The pirate coast : Thomas Jefferson, the First Marines, and the Secret Mission of 1805 / by Richard Zacks
2005, First Edition. New York : Hyperion. An exceptional copy; fine in an equally fine dw, now mylar-sleeved. Particularly and surprisingly well-preserved; tight, bright, clean and especially sharp-cornered. Literally as new.; 432 pages; Description: viii, 432 p., 8 p. of plates : ill, maps ; 25 cm. Includes bibliographical references (p. [417]-421) and index. Subjects: Pirates --Africa, North --History --19th century --United States --Tripolitan War, 1801-1805 --Naval operations. Summary: In an attempt to stop the legendary Barbary Pirates of North Africa from hijacking American ships, William Eaton set out in 1805 on a secret mission to overthrow the government of Tripoli. The operation was sanctioned by President Thomas Jefferson, but at the last moment he grew wary of "intermeddling" in a foreign government, and Eaton set off without national support. Short on supplies, given very little money and only a few men, Eaton's mission seemed doomed from the start. But he improbably triumphed, recruiting a band of European mercenaries in Alexandria, along with some Arab cavalry and Bedouin fighters, and leading them on a march across the Libyan Desert. The success of the event is immortalized in the Marines' Hymn, but Jefferson never allowed Eaton the fame he craved. Item #154515
ISBN: 1401300030
Price: €9.95