against Sweden and the United States over disputes regarding tributary payments made by both states in exchange for a cessation of Tripolitanian commerce raiding at sea. United States President Thomas Jefferson refused to pay this tribute. Sweden had been at war with

338-453: A dame school , conducted at a teacher's home and centered on The New England Primer . He then attended Braintree Latin School under Joseph Cleverly, where studies included Latin, rhetoric, logic, and arithmetic. Adams's early education included incidents of truancy, a dislike for his master, and a desire to become a farmer, but his father commanded that he remain in school. Deacon Adams hired

507-419: A de facto Secretary of War. He kept extensive correspondences with Continental Army officers concerning supplies, munitions, and tactics. Adams emphasized to them the role of discipline in keeping an army orderly. He authored the "Plan of Treaties," laying out Congress's requirements for a treaty with France. He was worn out by the rigor of his duties and longed to return home. His finances were unsteady, and

676-610: A treaty ending hostilities on 10 June 1805. Article 2 of the treaty reads: The Bashaw of Tripoli shall deliver up to the American squadron now off Tripoli, all the Americans in his possession; and all the subjects of the Bashaw of Tripoli now in the power of the United States of America shall be delivered up to him; and as the number of Americans in possession of the Bashaw of Tripoli amounts to three hundred persons, more or less; and

845-648: A commercial treaty with France. He was appointed, along with Franklin, Dickinson, Benjamin Harrison from Virginia , and Robert Morris from Pennsylvania , "to prepare a plan of treaties to be proposed to foreign powers." While Jefferson was writing the Declaration of Independence, Adams worked on the Model Treaty , which authorized a commercial agreement with France but contained no provisions for formal recognition or military assistance. The treaty adhered to

1014-498: A continuing correspondence. He and Abigail started the Adams political family , which includes their son John Quincy Adams , the sixth president. John Adams died on July 4, 1826 – the fiftieth anniversary of the adoption of the Declaration of Independence. New Englanders Adams and his son are the only presidents of the first twelve who never owned slaves . Historians and scholars have favorably ranked his administration . John Adams

1183-481: A distinction between paying tribute and paying ransom . At the time, some argued that buying sailors out of slavery was a fair exchange to end the war. William Eaton, however, remained bitter for the rest of his life about the treaty, feeling that his efforts had been squandered by the American emissary from the United States Department of State , diplomat Tobias Lear . Eaton and others felt that

1352-713: A formal authorization of anti-piracy efforts, Congress passed "An act for the protection of commerce and seamen of the United States against the Tripolitan cruisers", authorizing the President to "employ such of the armed vessels of the United States as may be judged requisite... for protecting effectually the commerce and seamen thereof on the Atlantic Ocean, the Mediterranean and adjoining seas." The statute authorized American ships to seize vessels belonging to

1521-513: A formal declaration of war, it authorized the President to instruct the commanders of armed American vessels to seize all vessels and goods of the Pasha of Tripoli "and also to cause to be done all such other acts of precaution or hostility as the state of war will justify." The American squadron joined a Swedish flotilla under Rudolf Cederström in blockading Tripoli, the Swedes having been at war with

1690-487: A heavy financial drain and by 1799 the U.S. was in arrears of $ 140,000 to Algiers and some $ 150,000 to Tripoli. 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

1859-645: A homesick Charles returned home with Adams's friend Benjamin Waterhouse . In August, shortly after being removed from his position of sole head of peace treaty negotiations, Adams had "a major nervous breakdown." That November, he learned that American and French troops had decisively defeated the British at Yorktown . The victory was in large part due to the assistance of the French Navy, which vindicated Adams's stand for increased naval assistance. News of

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2028-537: A joke which soon became popular. On May 14, 1789, the Senate decided that the title of " Mr. President " would be used. Privately, Adams conceded that his vice presidency had begun poorly and that perhaps he had been out of the country too long to know the sentiment of the people. Washington quietly expressed his displeasure with the fuss. As vice president, Adams largely sided with the Washington administration and

2197-456: A lack of news of progress from home. The news he received of tumult at home, such as Shays' Rebellion , heightened his anxiety. He asked Jay to be relieved; in 1788, he took his leave of George III, who promised to uphold his end of the treaty once America did the same. Adams then went to The Hague to take formal leave of his ambassadorship there and to secure refinancing from the Dutch, allowing

2366-627: A larger house in Brattle Square in the center of the city. In 1768, Adams successfully defended the merchant John Hancock , who was accused of violating British acts of trade in the Liberty Affair . With the death of Jeremiah Gridley and the mental collapse of James Otis Jr. , Adams became Boston's most prominent lawyer. Britain's passage of the Townshend Acts in 1767 revived tensions, and an increase in mob violence led

2535-674: A list of people specifically excluded from Howe's pardon-granting authority. Adams was unimpressed with Howe and predicted American success. He was able to return home to Braintree in October before leaving in January 1777 to resume his duties in Congress. Adams advocated in Congress that independence was necessary to establish trade, and conversely, trade was essential for the attainment of independence; he specifically urged negotiation of

2704-665: A maritime blockade on North Africa. 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 Portugal , Malta , Naples , Venice , Denmark and Sweden . But the project failed when the US 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. Thus, in February 1, 1791,

2873-484: A minor role in politics as vice president. He attended few cabinet meetings, and the President sought his counsel infrequently. While Adams brought energy and dedication to the office, by mid-1789 he had already found it "not quite adapted to my character ... too inactive, and mechanical." He wrote, "My country has in its wisdom contrived for me the most insignificant office that ever the invention of man contrived or his imagination conceived." Adams's initial behavior in

3042-763: A model for other towns. Adams also reprised his pen name "Humphrey Ploughjogger" in opposition to the Stamp Act in August of that year. Included were four articles to the Boston Gazette . The articles were republished in The London Chronicle in 1768 as True Sentiments of America , or A Dissertation on the Canon and Feudal Law . He also spoke in December before the governor and council, pronouncing

3211-411: A new schoolmaster named Joseph Marsh, and his son responded positively. Adams later noted that "As a child I enjoyed perhaps the greatest of blessings that can be bestowed upon men – that of a mother who was anxious and capable to form the characters of her children." At age sixteen, Adams entered Harvard College in 1751, studying under Joseph Mayhew . As an adult, Adams was a keen scholar, studying

3380-487: A packed jury. Not only were several jurors closely tied through business arrangements to the British army, but five ultimately became Loyalist exiles." While Adams's defense was helped by a weak prosecution, he "performed brilliantly." Ferling surmises that Adams was encouraged to take the case in exchange for political office; one of Boston's seats opened three months later in the Massachusetts legislature , and Adams

3549-519: 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. When the United States military efforts of the early 19th century were successful against the pirates, partisans of the Democratic-Republicans contrasted their presidents' refusals to buy off the pirates by paying tribute with the failure of the preceding Federalist administration to suppress

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3718-514: A permanent part of the United States government and United States history, and Decatur returned to the United States as its first post-revolutionary war hero. However, the more immediate problem of Barbary piracy was not fully settled. By 1807, Algiers had reassembled its fleets and resumed taking American ships and seamen hostage. Distracted by the preludes to the War of 1812, the United States

3887-465: A port walled fortress city protected by 150 pieces of heavy artillery and manned by 25,000 soldiers, assisted by a fleet of 10 ten-gunned brigs, 2 eight-gun schooners, two large galleys , and 19 gunboats . The first action of the campaign took place on 1 August 1801, when the armed schooner Enterprise (commanded by Lieutenant Andrew Sterret) defeated the 14-gun Tripolitan corsair Tripoli in battle . In 1802, in response to Jefferson's request for

4056-614: A position of neutrality . 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." While Congress did not formally declare

4225-653: A rapport with delegate Thomas Jefferson of Virginia, who had been slower to support independence but by early 1776 agreed that it was necessary. On June 7, 1776, Adams seconded the Lee Resolution , which stated that the colonies were "free and independent states." Prior to independence being declared, Adams organized a Committee of Five charged with drafting a Declaration of Independence . He chose himself, Jefferson, Benjamin Franklin, Robert R. Livingston and Roger Sherman . Jefferson thought Adams should write

4394-538: A reaction to 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

4563-571: A slave. One such example was James Leander Cathcart , who rose to the highest position a Christian slave could achieve in Algeria, becoming an adviser to the dey (governor). Even so, most captives could expect little more than lives of hard labor and abuse, and struggled under extremely poor conditions that exposed them to vermin and disease. As word of their treatment reached the United States, through freed captives' narratives and letters, Americans pushed for Congress to take military action against

4732-440: 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." 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

4901-465: A tie-breaking vote. Early in his term, Adams became deeply involved in a lengthy Senate controversy over the official titles for the president and executive officers of the new government. Although the House agreed that the president should be addressed simply as "George Washington, President of the United States", the Senate debated the issue at some length. Adams favored the style of Highness (as well as

5070-499: A town meeting of Braintree elected Adams as a selectman. With the repeal of the Stamp Act in early 1766, tensions with Britain temporarily eased. Putting politics aside, Adams moved his family to Boston in April 1768 to focus on his law practice. The family rented a house on Brattle Street that was known locally as the "White House". He, Abigail, and the children lived there for a year, then moved to Cold Lane; later they moved again to

5239-748: The Berbers . The corsairs predation covered the Mediterranean, and extended south along West Africa 's Atlantic, even to the eastern coast of Brazil, 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 razzias , raids on European coastal towns and villages, mainly in Italy, France, Spain , and Portugal, but also in England , Scotland ,

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5408-718: The Bey of Tripoli , with the captured property distributed to those who brought the vessels into port. The United States Navy went unchallenged on the sea, but the question of how far to push the conflict remained. Jefferson pressed the issue the following year, with an increase in military force and deployment of many of the navy's best ships to the region throughout 1802. USS  Argus , Chesapeake , Constellation , USS  Constitution , Enterprise , Intrepid , Philadelphia , Vixen , President , Congress , Essex , John Adams , Nautilus , Scourge , Syren , and Hornet (joined in 1805) all saw service during

5577-596: The Boston arrived in France, where Adams learned that France had agreed to an alliance with the United States on February 6. Adams was annoyed by the other two commissioners: Lee, whom he thought paranoid and cynical, and the popular and influential Franklin, whom he found lethargic and overly deferential to the French. He assumed a less visible role but helped manage the delegation's finances and record-keeping. Frustrated by

5746-568: 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. Thomas Jefferson , who was elected to the presidency twice, was inclined to the idea of confronting Algiers with force. He wrote in his autobiography: I

5915-615: The Founding Fathers , persistently held that while British actions against the colonies had been wrong, open insurrection was unwarranted and peaceful petition with the view of remaining part of Great Britain was preferable. His ideas began to change around 1772, as the British Crown assumed payment of the salaries of Governor Thomas Hutchinson and his judges instead of the Massachusetts legislature. Adams wrote in

6084-664: The Gazette that these measures would destroy judicial independence and place the colonial government in closer subjugation to the Crown. After discontent among members of the legislature, Hutchinson delivered a speech warning that Parliament's powers over the colonies were absolute and that any resistance was illegal. John Adams, Samuel, and Joseph Hawley drafted a resolution adopted by the House of Representatives threatening independence as an alternative to tyranny. The resolution argued that

6253-532: 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. When the American government began negotiating with Algiers, the Dey asked for $ 2,435,000 as the price for the peace contract and the ransom of the prisoners, then reduced

6422-823: The Naval Monument , it was carved of Carrara marble in Italy in 1806 and brought to the United States on board Constitution ("Old Ironsides"). From its original location in the Washington Navy Yard , it was moved to the west terrace of the national Capitol and finally, in 1860, to the United States Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland . 32°57′29″N 13°09′50″E  /  32.958°N 13.164°E  / 32.958; 13.164 Barbary Wars The wars were largely

6591-712: The Netherlands , Ireland, and as far away as Iceland. The main purpose of their attacks was to capture Europeans for the slave market in North Africa. 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. Since the 1600s, the Barbary pirates had attacked British shipping along

6760-489: The Old World . During the divisive 1800 presidential election , Thomas Jefferson defeated incumbent President John Adams. Jefferson was sworn into office on March 4, 1801. The new President was now poised to order naval actions against the Barbary states. Just before Jefferson's inauguration in 1801, Congress passed naval legislation that, among other things, provided for six frigates that "shall be officered and manned as

6929-484: The Staten Island Peace Conference on September 11. Howe's authority was premised on the states' submission, so the parties found no common ground. When Lord Howe stated he could view the American delegates only as British subjects, Adams replied, "Your lordship may consider me in what light you please, ... except that of a British subject." Adams learned many years later that his name was on

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7098-512: The United States Navy , in order to stop these attacks and the demands for more and more money. 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. These demands for tribute imposed

7267-413: The constitution , without the sanction of Congress, to go beyond the line of defense." He told Congress: "I communicate [to you] all material information on this subject, that in the exercise of this important function confided by the constitution to the legislature exclusively their judgment may form itself on a knowledge and consideration of every circumstance of weight." Although Congress never voted on

7436-630: The debate over the Revolution within Britain. Adams corresponded with his sons John Quincy and Charles, both of whom were at Harvard, cautioning the former against the "smell of the midnight lamp" while admonishing the latter to devote sufficient time to study. Jefferson visited Adams in 1786 while serving as Minister to France; the two toured the countryside and saw many historical sites. While in London, Adams met his old friend Jonathan Sewall , but

7605-505: 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. 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

7774-496: The " Braintree Instructions " in 1765, in a letter sent to the representatives of Braintree in the Massachusetts legislature. It explained that the Act should be opposed since it denied two fundamental rights guaranteed to all Englishmen (and which all free men deserved): to be taxed only by consent and to be tried by a jury of one's peers. The instructions were a succinct and forthright defense of colonial rights and liberties, and served as

7943-453: The 16th and 19th centuries. Barbary corsairs led attacks upon American merchant shipping in an attempt to extort ransom for the lives of captured sailors, and ultimately tribute from the United States to avoid further attacks, as they had with the various European states. Before the Treaty of Paris , which formalized the United States' independence from Great Britain , United States shipping

8112-514: The American cause. Securing a Dutch loan could increase American independence from France and pressure Britain into peace. At first, Adams had no official status, but in July he was formally given permission to negotiate for a loan and took up residence in Amsterdam in August. Adams was originally optimistic and greatly enjoyed the city, but soon became disappointed. The Dutch, fearing British retaliation, refused to meet Adams. Before he had arrived,

8281-518: The American legislatures. It required payment of a direct tax by the colonies for stamped documents, and was designed to pay for the costs of Britain's war with France. Power of enforcement was given to British vice admiralty courts , rather than common law courts. These Admiralty courts acted without juries and were greatly disliked. The Act was despised for both its monetary cost and implementation without colonial consent, and encountered violent resistance, preventing its enforcement. Adams authored

8450-605: The American triumph at Yorktown convulsed Europe. In January 1782, after recovering, Adams arrived at The Hague to demand that the States General answer his petitions. His efforts stalled, and he took his cause to the people, successfully capitalizing on popular pro-American sentiment. Several provinces began recognizing American independence. On April 19, the States General formally recognized American independence and acknowledged Adams as ambassador. On June 11, with

8619-587: The Barbary states and ending the first war. During the War of 1812 , with the encouragement of the United Kingdom, 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,

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8788-443: The Barbary states. On July 19, 1794, Congress appropriated $ 800,000 (equivalent to $ 16 million in 2023) for the release of American prisoners and for a peace treaty with Algiers , Tunis , and Tripoli . On September 5, 1795, American negotiator Joseph Donaldson signed a peace treaty with the Dey of Algiers, that included an upfront payment of $ 642,500 in specie ( silver coinage , equivalent to $ 12 million in 2023) for peace,

8957-521: The British at Saratoga was expected to help induce France to agree to an alliance. In November 1777, Adams learned that he was to be named commissioner to France, replacing Silas Deane and joining Franklin and Arthur Lee in Paris to negotiate an alliance with the French. James Lovell invoked Adams's "inflexible integrity" and the need to have a youthful man who could counterbalance Franklin's age. On November 27, Adams accepted, wasting no time. Abigail

9126-537: The British at the Battles of Lexington and Concord made Adams hope that independence would soon become a reality. Three days after the battle, he rode into a militia camp and, while reflecting positively on the high spirits of the men, was distressed by their poor condition and lack of discipline. A month later, Adams returned to Philadelphia for the Second Continental Congress as the leader of

9295-435: The British found out about secret aid the Dutch had sent to the Americans and authorized reprisals against their ships, which only increased their apprehension. Word had also reached Europe of American battlefield defeats. After five months of not meeting with a single Dutch official, Adams in early 1781 pronounced Amsterdam "the capital of the reign of Mammon ." He was finally invited to present his credentials as ambassador to

9464-441: The British that France did not feel compelled to "sustain [these] pretentious ambitions." Overruling Franklin and distrustful of Vergennes, Jay and Adams decided not to consult with France, instead dealing directly with the British. During these negotiations, Adams mentioned to the British that his proposed fishing terms were more generous than those offered by France in 1778 and that accepting would foster goodwill between Britain and

9633-495: The British to dispatch more troops to the colonies. On March 5, 1770, when a lone British sentry was accosted by a mob, eight of his fellow soldiers reinforced him, and the crowd around them grew to several hundred. The soldiers were struck with snowballs, ice, and stones, and in the chaos the soldiers opened fire, killing five civilians, in the infamous Boston Massacre . The accused soldiers were arrested on charges of murder. When no other attorneys would come to their defense, Adams

9802-440: The Dutch government at The Hague on April 19, 1781, but they did not promise any assistance. In the meantime, Adams thwarted an attempt by neutral European powers to mediate the war without consulting the United States. In July, Adams consented to the departure of both of his sons; John Quincy went with Adams's secretary Francis Dana to Saint Petersburg as a French interpreter, in an effort to seek recognition from Russia , and

9971-474: The Franco-American alliance pessimistically. The French, he believed, were involved for their own self-interest, and he grew frustrated by what he saw as their sluggishness in providing substantial aid. The French, Adams wrote, meant to keep their hands "above our chin to prevent us from drowning, but not to lift our heads out of water." In March 1780, Congress, trying to curb inflation, voted to devalue

10140-417: The French. The alliance had been made over two years before. During that period, an army under the comte de Rochambeau had been sent to assist Washington, but it had yet to do anything of significance and America was expecting French warships. These were needed, Adams wrote, to contain the British armies in the port cities and contend with the powerful British Navy. However, the French Navy had been sent not to

10309-571: The Marines set fire to Philadelphia and destroyed her. Preble attacked Tripoli on 14 July 1804, kicking off a series of inconclusive battles, including an unsuccessful attempt to use Intrepid under Captain Richard Somers as a fire ship, packed with explosives and sent to enter Tripoli harbor. However, Intrepid was destroyed, possibly by enemy gunfire, before she achieved her goal, killing Somers and his entire crew. The turning point in

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10478-411: The Massachusetts colonial elite. Adams was initially less well known than his older cousin Samuel Adams , but his influence emerged from his work as a constitutional lawyer, his analysis of history, and his dedication to republicanism . Adams often found his own irascible nature a constraint in his political career. In the late 1750s, Adams fell in love with Hannah Quincy; he was poised to propose but

10647-459: The Massachusetts delegation was largely passive, Adams criticized conservatives such as Joseph Galloway , James Duane , and Peter Oliver who advocated a conciliatory policy towards the British or felt that the colonies had a duty to remain loyal to Britain, although his views at the time aligned with those of conservative John Dickinson . Adams sought the repeal of objectionable policies, but at this stage he continued to see benefits in maintaining

10816-435: The Massachusetts delegation. He moved cautiously at first, noting that the Congress was divided between Loyalists , those favoring independence, and those hesitant to take any position. He became convinced that Congress was moving in the proper direction – away from Great Britain. Publicly, Adams supported "reconciliation if practicable," but privately agreed with Benjamin Franklin 's confidential observation that independence

10985-400: The Massachusetts legislature, including John Adams, who agreed to attend, despite an emotional plea from his friend, Attorney General Jonathan Sewall , not to. Shortly after he arrived in Philadelphia , Adams was placed on the 23-member Grand Committee tasked with drafting a letter of grievances to King George III . The committee soon split into conservative and radical factions. Although

11154-442: 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 US 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

11323-455: The Ottoman Empire, and (briefly) the independent 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 and William Bainbridge in command of Essex which

11492-409: The Ottoman sultan in 1800. As Lieutenant and consul William Eaton informed newly appointed 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.'" America paid to Algiers during the presidency of George Washington and his successor, John Adams (1797-1801), $ 1,000,000, or a fifth of

11661-462: The President of the United States may direct." In the event of a declaration of war on the United States by the Barbary powers, these ships were to "protect our commerce and chastise their insolence—by sinking, burning or destroying their ships and vessels wherever you shall find them." On Jefferson's inauguration as president in 1801, Yusuf Karamanli , the Pasha (or Bashaw ) of Tripoli, demanded $ 225,000 (equivalent to $ 4.1 million in 2023) from

11830-419: The Resolution unanimously in the Affirmative." Adams ultimately helped engineer a compromise between the conservatives and the radicals. The Congress disbanded in October after sending the petition to the King and showing its displeasure with the Intolerable Acts by endorsing the Suffolk Resolves , which called for a boycott of British goods. Adams's absence was hard on Abigail, who was left alone to care for

11999-412: The Revolution, Adams was devoted to the right to counsel and presumption of innocence . He defied anti-British sentiment and successfully defended British soldiers against murder charges arising from the Boston Massacre . Adams was a Massachusetts delegate to the Continental Congress and became a leader of the revolution. He assisted Jefferson in drafting the Declaration of Independence in 1776 and

12168-574: The Same Language, a Similar Religion and kindred Blood," and the King agreed to "receive with Pleasure, the Assurances of the friendly Dispositions of the United States." The King added that although "he had been the last to consent" to American independence, he had always done what he thought was right. He startled Adams by commenting that "There is an Opinion, among Some People, that you are not

12337-413: The Senate made him a target for critics of the Washington administration. Toward the end of his first term, he grew accustomed to a marginal role, and rarely intervened in debate. Adams never questioned Washington's courage or patriotism, but Washington did join Franklin and others as the object of Adams's ire or envy. "The History of our Revolution will be one continued lie," Adams declared. "The essence of

12506-554: The Senate. In 1790, Jefferson, James Madison , and Hamilton struck a bargain guaranteeing Republican support for Hamilton's debt assumption plan in exchange for the capital being temporarily moved from New York to Philadelphia , and then to a permanent site on the Potomac River to placate Southerners. In the Senate, Adams cast a tie-breaking vote against a last-minute motion to keep the capital in New York. Adams played

12675-428: The Stamp Act invalid in the absence of Massachusetts representation at Parliament. He noted that many protests were sparked by a popular sermon of Boston minister Jonathan Mayhew , invoking Romans 13 to justify insurrection. While Adams strongly opposed the Act in writing, he rebuffed attempts by Samuel Adams, a leader in the popular protest movements, to involve him in mob actions and public demonstrations. In 1766,

12844-596: The Treaty of Alliance. This lapse of protection by a European power led to the first American merchant ship being seized after the Treaty of Paris. On 11 October 1784, Moroccan pirates seized the brigantine Betsey . The Spanish government negotiated the freedom of the captured ship and crew; however, Spain advised the United States to offer tribute to prevent further attacks against merchant ships. The United States Minister to France, Thomas Jefferson , decided to send envoys to Morocco and Algeria to try to purchase treaties and

13013-581: The Tripolitans since 1800. On 31 May 1801, Dale's successor, Commodore Edward Preble , traveled to Messina , Sicily , to the court of King Ferdinand IV of the Kingdom of Naples . The kingdom was at war with Napoleon , but Ferdinand saw an opportunity and supplied the Americans with manpower, craftsmen, supplies, gunboats, mortar boats, and the ports of Messina, Syracuse , and Palermo to be used as naval bases for launching operations against Tripoli,

13182-644: The Tripolitans since 1800. The First Barbary War was the first major American war fought outside the New World , and in the Arab world , besides the smaller American–Algerian War (1785–1795) . Barbary corsairs and crews from the quasi-independent North African Ottoman provinces of Algiers , Tunis , Tripoli , and the independent Sultanate of Morocco under the Alaouite dynasty (the Barbary Coast ) were

13351-560: The US Congress was forced to allocate $ 40,000 to free American captives in Algiers. 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. During the presidency of George Washington (April 30, 1789 – 1797), and after America failed to form an American-European alliance against

13520-571: The United States but to the West Indies to protect French interests there. France, Adams believed, needed to commit itself more fully to the alliance. Vergennes responded that he would deal only with Franklin, who sent a letter back to Congress critical of Adams. Adams then left France of his own accord. In mid-1780, Adams traveled to the Dutch Republic . One of the few other republics at the time, Adams thought it might be sympathetic to

13689-419: The United States to meet obligations on earlier loans. On June 17, 1788, Adams returned to a triumphant welcome in Massachusetts. He returned to farming life in the months after. The nation's first presidential election was soon to take place. Because George Washington was widely expected to win the presidency, many felt that the vice presidency should go to a northerner. Although he made no public comments on

13858-531: The United States to pay tribute; the United States had just fought an exhausting war, which put the nation deep into debt and unable to finance the establishment of a navy. Various letters and testimonies by captured sailors described their time in captivity. Barbary Coast imprisonment was different from that practiced by the United States and the European powers of the time. Prisoners were able to obtain wealth and property, along with achieving status beyond that of

14027-530: 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". After Spain concluded a peace treaty with Algiers 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

14196-485: The United States while putting pressure on France. Britain agreed, and the two sides worked out other provisions afterward. Vergennes was angered when he learned from Franklin of the American duplicity, but did not demand renegotiation. He was surprised at how much the Americans could extract. The independent negotiations also allowed the French to plead innocence to their Spanish allies, whose demands for Gibraltar might have caused significant problems. On September 3, 1783,

14365-415: The United States, Jefferson sent a small squadron, consisting of three frigates and one schooner, under the command of Commodore Richard Dale , with gifts and letters to attempt to maintain peace with the Barbary powers. However, if war had been declared, then Dale was instructed to "protect American ships and citizens against potential aggression"; however, Jefferson made it clear that he was "unauthorized by

14534-483: The aid of the Dutch Patriotten leader Joan van der Capellen tot den Pol , Adams negotiated a loan of five million guilders. In October, he negotiated a treaty of amity and commerce. The house that Adams bought during this stay in the Netherlands became the first American embassy on foreign soil. After negotiating the loan with the Dutch, Adams was re-appointed as the American commissioner to negotiate

14703-519: The already-long list of British actions against the colonies, he wrote, "In my opinion Powder and Artillery are the most efficacious, Sure, and infallibly conciliatory Measures We can adopt." After his failure to prevent the petition from being enacted, he wrote a private letter derisively referring to Dickinson as a "piddling genius." The letter was intercepted and published in Loyalist newspapers. The well-respected Dickinson refused to greet Adams and he

14872-519: 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 Tunisia and 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 peace treaty with the dey of Algiers, with 22 articles that included an upfront payment of $ 642,500 in specie ( silver coinage ) for peace,

15041-543: The apparent slight, he departed France with John Quincy on March 8, 1779. On August 2, they arrived in Braintree. In late 1779, Adams was appointed as the sole minister charged with negotiations to establish a commercial treaty with Britain and end the war. Following the Massachusetts constitutional convention, he departed for France in November, accompanied by his sons John Quincy and 9-year-old Charles. A leak forced

15210-538: The call for security. John Adams John Adams (October 30, 1735 – July 4, 1826) was an American Founding Father who served as the second president of the United States from 1797 to 1801. Before his presidency , he was a leader of the American Revolution that achieved independence from Great Britain . During the latter part of the Revolutionary War and in the early years of

15379-453: The capture of Derna should have been used as a bargaining chip to obtain the release of all American prisoners without having to pay ransom. Furthermore, Eaton believed the honor of the United States had been compromised when it abandoned Hamet Karamanli after promising to restore him as leader of Tripoli. Eaton's complaints generally went unheard, especially as attention turned to the strained international relations which would ultimately lead to

15548-729: The colonists had never been under the sovereignty of Parliament : their charter, as well as their allegiance, was exclusive to the King. The Boston Tea Party , a demonstration against the Tea Act and the British East India Company 's tea monopoly over American merchants, took place on December 16, 1773. Protestors demolished 342 chests of tea worth about ten thousand pounds on the British schooner Dartmouth , anchored in Boston harbor. The Dartmouth owners briefly retained Adams as legal counsel regarding their liability for

15717-591: The controversial Alien and Sedition Acts and built up the Army and Navy in an undeclared naval war with France. He was the first president to reside in the White House . In his bid in 1800 for reelection to the presidency, opposition from Federalists and accusations of despotism from Jeffersonians led to Adams losing to his vice president and former friend Jefferson, and he retired to Massachusetts. He eventually resumed his friendship with Jefferson by initiating

15886-631: The demand. Consequently, because of this, along with the Americans not paying the money nor the gifts as stated in the Treaty of Tripoli signed in 1796 between Tripoli and America, on 10 May 1801, the Pasha declared war on the United States, not through any formal written documents but in the customary Barbary manner of cutting down the flagstaff in front of the United States Consulate . Algiers and Tunis did not follow their ally in Tripoli. Before learning that Tripoli had declared war on

16055-692: The destroyed shipment. Adams applauded the destruction of the tea, calling it the "grandest Event" in the history of the colonial protest movement, and writing in his diary that it was an "absolutely and indispensably" necessary action. In 1774, at the instigation of Samuel Adams, the First Continental Congress was convened in response to the Intolerable Acts , a series of deeply unpopular measures intended to punish Massachusetts, centralize authority in Britain, and prevent rebellion in other colonies. Four delegates were chosen by

16224-416: The dictates of our passion, they cannot alter the state of facts and evidence." Adams won an acquittal for six of the soldiers. Two, who had fired directly into the crowd, were convicted of manslaughter. Adams was paid a small sum by his clients. According to biographer John E. Ferling , during jury selection Adams "expertly exercised his right to challenge individual jurors and contrived what amounted to

16393-589: The distinctions were necessary because the highest office of the United States must be marked with "dignity and splendor". He was widely derided for his combative nature and stubbornness, especially as he actively debated and lectured the senators. "For forty minutes he harangued us from the chair," wrote Senator William Maclay of Pennsylvania. Maclay became Adams's fiercest opponent and repeatedly expressed personal contempt for him in public and private. He likened Adams to "a monkey just put into breeches." Ralph Izard suggested that Adams be referred to as "His Rotundity,"

16562-407: The document, but Adams persuaded the committee to choose Jefferson. Many years later, Adams recorded his reasoning to Jefferson: "Reason first, you are a Virginian, and a Virginian ought to appear at the head of this business. Reason second, I am obnoxious, suspected, and unpopular. You are very much otherwise. Reason third, you can write ten times better than I can." The Committee left no minutes, and

16731-476: The dollar. Vergennes summoned Adams for a meeting. In a letter sent in June, he insisted that fluctuation of the dollar value without an exception for French merchants was unacceptable and requested that Adams write to Congress asking it to "retrace its steps." Adams bluntly defended the decision, not only claiming that the French merchants were doing better than Vergennes implied but voicing other grievances he had with

16900-556: The drafting process itself remains uncertain. Accounts written years later by Jefferson and Adams, although frequently cited, are often contradictory. Although the first draft was written primarily by Jefferson, Adams assumed a major role. On July 1, the resolution was debated in Congress. It was expected to pass, but opponents such as Dickinson made a strong effort to oppose it. Jefferson, a poor debater, remained silent while Adams argued for its adoption. Many years later, Jefferson hailed Adams as "the pillar of [the Declaration's] support on

17069-402: The emerging Federalist Party . He supported Washington's policies against opposition from anti-Federalist Republicans . He cast 29 tie-breaking votes , and is one of only three vice presidents who have cast more than 20 during their tenure. He voted against a bill sponsored by Maclay that would have required Senate consent for the removal of executive branch officials who had been confirmed by

17238-653: The envoys were given only an allocated budget of $ 40,000 (equivalent to $ 930,000 in 2023) to achieve peace. Diplomatic talks to reach a reasonable sum for tribute or for the ransom of the captured sailors struggled to make any headway. The crews of Maria and Dauphin remained enslaved for over a decade, and soon were joined by crews of other ships captured by the Barbary States. In March 1786, Thomas Jefferson and John Adams went to London to negotiate with Tripoli's envoy, ambassador Sidi Haji Abdrahaman (or Sidi Haji Abdul Rahman Adja). When they enquired "concerning

17407-462: The family. She still encouraged her husband in his task, writing: "You cannot be, I know, nor do I wish to see you an inactive Spectator, but if the Sword be drawn I bid adieu to all domestick felicity, and look forward to that Country where there is neither wars nor rumors of War in a firm belief that thro the mercy of its King we shall both rejoice there together." News of the opening hostilities with

17576-458: The final negotiations, securing fishing rights off Newfoundland and Cape Breton Island proved both very important and very difficult. In response to very strict restrictions proposed by the British, Adams insisted that not only should American fishermen be allowed to travel as close to shore as desired, but that they should be allowed to cure their fish on the shores of Newfoundland. This, and other statements, prompted Vergennes to secretly inform

17745-577: The first half of 1776, Adams grew increasingly impatient with what he perceived to be the slow pace of declaring independence. In the Second Continental Congress in Philadelphia, he helped push through a plan to outfit armed ships to launch raids on enemy vessels. Later in the year, he drafted the first set of regulations for the provisional navy. Adams drafted the preamble to the Lee Resolution of colleague Richard Henry Lee . He developed

17914-478: The first man in the House." In June 1776, Adams became head of the Board of War and Ordnance , charged with recording the officers in the army and their ranks, the disposition of troops throughout the colonies, and ammunition. He was referred to as a "one man war department," working up to eighteen-hour days and mastering the details of raising, equipping and fielding an army under civilian control. Adams functioned as

18083-609: 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. Jefferson reported the conversation to Secretary of Foreign Affairs John Jay , who submitted the ambassador's comments and offer to Congress . The incident convinced Jefferson that paying further tribute would do nothing to prevent more attacks. Although John Adams agreed with Jefferson, he believed that circumstances forced

18252-458: The floor of Congress, [its] ablest advocate and defender against the multifarious assaults it encountered." On July 2, Congress officially voted for independence. Twelve colonies voted in the affirmative, while New York abstained. Dickinson was absent. On July 3, Adams wrote to Abigail that "yesterday was decided the greatest question which was ever debated in America, and a greater perhaps never

18421-422: The freedom of the captured sailors held by Algeria. Morocco was the first Barbary Coast State to sign a treaty with the United States, on 23 June 1786. This treaty formally ended all Moroccan piracy against American shipping interests. Specifically, article six of the treaty states that if any Americans captured by Moroccans or other Barbary Coast States docked at a Moroccan city, they would be set free and come under

18590-399: The government systems of the American states. Adams's tenure in Britain was complicated by both countries failing to follow their treaty obligations. The American states had been delinquent in paying debts owed to British merchants, and in response, the British refused to vacate forts in the northwest as promised. Adams's attempts to resolve this dispute failed, and he was often frustrated by

18759-626: The government's annual budget, in tribute. 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 against the Northwest African Muslim states known collectively as the Barbary states. These were Tripoli and Algiers, quasi-independent entities nominally belonging to

18928-456: The ground of the pretensions to make war upon nations who had done them no injury", the ambassador replied: 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 mussulman who was slain in this warfare was sure to go to paradise. He said, also, that the man who was

19097-464: The issue of Barbary piracy. Federalist and Anti-Federalist forces argued over the needs of the country and the burden of taxation. Jefferson's own Democratic-Republicans and anti-navalists believed that the future of the country lay in westward expansion , arguing that the Atlantic trade threatened to siphon money and energy away from the new nation while entangling it in the wars and intrigue of

19266-610: The ladies; in short, he has none of those essential arts or ornaments which constitute a courtier. There are thousands who, with a tenth of his understanding and without a spark of his honesty, would distance him infinitely in any court in Europe. While in London Adams wrote his three-volume A Defense of the Constitutions of Government of the United States of America , a response to those he had met in Europe who criticized

19435-475: The legality of British writs of assistance , which allowed British officials to search a home without notice or reason. Otis's argument against the writs inspired Adams to the cause of the American colonies . In 1763, Adams explored aspects of political theory in seven essays written for Boston newspapers. Under the pen name "Humphrey Ploughjogger", he ridiculed the selfish thirst for power he perceived among

19604-492: The manipulation but not Hamilton's role in it, Adams wrote to Benjamin Rush that his election was "a curse rather than a blessing." Although his term started on March 4, 1789, Adams did not begin serving as vice president until April 21, because he did not arrive in New York in time. The sole constitutionally prescribed responsibility of the vice president is to preside over the U.S. Senate , where they were empowered to cast

19773-412: The matter, Adams was the primary contender. Each state's presidential electors gathered on February 4, 1789, to cast their two votes for the president . The person with the most votes would be president and the second would become vice president. Adams received 34 electoral college votes in the election, second behind Washington, who was a unanimous choice with 69 votes. As a result, Washington became

19942-602: The money that he received as a delegate failed to cover his expenses. However, the crisis caused by the defeat of the American soldiers kept him at his post. After defeating the Continental Army at the Battle of Long Island on August 27, 1776, British Admiral Richard Howe determined that a strategic advantage was at hand, and requested that Congress send representatives to negotiate peace. A delegation consisting of Adams, Franklin, and Edward Rutledge met with Howe at

20111-450: The most attached of all Your Countrymen, to the manners of France." Adams replied, "That Opinion sir, is not mistaken... I have no Attachments but to my own Country." King George responded, "An honest Man will never have any other." Adams was joined by Abigail in London. Suffering the hostility of the King's courtiers, they escaped when they could by seeking out Richard Price , minister of Newington Green Unitarian Church and instigator of

20280-461: The nation's first president , and Adams became its first vice president . Adams finished well ahead of all others except Washington, but was still offended by Washington receiving more than twice as many votes. In an effort to ensure that Adams did not accidentally become president and that Washington would have an overwhelming victory, Alexander Hamilton convinced at least 7 of the 69 electors not to cast their vote for Adams. After finding out about

20449-431: 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 with a foreign power. In 1787, Morocco became one of the first nations to recognize the United States. Starting in the 1780s, realizing that American vessels were no longer under

20618-401: The new administration. It was a long-standing tradition that, if a government was changed or the consular was changed, said government would have to pay 'consular' gifts, in either gold or in goods, usually military and naval stores. (In 1800, federal revenues totaled a little over $ 10 million, equivalent to $ 180 million in 2023.) Putting his long-held beliefs into practice, Jefferson refused

20787-424: The new nation, he served the U.S. government as a senior diplomat in Europe. Adams was the first person to hold the office of vice president of the United States , serving from 1789 to 1797. He was a dedicated diarist and regularly corresponded with important contemporaries, including his wife and adviser Abigail Adams and his friend and political rival Thomas Jefferson . A lawyer and political activist prior to

20956-605: 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. During the American Revolutionary War , the pirates attacked American ships. On December 20, 1777, Morocco's sultan Mohammed III declared that merchant ships of

21125-477: The number of Tripolino subjects in the power of the Americans to about, one hundred more or less; The Bashaw of Tripoli shall receive from the United States of America, the sum of sixty thousand dollars, as a payment for the difference between the prisoners herein mentioned. In agreeing to pay a ransom of $ 60,000 (equivalent to $ 1.2 million in 2023) for the American prisoners, the Jefferson administration drew

21294-474: The opposition of Abigail's mother. The pair shared a love of books and proved honest in their praise and criticism of each other. After his father's death in 1761, Adams had inherited a 9 + 1 ⁄ 2 -acre (3.8 ha) farm and a house where they lived until 1783. John and Abigail had six children: Abigail (known "Nabby") in 1765, John Quincy in 1767, Susanna in 1768, Charles in 1770, Thomas in 1772, and Elizabeth in 1777. Susanna died when she

21463-487: The perceived lack of commitment on the part of the French, Adams wrote a letter to French foreign minister Vergennes in December, arguing for French naval support in North America. Franklin toned down the letter, but Vergennes ignored it. In September 1778, Congress increased Franklin's powers by naming him minister plenipotentiary to France while Lee was sent to Spain. Adams received no instructions. Frustrated by

21632-407: 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 , USS  Constitution and USS  Constellation , were built to answer

21801-540: The president to commission privateers for the same purpose. During the reign of the Dey 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 , which culminated in the Battle off Cape Gata and the death of the famous corsair captain Raïs Hamidou . A letter to

21970-615: The prisoners, 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. When the war broke out between America and Britain in 1812, the regent on the British throne, George IV , sent a letter to Dey 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

22139-467: The protection of the British 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. On March 20, 1794, at the urging of President George Washington, Congress voted to authorize the building of six heavy frigates and establish

22308-464: The protection of the Moroccan State. American diplomatic action with Algeria, the other major Barbary Coast State, was much less productive than with Morocco. Algeria began piracy against the United States on 25 July 1785 with the capture of the schooner Maria , and Dauphin a week later. All four Barbary Coast states demanded $ 660,000 each (equivalent to $ 15 million in 2023). However,

22477-461: The provision that " free ships make free goods ," allowing neutral nations to trade reciprocally while exempting an agreed-upon list of contraband. By late 1777, America's finances were in tatters, and that September a British army had defeated General Washington and captured Philadelphia. More Americans came to determine that mere commercial ties between the U.S. and France would not be enough, and that military assistance would be needed. The defeat of

22646-410: The release of American captives, expenses, and various gifts for the dey's royal court and family. America suffered another humiliation when it sent tribute carried by the large armed frigate " USS George Washington (1798) " to Algiers; Dey Mustapha Pasha forced US commodore William Bainbridge to hoist an Ottoman Algerian flag over his warship before sailing to Constantinople carrying tribute to

22815-447: The release of American captives, various expenses for their care, and various gifts for the Dey's royal court and family. An additional indefinite yearly tribute of $ 21,600 (equivalent to $ 390,000 in 2023) in shipbuilding supplies and ammunition would be given to the Dey. The treaty, designed to prevent further piracy, resulted in the release of 115 American sailors held captive by the Dey. Jefferson continued to argue for cessation of

22984-409: The rural and "vulgar" Braintree as a home for his family – in August 1772, he moved them back to Boston. He purchased a large brick house on Queen Street , not far from his office. In 1774, Adams and Abigail returned the family to the farm due to the increasingly unstable situation in Boston, and Braintree remained their permanent Massachusetts home. Adams, who had been among the more conservative of

23153-569: The scourge of the Mediterranean . Capturing merchant ships and enslaving or ransoming their crews provided the rulers of these nations with wealth and naval power. The Trinitarian Order , or order of "Mathurins", had operated from France for centuries with the special mission of collecting and disbursing funds for the relief and ransom of prisoners of Mediterranean pirates. According to Robert Davis, between 1 and 1.25 million Europeans were captured by Barbary pirates and sold as slaves between

23322-496: 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. The Barbary corsairs were pirates and privateers 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

23491-580: The ship to land in Ferrol, Spain , and Adams and his party spent six weeks travelling overland to Paris. Constant disagreement between Lee and Franklin eventually resulted in Adams assuming the role of tie-breaker in almost all votes on commission business. He increased his usefulness by mastering French. Lee was eventually recalled. Adams closely supervised his sons' education while writing to Abigail about once every ten days. In contrast to Franklin, Adams viewed

23660-496: The ties with Britain. He renewed his push for the right to a jury trial. He complained of what he considered the pretentiousness of the other delegates, writing to Abigail, "I believe if it was moved and seconded that We should come to a Resolution that Three and two make five We should be entertained with Logick and Rhetorick, Law, History, Politicks and Mathematicks, concerning the Subject for two whole Days, and then We should pass

23829-500: The title of Protector of Their [the United States'] Liberties ) for the president. Some senators favored a variant of Highness or the lesser Excellency . Anti-federalists in the Senate objected to the monarchical sound of them all; Jefferson described them as "superlatively ridiculous." They argued that these "distinctions," as Adams called them, violated the Constitution's prohibition on titles of nobility . Adams said that

23998-544: The treaty was signed and American independence was recognized. Adams was appointed the first American ambassador to Great Britain in 1785. After arriving in London from Paris, Adams had his first audience with King George III on June 1, which he meticulously recorded in a letter to Foreign Minister Jay the next day. The pair's exchange was respectful; Adams promised to do all that he could to restore friendship and cordiality "between People who, tho Seperated [ sic ] by an Ocean and under different Governments have

24167-597: The tribute, with rising support from George Washington and others. With the recommissioning of the American Navy in 1794 and a rush of new ships and weapons, it became increasingly possible for America to cease payments, although by now the long-standing habit was difficult to change. The continuing demand for tribute ultimately led to the formation of the United States Department of the Navy , founded in 1798 to prevent further attacks upon American shipping while resolving

24336-403: The two discovered that they had grown too far apart to renew their friendship. Adams considered Sewall one of the war's casualties, and Sewall critiqued him as an ambassador: His abilities are undoubtedly equal to the mechanical parts of his business as ambassador, but this is not enough. He cannot dance, drink, game, flatter, promise, dress, swear with the gentlemen, and small talk and flirt with

24505-412: The war was the Battle of Derna (April–May 1805). Ex-consul William Eaton , a former Army captain who used the title of " general ", and United States Marine Corps 1st Lieutenant Presley O'Bannon led a force of eight U.S. Marines and five hundred mercenaries— Greeks from Crete, Arabs , and Berbers —on a march across the desert from Alexandria , Egypt , to capture the Tripolitan city of Derna . This

24674-701: The war, under the overall command of Preble. Throughout 1803, Preble set up and maintained a blockade of the Barbary ports while taking action to seize and harass their fleets. In October 1803, Tripoli's fleet captured the USS Philadelphia intact after the frigate ran aground on a reef while patrolling Tripoli harbor. Efforts by the Americans to refloat the ship while under fire from shore batteries and Tripolitan Naval units failed. The ship, her captain William Bainbridge , and all officers and crew were taken ashore and held as hostages. Philadelphia

24843-522: The war-ending treaty, the Treaty of Paris . Vergennes and France's minister to the United States, Anne-César de La Luzerne , disapproved of Adams, so Franklin, Thomas Jefferson, John Jay , and Henry Laurens were appointed to collaborate with Adams, although Jefferson did not initially go to Europe and Laurens was posted to the Dutch Republic following his imprisonment in the Tower of London. In

25012-606: The withdrawal of the United States Navy from the area in 1807 and to the War of 1812 . The First Barbary War was beneficial to the reputation of the United States' military command and war mechanism, which had been up to that time relatively untested. The First Barbary War showed that the United States could execute a war far from home, and that American forces had the cohesion to fight together as Americans rather than separately as Georgians , New Yorkers , etc. The United States Navy and United States Marine Corps became

25181-481: The works of ancient writers such as Thucydides , Plato , Cicero , and Tacitus in their original languages. Though his father expected him to be a minister, after his 1755 graduation with an A.B. degree , he taught school temporarily in Worcester , while pondering his permanent vocation. In the next four years, he began to seek prestige, craving "Honour or Reputation" and "more defference from [his] fellows", and

25350-416: Was attached to Commodore Richard Dale 's squadron which also included Philadelphia , President and Enterprise . The ship Philadelphia was blockading Tripoli's harbor when she ran aground on an uncharted reef. Under fire from shore batteries and Tripolitan gunboats , Captain William Bainbridge tried to refloat her by casting off all of her guns and other objects that weighed her down. The ship

25519-766: Was born on October 30, 1735, to John Adams Sr. and Susanna Boylston . He had two younger brothers, Peter and Elihu. Adams was born on the family farm in Braintree , Massachusetts. His mother was from a leading medical family of present-day Brookline, Massachusetts . His father was a deacon in the Congregational Church , a farmer, a cordwainer , and a lieutenant in the militia . Adams often praised his father and recalled their close relationship. Adams's great-great-grandfather Henry Adams immigrated to Massachusetts from Braintree, Essex , England, around 1638. Adams's formal education began at age six at

25688-473: Was determined to be "a great Man". He decided to become a lawyer, writing his father that he found among lawyers "noble and gallant achievements" but, among the clergy, the "pretended sanctity of some absolute dunces". He had reservations about his self-described "trumpery" and failure to share the "happiness of [his] fellow men". When the French and Indian War began in 1754, Adams, aged nineteen, felt guilty he

25857-626: Was elected as the United States' second president in 1796 . He was the only president elected under the banner of the Federalist Party . Adams's term was dominated by the issue of the French Revolutionary Wars , and his insistence on American neutrality led to fierce criticism from both the Jeffersonian Republicans and from some in his own party, led by his rival Alexander Hamilton . Adams signed

26026-411: 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 King Ferdinand of Sicily, led by Stephen Decatur. A treaty was reached on June 30, 1805, under which America paid Algiers $ 60,000 ransom for

26195-604: Was for a time largely ostracized. Ferling writes, "By the fall of 1775 no one in Congress labored more ardently than Adams to hasten the day when America would be separate from Great Britain." In October 1775, Adams was appointed chief judge of the Massachusetts Superior Court, but he never served, and resigned in February 1777. In response to queries from other delegates, Adams wrote the 1776 pamphlet Thoughts on Government , which laid out an influential framework for republican constitutions. Throughout

26364-632: Was impelled to do so despite the risk to his reputation. He believed no person should be denied the right to counsel and a fair trial. The trials were delayed so that passions could cool. The week-long trial of the commander, Captain Thomas Preston , began on October 24 and ended in his acquittal, because it was impossible to prove that he had ordered his soldiers to fire. The remaining soldiers were tried in December when Adams made his famed argument regarding jury decisions: "Facts are stubborn things; and whatever may be our wishes, our inclinations, or

26533-490: Was inevitable. In June 1775, with a view of promoting union among the colonies against Great Britain, he nominated George Washington of Virginia as commander-in-chief of the army then assembled around Boston. He praised Washington's "skill and experience" as well as his "excellent universal character." Adams opposed various attempts, including the Olive Branch Petition , aimed at finding peace. Invoking

26702-406: Was interrupted by friends, and the moment was lost. In 1759, he met 15-year-old Abigail Smith , his third cousin, through his friend Richard Cranch, who was courting Abigail's older sister. Adams initially was not impressed with Abigail and her two sisters, writing that they were not "fond, nor frank, nor candid". In time, Adams grew close to Abigail. They were married on October 25, 1764, despite

26871-565: Was its primary advocate in Congress. As a diplomat, he helped negotiate a peace treaty with Great Britain and secured vital governmental loans. Adams was the primary author of the Massachusetts Constitution in 1780, which influenced the United States Constitution , as did his essay Thoughts on Government . Adams was elected to two terms as vice president under President George Washington and

27040-559: Was left in Massachusetts to manage their home, but it was agreed that 10-year-old John Quincy would go with Adams, for the experience was "of inestimable value" to his maturation. On February 17, 1778, Adams set sail aboard the frigate Boston , commanded by Captain Samuel Tucker . The trip was stormy and treacherous. The ship was pursued by British vessels, with Adams personally taking up arms to help capture one. A cannon malfunction wounded several sailors and killed one. On April 1,

27209-422: Was nor will be decided among men." He predicted that "[t]he second day of July, 1776, will be the most memorable epoch in the history of America," and would be celebrated annually. Congress approved the Declaration of Independence on July 4. During the congress, Adams sat on ninety committees, chairing twenty-five, an unmatched workload among the congressmen. As Benjamin Rush reported, he was acknowledged "to be

27378-560: Was one year old, while Elizabeth was stillborn. All three of Adams's sons became lawyers. Charles and Thomas were unsuccessful, became alcoholics, and died at a relatively young age. In contrast, John Quincy excelled and launched a political career, eventually becoming president himself. Adams rose to prominence leading widespread opposition to the Stamp Act . The Act was imposed by the British Parliament without consulting

27547-403: Was protected by France during the revolutionary years under the Treaty of Alliance (1778–83). Although the treaty does not mention the Barbary States in name, it refers to common enemies between both the United States and France. As such, piracy against United States shipping only began to occur after the end of the American Revolution , when the United States government lost its protection under

27716-503: Was subsequently converted into a floating battery for harbor defense. On the night of 16 February 1804, Captain Stephen Decatur led a small detachment of United States Marines aboard the captured Tripolitan ketch rechristened Intrepid , thus deceiving the guards on Philadelphia to float close enough to board her. Decatur's men stormed the ship and overpowered the Tripolitan sailors. With fire support from American warships,

27885-482: Was the first in his family not to be a militia officer; he said "I longed more ardently to be a Soldier than I ever did to be a Lawyer". In 1756, Adams began reading law under James Putnam, a leading lawyer in Worcester. In 1758, he earned an A.M. from Harvard, and in 1759 was admitted to the bar. He developed an early habit of diary writing; this included his impressions of James Otis Jr. 's 1761 challenge to

28054-537: Was the first time the United States flag was raised in victory on foreign soil. The action is memorialized in a line of the Marines' Hymn —"the shores of Tripoli". The capturing of the city gave American negotiators leverage in securing the return of hostages and the end of the war. Wearied of the blockade and raids, and now under threat of a continued advance on Tripoli proper and a scheme to restore his deposed older brother Hamet Karamanli as ruler, Yusuf Karamanli signed

28223-411: Was the town's choice to fill the vacancy. The prosperity of his law practice increased from this exposure, as did the demands on his time. In 1771, Adams moved his family to Braintree, Massachusetts , but kept his office in Boston ; he noted "Now my family is away, I feel no Inclination at all, no Temptation, to be any where but at my Office." After some time in the capital, he became disenchanted with

28392-696: Was unable to respond to the provocation until 1815, with the Second Barbary War , in which naval victories by Commodores William Bainbridge and Stephen Decatur led to treaties ending all tribute payments by the United States. The Tripoli Monument , the oldest military monument in the United States, honors the American heroes of the First Barbary War: Somers—by then promoted to the rank of master commandant –Lieutenant James Caldwell, James Decatur (brother of Stephen Decatur), Henry Wadsworth, Joseph Israel and John Dorsey. Originally known as

28561-481: 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. A proposal was made to put up a coalition of naval warships from nations at war with the Barbary states , provided that naval operations would be directed against Algerian vessels in particular, and then impose

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