Battle Studies, Country Studies, & Staff Rides

The Barbary War - the first American war against Libya - was the first war waged by the United States outside national boundaries after gaining independence and unification of the country. The four Barbary States of North Africa - Morocco, Algiers, Tunis, and Tripoli - had plundered seaborne commerce for centuries. This was piracy on an extraordinary scale: they controlled all trading routes through the Barbary waters and North Africa: demanding ransom and booty for safe passage. In 1801 the newly elected President Jefferson ordered a naval and military expedition to North Africa in order to put down regimes that endorsed piracy and slavery. The Pasha of Tripoli declared war on the United States. Under the leadership of Commodores Richard Dale and Edward Preble, the US Navy blockaded the enemy coast and engaged in close, bitterly contested gunboat actions. On 16 February 1804 LT Stephen Decatur led 74 volunteers into Tripoli to burn the captured American frigate "The Philadelphia." British Admiral Lord Nelson called the raid "the most daring act of the age." In 1805 Marines stormed the Barbary pirates' harbor fortress stronghold of Derna (Tripoli), commemorated in the Marine Corp Hymn invocation "To the Shores of Tripoli." The US Navy troops were recalled before they could secure their gains, but returned after the War of 1812. Their success then won worldwide admiration for the Americans and their Navy. They marked the way for the European nations to finally quash the Barbary States and end the piracy. This event marks the true birth of the US Navy and Marines and is ever remembered in the Marines' battle hymn.

At the dawn of a new century, a newly elected U.S. president was forced to confront an escalating series of unprovoked attacks on Americans by Muslim terrorists sworn to carry out jihad against all Western powers. As timely and familiar as these events may seem, they occurred more than two centuries ago. The president was Thomas Jefferson, and the terrorists were the Barbary pirates. Victory in Tripoli recounts the untold story of one of the defining challenges overcome by the young U.S. republic. This fast-moving and dramatic tale examines the events that gave birth to the Navy and the Marines and re-creates the startling political, diplomatic, and military battles that were central to the conflict. This highly interesting and informative history offers deep insight into issues that remain fundamental to U.S. foreign policy decisions to this day.

"There is a true story about a handsome, young Virginia, Presley Neveille O'Bannon, which involved the Barbary Coast in Africa, a 700-mile march across the sinister Barca Desert in Libya, and the strange Tripolitan War."

The story of America's four-year war against the Barbary pirates, our first war against terrorists and the nations that harbor them.

What became known as the Barbary War forced Americans who had disbanded the Continental navy to establish a new U.S. Navy and Marine Corps. The war included a blockade of Tripoli followed by sustained bombardment by the high-tech weapons of the day, America's powerful new frigates.

A real-life thriller -- the true story of the unheralded American who brought the Barbary Pirates to their knees. In an attempt to stop the legendary Barbary Pirates of North Africa from hijacking American ships, William Eaton set out on a secret mission to overthrow the government of Tripoli. The operation was sanctioned by President Thomas Jefferson, who at the last moment grew wary of "intermeddling" in a foreign government and sent Eaton off without proper national support. Short on supplies, given very little money and only a few men, Eaton and his mission seemed doomed from the start. He triumphed against all odds, recruited a band of European mercenaries in Alexandria, and led them on a march across the Libyan Desert. Once in Tripoli, the ragtag army defeated the local troops and successfully captured Derne, laying the groundwork for the demise of the Barbary Pirates. Now, Richard Zacks brings this important story of America's first overseas covert op to life.

Documentary. Color, Approximately 50 minutes, DVD.

Filled with period documents, original artwork and dramatic re-enactments, The Battle of Tripoli relives the historic engagement of 1805 when a ragtag army of 1,000 men won a dramatic victory against one of the world's great powers. Led by diplomat turned general William Eaton, the force marched some 500 miles across the desert to free 307 American hostages held in Derna, Tripoli's second largest city. Eaton hoped not only to free the hostages, but to end the practice of paying tribute to the Mediterranean kingdom to protect American merchant ships from pillage by the Barbary pirates.