The Battle of Derne was a decisive victory of a mercenary army led by a detachment of U.S. Marines over the forces of the Barbary coast nation of Tripoli during the First Barbary War. Combatants United States Barbary States (Ottoman Empire regencies) Commanders Richard Dale William Eaton Edward Preble Hassan Bey Murad Reis Strength 7 Ships 10 US Marines and Soldiers Christian Mercenaries Arab Mercenaries 4000 Casualties 2 Ships destroyed 2 Marines killed, 3 wounded Christian/Arab Mercenaries killed and wounded uncertain Unknown The... April 27 is the 117th day of the year (118th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar, with 248 days remaining. ... is the 133rd day of the year (134th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... 1805 was a common year starting on Tuesday (see link for calendar). ... Darnah is one of the municipalities of Libya. ... Tripoli (Arabic: طرابلس Tarābulus) is the capital city of Libya. ... Ottoman redirects here. ... William Eaton (23 February 1764 – 1 June 1811) was a United States Army officer, involved with the First Barbary War. ... Presley Neville O’Bannon (1784 – 12 September 1850) was an officer in the United States Marine Corps, famous for his exploits in the First Barbary War. ... The United States Marine Corps (USMC) is a branch of the United States military responsible for providing power projection from the sea,[1] utilizing the mobility of the U.S. Navy to rapidly deliver combined-arms task forces. ... The United States Army is the largest and oldest branch of the armed forces of the United States. ... Combatants United States Barbary States (Ottoman Empire regencies) Commanders Richard Dale William Eaton Edward Preble Hassan Bey Murad Reis Strength 7 Ships 10 US Marines and Soldiers Christian Mercenaries Arab Mercenaries 4000 Casualties 2 Ships destroyed 2 Marines killed, 3 wounded Christian/Arab Mercenaries killed and wounded uncertain Unknown The... Combatants United States Ottoman vilayet of Tripoli Commanders Edward Preble unknown Strength Mediterranean Squadron (7 ships) Unknown Casualties USS Philadelphia & USS Intrepid destroyed Unknown The Battle of Tripoli Harbor was a naval blockade which took place during the First Barbary War between the United States Navy and the forces of... United States Marine Corps Emblem The United States Marine Corps (USMC) is the second smallest of the five branches of the United States armed forces, with 170,000 active and 40,000 reserve Marines as of 2002. ... Tripoli (Arabic: طرابلس Tarābulus) is the capital city of Libya. ... Combatants United States Barbary States (Ottoman Empire regencies) Commanders Richard Dale William Eaton Edward Preble Hassan Bey Murad Reis Strength 7 Ships 10 US Marines and Soldiers Christian Mercenaries Arab Mercenaries 4000 Casualties 2 Ships destroyed 2 Marines killed, 3 wounded Christian/Arab Mercenaries killed and wounded uncertain Unknown The...

Background

The former Consul to Tunis, William Eaton returned to the Mediterranean with the title of 'Naval Agent to the Barbary States' in 1804. Eaton had been granted permission from the United States government to back the claim of Hamet Karamanli, the rightful heir to the throne of Tripoli, who had been deposed by his brother Yussif Karamanli. Upon his return Eaton sought out Hamet, who was in exile in Egypt, and made a proposal to reinstate him to the throne. Hamet agreed to Eaton's plan. This article is about the Roman rank. ... William Eaton (23 February 1764 – 1 June 1811) was a United States Army officer, involved with the First Barbary War. ... 1804 was a leap year starting on Sunday (see link for calendar). ... Yusuf ibn Ali Karamanli (r. ...

Forces

Commodore Samuel Barron, the new Naval commander in the Mediterranean gave Eaton naval support from Nautilus, Hornet and the Argus commanded by Captain Isaac Hull, which were to provide off shore bombardment support. A detachment of U.S. Marines was given to Eaton under the command of Lieutenant Presley O’Bannon. Eaton and Hull made their base of operations at Alexandria, Egypt, and there with the help of Hamet, recruited about 500 Arab, Greek and Berber mercenaries. Eaton named himself General and Commander-in-Chief of the combined force. Samuel Barron (November 28, 1809-February 26, 1888) was a United States, and later Confederate naval officer, acting as a representitive in Europe for the Confederacy during the American Civil War. ... Composite satellite image of the Mediterranean Sea. ... Nautilus was a schooner launched in 1799 and purchased by the United States Navy in 1803 as USS Nautilus, the first ship to bear that name. ... The first USS Argus was a brig in the United States Navy during the First Barbary War and the War of 1812. ... Isaac Hull (March 9, 1773 – February 13, 1843), was a Commodore, in the United States Navy. ... First Lieutenant is a military rank. ... Presley Neville O’Bannon (1784 – 12 September 1850) was an officer in the United States Marine Corps, famous for his exploits in the First Barbary War. ... Antiquity and modernity stand cheek-by-jowl in Egypts chief Mediterranean seaport For other uses, see Alexandria (disambiguation). ... For other uses, see Arab (disambiguation). ... Berbers are the indigenous peoples of North Africa west of the Nile Valley. ... For other uses, see Mercenary (disambiguation). ...

The desert trek

General Eaton now led his army on a 500 mile trek across the Libyan desert. Their objective was the port city of Derne, the capital of the province of Cyrenaica. Supplies and money were promised to the largely mercenary force when they reached the city. During the 50 day trek Eaton became concerned with the relationship between the Christians and the roughly 200 or 300 Muslim mercenaries in his force. On several occasions mutiny threatened the success of the expedition. The force finally reached the port city of Bomba in late April, up the coast from Derne, where Argus, Nautilus and Hornet along with Captain Hull were waiting. There Eaton and his force received supplies and money to pay the mercenaries. The city of Darnah is the location of the historical city of Derna. ... The Roman Empire ca. ... This article is about the religous people known as Christians. ... There is also a collection of Hadith called Sahih Muslim A Muslim (Arabic: مسلم, Persian: Mosalman or Mosalmon Urdu: مسلمان, Turkish: Müslüman, Albanian: Mysliman, Bosnian: Musliman) is an adherent of the religion of Islam. ... Mutiny is the act of conspiring to disobey an order that a group of similarly-situated individuals (typically members of the military; or the crew of any ship, even if they are civilians) are legally obliged to obey. ... For other uses, see Bomba (disambiguation). ...

The battle

On April 27, two days after arriving at Bomba, Hull's ships opened fire and bombed the city's batteries for about an hour. General Eaton divided his army into two separate attacks. Hamet would lead the Arabs southwest to cut off the road to Tripoli and then attack the left flank of the city and storm the governors palace while Eaton with the rest of the mercenaries and Marines attacked the harbor fortress. At 2:45pm the attack began with Lt. O'Bannon and the Marines in the lead. The harbor defenses had been reinforced and the attackers were momentarily halted, this however allowed the Arab mercanaries sent to cut the road to tripoli to ride unopposed into the western section of the city. April 27 is the 117th day of the year (118th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar, with 248 days remaining. ...

Eaton, grabbing a rifle and shouting "charge!", led the force over the walls while being seriously wounded in the wrist by a musketball. The defenders fled in such haste that they left their cannon loaded and ready to fire. O'Bannon raised the U.S. flag over the works as Eaton turned the captured batteries on the city and opened fire. Hamet's force in the meantime had seized the Governor's Palace and secured the western part of the town. Many of the defenders of the harbor fortress continued retreating through the town and right into Hamet's force. By 4:00 the entire city had fallen. For the first time a U.S. flag was flown over fortifications that side of the Atlantic. Flag ratio: 10:19; nicknames: Stars and Stripes, Old Glory The flag of the United States of America consists of thirteen equal horizontal stripes of red (top and bottom) alternating with white; there is a blue rectangle in the upper hoist-side corner bearing 50 small, white, five-pointed stars... The Atlantic Ocean, not including Arctic and Antarctic regions. ...

Yusuf was aware of the attack on Derne and had sent reinforcements to the city. By the time this force arrived the city had fallen. Still they dug in and prepared to retake the city. Eaton immediately worked on fortifying his new position. Hamet had taken up residence in the Governor's Palace and his Arab forces patrolled the outlying areas of the city. The reinforcements dug in south of the city and waited. On May 13 they attacked the city and drove the Arabs back almost capturing the Governor's Palace. The Argus and Eaton's captured batteries pounded the attackers, who fled under continued bombardment. By nightfall both sides were back to their original positions. Skirmishing and several other minor attempts were made on the city in the following weeks but the city remained in American control. From Derne, Eaton now planned to march across the desert and attack Tripoli from the land. During his march he was informed of the treaty signed between Tobias Lear and Yusuf Karamanli. In the middle of his trek Eaton was ordered to return to Egypt with Hamet. is the 133rd day of the year (134th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... The first USS Argus was a brig in the United States Navy during the First Barbary War and the War of 1812. ... Tobias Lear V (1762 - 1816) was an American who served as President George Washingtons personal secretary. ... Yusuf ibn Ali Karamanli (r. ...

Aftermath

The Battle of Derne was the first recorded land battle of the United States on foreign soil. The battle was the decisive action of the First Barbary War, although Eaton was angered by what he called a 'sell-out' between Consul Lear and the bey. Hamet returned to Egypt and the mercenaries were never fully paid. William Eaton returned to the United States as a national hero. 1st Lt. O'Bannon was presented a Mameluke sword from Prince Hamet and later awarded a sword of honor patterned on the Mameluke design by his home state of Virginia (which led to adoption of the sword by all Marine officers to this day) [1]. The attack on the city was the inspiration for a portion of the lyrics of the Marine Hymn that mention "to the shores of Tripoli". Combatants United States Barbary States (Ottoman Empire regencies) Commanders Richard Dale William Eaton Edward Preble Hassan Bey Murad Reis Strength 7 Ships 10 US Marines and Soldiers Christian Mercenaries Arab Mercenaries 4000 Casualties 2 Ships destroyed 2 Marines killed, 3 wounded Christian/Arab Mercenaries killed and wounded uncertain Unknown The... Bey is originally a Turkish[1][2] word for chieftain, traditionally applied to the leaders of small tribal groups. ... A Mameluke Sword is a cross hilted, curved scimitar-like sword. ... This article is about the U.S. state. ... The Marines hymn is the official hymn of the United States Marine Corps. ...

Sources

• The Tripolitan War, 1801–1805
• William Eaton Biography
• Tripolitan War

Further reading

• London, Joshua E. Victory in Tripoli: How America's War with the Barbary Pirates Established the U.S. Navy and Shaped a Nation New Jersey: John Wiley & Sons, Inc., 2005. ISBN 0-471-44415-4
• Zacks, Richard. The Pirate Coast: Thomas Jefferson, the First Marines, and the Secret Mission of 1805. New York: Hyperion, 2005. ISBN 1-4013-0003-0.