And the Secret Mission of 1805 - the First Marines

Incredible research and engaging story-telling . . . the detail boggles the mind. This is a very long read, but the telling is so visual that it is performed before you as you turn the pages. Well done!

Richard Zacks holds us spellbound with the story of America's first covert operation overseas during the war against the Barbary pirates. It's a story of extraordinary daring, brilliant accomplishments, incompetence in high places, betrayal and political vacillation. In 1805, our government was much smaller which seems to be the only difference between Washington then and now.

Great detail and research for anyone interested in this period of American history. Many revelations that shed light on the earliest Marines as well as this country's penchant for influencing world affairs.

Inciteful primary sources expose political issues that leave your mouth hanging open in surprise. Heroic and tragic exploits of Type-A American personalities hell bent on achieving a mission beyond the wishes of their leader (the US President).

Readers will be forced to choose sides between the morality of pusuing a cause vs. the economics of policy and international diplomacy. Over a hundred years later Smedley Butler, another highly accomplished but bitter warrior, would state "War is a racket." History repeats . . .

The facts are riveting, the lessons that may apply to today's world beneficial, but the battles are sorely lacking in detail and less than they could have been. One gets a different perspective on Jefferson and others.

I found the book just too hard to stay interested in. Probably a man would love it! You have to take an interest in the various characters which was hard for me to sort through. I wanted to like it because it is about history and I did learn how the U.S marines were a pitiful lot at first. I may still be able to read it but for now have set it aside.

Begins with pirates abducting people from a Mediterranean Sea island in late 1790's. One of the gals presents herself to United States representative William Eaton in hopes he can free her. He borrows $.

Eaton eventually returns to the young United States and tells President Thomas Jefferson that he knows the brother of the current prince and if the United States were to put the brother into power the United States would not have to pay tributes/bribes.

The United States has one ship running a blockade and through questionable decisions by the captain he gives up his ship without a fight. The sailors are taken as prisoners and made into slaves.

Eaton travels to Egypt to find the prince, he gathers a rag-tag army and goes about make a 500 mile trek across the desert managing turmoil along the way and virtually runs out of supplies. some leave along the way.

He reaches his location and manages to capture a city. By then negotiations have been made to release the ship's crew and he is told to cease what he is doing.

He returns to the United States and battles with Thomas Jefferson over what he thinks is the right things to have done. Insightful, some may be offended. Some politics as usual.

Begins with pirates abducting people from a Mediterranean Sea island in late 1790's. One of the gals presents herself to United States representative William Eaton in hopes he can free her. He borrows $.

Eaton eventually returns to the young United States and tells President Thomas Jefferson that he knows the brother of the current prince and if the United States were to put the brother into power the United States would not have to pay tributes/bribes.

The United States has one ship running a blockade and through questionable decisions by the captain he gives up his ship without a fight. The sailors are taken as prisoners and made into slaves.

Eaton travels to Egypt to find the prince, he gathers a rag-tag army and goes about make a 500 mile trek across the desert managing turmoil along the way and virtually runs out of supplies. some leave along the way.

He reaches his location and manages to capture a city. By then negotiations have been made to release the ship's crew and he is told to cease what he is doing.

He returns to the United States and battles with Thomas Jefferson over what he thinks is the right things to have done. Insightful, some may be offended. Some politics as usual.

This book should seriously be made into a Hollywood blockbuster. Richard Zacks magnificently recounts the incredible journey of William Eaton and his small band of marines trekking through the Egyptian desert to find Hamet Karamanli to restore him to power to save the 320 plus enslaved crew of the USS Philadelphia and stop the Barbary Coast tradition of paying tribute and enslaving captured American sailors. They survived imprisonment, mutinies and threatened desertion. After capturing the city of Derne, and on the cusp of military victory over all of Tripoli, Tobias Lear defeated the mission's whole purpose by negotiating a questionable settlement with Tripoli. It later came to light that he had a financial conflict of interest with his wheat venture and passage through Tripoli. Eaton died a sad and embittered man over the ugly politics of the situation. He is truly a hero of which our country should be proud.

This book is an impressive work of scholarship. Gleaned mostly from primary sources, the author has done an incredible job of research in a chapter in American History that is not often written about and therefore not well known.

William Eaton, a diplomat, is charged by President Jefferson to go to Egypt, recruit an army and dethrone the current pasha of Tripoli by force if necessary. Eaton was to enlist the aid of the Pasha's brother, Hamet. At the same time, Jefferson sent Tobias Lear, another diplomat, with orders to make peace with the Pasha of Tripoli including secret orders to pay tribute and ransom, as he deemed necessary. These two missions clash and provide a certain amount of ironic drama as the book winds toward its end.

The story includes aspects of American foreign policy in the early 1800s, efforts at diplomacy with the Barbary Pirates in the Mediterranean Sea, Jeffersonian politics at home, the trials and personal tribulations of American diplomats of the time, the maturation of the American navy and the first significant contribution by American Marines.

The sub-title misleads just a bit, as there were only 8 Marines in the force but they served loyally and bravely. And the mission was covert primarily because Jefferson sent two men to solve the piracy problem and free a few hundred captured American sailors without either of them aware of the other's mission. The missions were complicated due to fact it took weeks, if not months to report news and issue new orders.

The book drags in the middle as the author goes into painstaking detail of the almost daily events of a 500 mile journey through the North African desert but picks up toward the end when the battles take place and the deceit and intrigue by diplomat Tobias Lear results in a treaty more favorable to Tripoli than necessary.

The personal stories of William Eaton and Tobias Lear are compelling and laden with drama and pathos but this story could have been effectively told, and could have moved at a much more rapid pace, if it had been edited down to 2/3 of its present size. If you're willing to plow through the middle, this is an interesting and informative read.

John E. Nevola
Author of The Last Jump - A Novel of World War II

This is an outstanding piece of historical research. The author, Richard Zacks, does an amazing job of describing America's first covert action initiative. At the time, American was at war with the Barbary pirates. President Jefferson subsequently sent William Eaton on a covert mission to North Africa. Mr. Eaton, Lt Presley O'Bannon, and six U.S. Marines attempted to overthrow the ruling government of Tripoli and restore the deposed Bashaw to his thrown.

The author uses a writing style that allows the reader to feel like they are part of the action. Of note is that each character is described in detail. Mr. Zacks shows both their strengths and weaknesses. For example, most accounts of William Eaton describe his famous march across the desert. Very little, however, is written about how he spent little time with his wife and family. Amazingly, he became upset at her when she did not write to him often enough. He seems to have been oblivious to the fact that he repeatedly abandoned her to run the house alone for years at a time. These personal details are what help to bring the characters to life.

The author does an excellent job of describing the political events that surrounded these events. To some degree, the politics of 1805 are no different than the politics of today. The reader will obtain a good sense of William Eaton's frustration over the lack of support from the White House. The reader may even feel a bit of outrage over the duplicity of the U.S. Ambassador, Tobias Lear, when he negotiated the peace treaty.

Bottom line, this is an excellent book. Although it is historical non-fiction, it reads like an adventure novel. The reader can expect to be entertained while also discovering the details of this amazing event.

This book tells the story of the "war " declared by barbary pirates against the United States-a little known but very interesting tale.

This is the story of the war which gave rise to the verse "from the shores of Tripoli" in the Marine Corps anthem. This was also the first covert operation of the United States wherein a US operartive, William Eaton, was to recruit a deposed leader to overthrow another despotic ruler(his brother) to help free 300 US naval personnel held by Tripoli, one of three barbary pirate states in north Africa.

It is also a story of betrayal and political intrigue in the early days of the American republic. The obvious tension between military and political objectives back in the first decade of the 1800's has a strikingly familiar tone, as does the unrest in north Africa then and now. This is a highly entertaining book full of adventure as William Eaton leads a small group of Marines and disparate soldiers for hire along with a mixed bag of arabs to attempt to overthrow a corrupt arab leader holding 300 enslaved members of the US navy. While that is going on the Jefferson administration is also conducting peace negotiations to try to end the war. It ends with a resolution which is perhaps not compatible with the national interest but for political reasons is hailed as a success. Again the idea of political "spin" is not something which is new to this modern political era.

I found this to be a very interesting and entertaining book. It also covers a little known chapter of American Histoty. I would highly recommend this book.

"The Pirate Coast: Thomas Jefferson, the First Marines, and the Secret Mission of 1805," by Richard Zacks, is an enthralling work of history. It's full of bold and colorful characters, fascinating places, and perilous situations. Zacks takes us back to the early 19th century. The nation of Tripoli (modern-day Libya), which terrorizes the Mediterranean, declares war on the United States and eventually captures a U.S. naval vessel and its crew. Zacks tells the story of the military and political effort to free the captives. It's an epic tale that involves both land warfare in North Africa and naval warfare in the Mediterranean, as well as political intrigue in the city of Washington and diplomatic maneuvering in Malta and Tripoli. Although Jefferson gets mentioned in the book's subtitle, the real hero of the book is William Eaton, who leads "America's first covert military op overseas." He's a truly larger-than-life character.

Zacks draws on a rich variety of sources from which to tell the story of Eaton's remarkable mission, and he incorporates substantial quotes from these sources in the narrative. By doing this he allows the voices of Eaton and his contemporaries to be heard. Interestingly, Zacks also points out to the reader the places where there are gaps in the historical record. In the book's acknowledgements section, Zacks describes in detail how he got access to the documents he used in writing the book. The book also includes a "Cast of Characters" guide, extensive endnotes, a thorough bibliography, and an index.

Zacks' prose is witty, lively, and engaging. As he tells the story he includes many fascinating details--the use of lime juice for secret writing, the copious amounts of alcohol consumed by the builders of the U.S.S. _Philadelphia_, the fury of a North African sandstorm, etc. Especially fascinating is his description of how Eaton created a multiethnic, multinational task force of both Christian and Muslim troops as part of his daring mission. Zacks creates vivid portraits not just of Eaton, but of many other remarkable individuals. This work of richly documented history is both tragic and thrilling. For an interesting companion text, I recommend "Inside Delta Force," by Eric L. Haney.

This was quite an interesting read - something I've wanted to read about for a while. Pirates have been in the news quite a bit as of late - Pirates of the Somali variety. The U.S. Navy handled one incident related to them earlier this year quite masterfully. "Pirate Coast" is the true story about the United States' first military encounter with pirates from Africa - specifically the Barbery Pirates from the Libyan coast. As the book outlines, this was the first time a United States president (Thomas Jefferson) approved a covert mission overseas to overthrow a foreign leader - the Bey of Tripoli. It was also the first major overseas military encounter for the Untied States Marine Corps. If you are interested in Marine Corps history, this should be a must read. The book is not at all about swashbuckling pirates, as the title might suggest, but focuses more on the implications for the United States. It also serves largely to detail the biography of William Eaton, who led the Marines against the pirates. The book is excellent, though the audiobook format is not the best, as the narrator has a fairly unlistenable voice and tempo. It is a bit of U.S. history we do not hear much about, so I encourage any interested in our nation's history to consider it.

I knew next to nothing about this episode in American history, so this fascinating story easily held my attention all the way through. It's an amazing story that was exhaustively researched by Zacks. Aside from the enormous amount of detail that he is able to regale the reader with, he does an exceptional job at bringing all of the characters to life. He delves deep into the personalities of each and you FULLY understand their actions. In addition to great writing, the story itself touches upon all human emotions. You go through jubilance after reading about the American victories in Barbary, to sorrow after finding out what happens to certain individuals after the campaign came to an end. It may sound cliche, but it really is a "rollercoaster ride". It's also amusing to see how politics was just as dirty back then as it is now.

The ONE gripe I have is that there should have been maps. One showing Eaton's march through the desert along with a timeline would have been nice, and it would have been convenient to have one showing all of the American ship movements in the area over time, since that got a bit confusing. Overall, however, the remarkable writing coupled with the captivating story makes this highly recommended for those interested in American history as well as those just simply looking for an exceptional true story.

Zacks is a master at spinning very well written tales about things which actually happened. The entire construction of this book spans not only the central theme, Eaton's amazing accomplishment in the Libyan Desert, but also places the event squarely in the middle of all the significant history that surrounds it. As a result, Zacks reports not only what actually happened, but what drove the event in the first place, why it was significant and how its impact determined the course of subsequent events.

This is the story of America's first foreign war. But it is much more than that. It is the story of Thomas Jefferson's betrayal of a subordinate who accomplished his mission in grand style, of Tobias Lear's (one of George Washington's assistants) lack of character, of James Madison's subservience and of the U.S. Mediterranean naval squadron's failure. Most historians credit the Navy for America's success along the Barbary Coast but in fact they were amateurish, losing the Philadelphia and, through captured seamen from the Philadelphia, substantively increasing the number of American slaves in Tripoli.

Everything that was accomplished, the ultimate end of the North African slave trade, was accomplished because of William Eaton and seven United States Marines' over land campaign from Alexandria, Egypt to Derne, Libya. In capturing Derne, Eaton and the Marines forced Libyan leaders to the negations that ultimately ended piracy all along the North coast of Africa, a practice that had been going on for hunderds of years. That Eaton was not rewarded by Thomas Jefferson for his efforts in amassing an American led Arab army and dies penniless, alone and forgotten is an American tragedy.

Surely this 1805 accomplishment the North African desert that ended North African piracy ranks with Lewis and Clark's remarkable 1806 journey as the premier achievements of their time. This campaign is what the refrain, "To the shores of Tripoli" in the United States Marine hymn refers to and we owe a significant debt to scholars like Zacks for letting us know exactly what happened.

Intriguing story indeed - life of William Eaton: the patriot and valiant uncompromising soldier/citizen, who got totally messed up by sly and indifferent diplomats.
Interesting times of the First Barbary War just at the beginning of XIX century: for the first time in the history, newly established US Navy flexing its muscles at the Mediterranean Sea, relations with greedy, barbaric Muslim ruler of Tripoli, Navy officers and sailors as Arabs' slaves, crossing Cirenaica desert and battle for Derne involving several US marines, constant craving for money (they did not print $$ at that time), President Jefferson's indecisive acting and politics - it is all here, and much more. I wonder how different it would be/or it is today!- Tunnisia, Libya have not been much better after more than 200 years!
Just after this book, another one has been published: Six Frigates: The Epic History of the Founding of the U.S. Navy by Ian W. Toll, where this conflict and Eaton's name are not ommited.

This book is a very enjoyable tale about the first covert overseas operation in United States history. Nixon, Kennedy, Bush, all presidents with notorious covert operations undertaken during their administrations. Pirate Coast details the first one, in 1805 and sanctioned by Thomas Jefferson.

Screw ups, double crosses, lies by the government. One thing is certain, over 200 years later and our national government still hasn't learned from many of the mistakes of previous administrations.

I liked the writing style of the author, although his much too frequent use of italics for emphasis got tiresome after a while.

Overall, well worth reading for those interested in Jefferson, presidential history, and the history of United States involvement with activities in overseas nations.

You wouldn't be able to suspend your disbelief if this was the plot of a film or novel, but Zacks documents his work well. He particularly relies on the accounts on neutral observers like European diplomats. Just when you think things couldn't get any weirder and the book is wrapping up, Eaton returns to America and gets caught up in some incredible intrigue.

Jefferson does not come out too well in this account (not surprisingly), and Bainbridge is pilloried.

"The Pirate Coast: Thomas Jefferson, the First Marines, and the Secret Mission of 1805," by Richard Zacks, is an enthralling work of history. It's full of bold and colorful characters, fascinating places, and perilous situations. Zacks takes us back to the early 19th century. The nation of Tripoli (modern-day Libya), which terrorizes the Mediterranean, declares war on the United States and eventually captures a U.S. naval vessel and its crew. Zacks tells the story of the military and political effort to free the captives. It's an epic tale that involves both land warfare in North Africa and naval warfare in the Mediterranean, as well as political intrigue in the city of Washington and diplomatic maneuvering in Malta and Tripoli. Although Jefferson gets mentioned in the book's subtitle, the real hero of the book is William Eaton, who leads "America's first covert military op overseas." He's a truly larger-than-life character.

Zacks draws on a rich variety of sources from which to tell the story of Eaton's remarkable mission, and he incorporates substantial quotes from these sources in the narrative. By doing this he allows the voices of Eaton and his contemporaries to be heard. Interestingly, Zacks also points out to the reader the places where there are gaps in the historical record. In the book's acknowledgements section, Zacks describes in detail how he got access to the documents he used in writing the book. The book also includes a "Cast of Characters" guide, extensive endnotes, a thorough bibliography, and an index.

Zacks' prose is witty, lively, and engaging. As he tells the story he includes many fascinating details--the use of lime juice for secret writing, the copious amounts of alcohol consumed by the builders of the U.S.S. _Philadelphia_, the fury of a North African sandstorm, etc. Especially fascinating is his description of how Eaton created a multiethnic, multinational task force of both Christian and Muslim troops as part of his daring mission. Zacks creates vivid portraits not just of Eaton, but of many other remarkable individuals. This work of richly documented history is both tragic and thrilling. For an interesting companion text, I recommend "Inside Delta Force," by Eric L. Haney.

Richard Zacks' "Pirate Coast: Thomas Jefferson, the First Marines, and the Secret Mission of 1805" is an engrossing tale of one of the first US overseas "covert" missions. While also telling the story of the First Barbary War, Zack concentrates on the energetic and ambitious William Eaton, whose audacious plan was to march over 500 miles across the North African desert to attack Tripoli (one of the Barbary States) from land.

Eaton's successful attack on the town of Derna was a key element in the peace made to conclude the war. However, upon his return to the United States, Eaton fell into political conflict with President Thomas Jefferson and was never compensated for much of his personal expenses from the expedition - and he eventually died a broken alcoholic.

"Pirate Coast" is not a full telling of the First Barbary War, but Zacks gives enough background that the reader can follow the big picture while also focusing on Eaton's courageous and daring mission. Zacks also brings the many historical characters to life, showing how their personalities impacted the war, the mission, and the aftermath. This is an excellent book for anyone interesting in US history, military history, or who wants to learn more about this forgotten war.

Many people forget that when America became a nation many other lands had not completely exited the Middle Ages. Slave raids, piracy, and feudal-era enslavements of entire ship crews were still much the of the Mediterranean economy. And this was the world that America had to contend with, even though it was a modern nation founded on Enlightenment principles.

The other point of the book I found fascinating is that even though Jefferson is depicted as something of an effete intellectual in some circles, history shows that he was not afraid to get tough when American's interests were at stake. Were that our current leaders could take the same cue when dealing with Somali pirates.

History's Worst Dictators: A Short Guide to the Most Brutal Rulers, From Emperor Nero to Ivan the Terrible (Five Minute Books)

In the late 1790s and early 1800s merchant ships in the Mediterranean were harassed mercilessly by the Barbary corsairs (pirates). Based in the nations on the northern coast of Africa, they extorted huge amounts of tribute payments from European nations, and sought to do the same with the fledgling United States of America. After losing the USS Philadelphia and over 200 officers and sailors as slaves to Tripoli, Jefferson decided to stand up to the pirates and end their tyranny. He sent William Eaton, a diplomat with a checkered history, to overthrow the Bashaw of Tripoli and free the Americans. And while Eaton nearly succeeded against enormous odds, his quest was cut just short of a tremendous victory by the dishonest (and incompetent) Tobias Lear, who was also sent by Jefferson to broker peace.

Although not as enjoyable as Six Frigates: The Epic History of the Founding of the U.S. Navy by Ian Toll (in my opinion), Richard Zacks does a good job of telling the story of the Barbary Wars. Zacks provides extensive information on the individuals involved, such as Eaton, Lear, Hamet, and others, but the story drags with excessive day-by-day detail of Eaton's 500 mile march across the desert. He also covers the political maneuvering and duplicity of Jefferson following Eaton's mission in great detail. I may have enjoyed it more if I hadn't recently read Toll's book, but I preferred Six Frigates and I suspect many others will, too.

<em>State-sponsored terrorists! Kidnappers! Extortion! Human rights violations! Wishy-washy US and European response! US covert military intervention to enact a regime change! Meddling by self-aggrandizing diplomats! Peace treaties that solve nothing! Betrayed allies! Disgruntled war heroes! Vengeful, dissent-crushing presidents!</em>

If the above sounds like one of those "ripped from the headlines" tales, well, one could certainly draw parallels to US foreign interventions since ... well, since this one, the first honest-to-gosh military conflict and covert ops on foreign soil that the US ever pursued.

In response to ongoing piracy, enslavement, and ransom/tribute demands that the Barbary Coast -- the NW African coast from modern Libya to Algeria -- had plagued European and American shipping for decades, a former diplomat and army colonel, William Eaton, wangles a commission from Thomas Jefferson to try and displace the reigning pashah of Tripoli, Yussef, with his deposed and exiled brother, Hamet. The actual trigger for this action is the capture and enslavement of 300 men of a US warship that absurdly runs aground in Tripoli harbor and is captured.

The ensuing military campaign is, on one level, trivial. Eaton, with a handful of US Marines, a hundred foreign mercenaries gleaned from Egypt, Hamet's entourage, and as many Arab and Bedouin troops as he could manage to bribe from day to day, actually managed to take the Tripolitan port city of Durna from a vastly larger force and hold it for a month. It was the first time the US flag had been raised on foreign soil (outside of North America), and the campaign still echoes in the Marine Corps' hymn, "... to the shores of Tripoli ..."

Outside of that, the story takes on aspects of tragedy and farce. Half the US navy in the Mediterranean -- a tiny fleet to begin with -- wants little to do with the firebrand Eaton, himself a Shakespearean mix of bravery, bombast, and bull-headedness. Certainly the diplomats and consuls in the area disdain the whole idea of a military intervention, and undercut Eaton at every turn, ultimately throwing away his victory with a peace treaty that nearly gave away the store, and certainly betrays all those who had been egged on into action by the US.

And afterwards, an embittered and debt-ridden Eaton returns home to a hero's welcome, but as he undiplomatically expresses his dissatisfaction with the episode's resolution, President Thomas Jefferson decides he's an enemy who must be crushed, and effectively does so, driving the celebrated hero to an untimely self-destruction.

The tale is a great one, full of detail and recounting from primary records of the time -- diaries and letters from diplomats, naval officers and ratings, soldiers on the trail with Eaton, and Eaton himself. While real life rarely has the taut timing of fiction, Zacks does a good job of playing the different threads of the story together, and bringing the various players to life. While the campaign against the Barbary Pirates -- which would be resolved far more satisfactorily a decade later -- is now more of a footnote in history compared to what else was going on during Jefferson's administration, at the time it was the stuff of headlines, as the barbarous Musselman slavers dragged good Chistian men and women -- some of them Americans, by God! -- into Dantesque hells of slavery and degredation. Zacks captures the tenor of the time, and, most importantly, a sense of William Eaton, a man whose love of liberty and the principles he saw America founded on (plus, to be fair, whose jingoism, bigotry, and self-righteousness) led him to one disastrous adventure after another, ultimately to be defeated by both a surprisingly political President and his own inner demons.

While the subtitle on the book is "Thomas Jefferson, the First Marines, and the Secret Mission of 1805," the focus is mostly on the latter (itself an ill-kept secret) and on William Eaton. Jefferson comes off much more as a political schemer, an ivory tower philosopher who learns far too well the ways of power and manipulation. The Marines -- a tiny portion of the US force, though important -- were not the renowned fighting troopsthey are today, but were usually lower-paid ship-board or dock guards, and they'd hardly show up in the title were it not for the "shores of Tripoli" connection.

No, this is Eaton's tale, and the story of the events around him that shaped his mission and its tragic aftermath. And it's a tale about how some things never change, about how regime change and covert ops in foreign countries (as often bungled or uselessly thrown away as not) have been themes in foreign policy for years.

Raymond Todd does a serviceable job with the narration, though the sound editing could use some work; while the recording is clear enough, some of the paragraphs, especially between narrative threads, get run together, and at times there are rather jarring transitions that almost certainly read more clearly on the page.

Anyone with an interest in early US history, especially its military/diplomatic aspects, would be well-served to read this book.

We are having our troubles with the nations of Arabia, and we have for centuries. The very first nation to declare war on our young country was Tripoli (now Libya), just after Thomas Jefferson was inaugurated. Thus the Marine Corps Hymn memorializes "...to the shores of Tripoli." It doesn't say anything about the Marines participating in a secret, covert war, but that is the way it turned out that they were used. If those lyrics are about all you know about the war, there is a detailed and exciting history of the war against Tripoli in _The Pirate Coast: Thomas Jefferson, the First Marines, and the Secret Mission of 1805_ (Hyperion) by Richard Zacks. Anyone interested in the history of our relations with the Arab world will be fascinated by the duplicity, misunderstandings, and culture clashes which Zacks describes.

The rulers of the Barbary Coast had been quite satisfied with taking tribute from European nations, payoff money that was cheaper than fighting wars to defend shipping traffic in the region. Captain William Bainbridge was blockading Tripoli in 1803, when his ship went aground and his crew was captured to become slaves. There were negotiations between Tripoli and Washington for the release of the crew, but Tripoli's ruler, Yussef Karamanli, knew he had captured not only slaves to work for him but also hostages to be redeemed for the cash he needed, and so negotiations went nowhere. President Jefferson assigned William Eaton to attempt Yussef's overthrow. Eaton was a devoted patriot for his young nation, smart, argumentative, and blunt. Eaton was convinced that no tribute should ever be paid to Barbary brigands, and that the best way to stand up against the corrupt Yussef was to back a rebellion by his brother Hamet, who had been tossed out by Yussef years before. In pursuit of this goal, Eaton commanded a nearly miraculous victory over the city of Derne, the first time raised the U.S. flag over conquered territory, only to find that unbeknownst to him, Jefferson was arranging to pay for the hostages. Eaton's victory was useless, and he was commanded to abandon Derne (and Hamet and his allies) by the U.S. Naval Commander, who was jealous of his success, and by the ambassador to Tripoli, Tobias Lear. Lear was a former aide to George Washington, who had actually stolen from Washington and been caught at it. He hated Eaton, and he was eager to conciliate Yussef. Eaton called him "Aunt Lear."

Ordered out of the scene of action, Eaton returned home, surprised to be lauded by a nation that had been told by the press that he was a military genius who had brought victory and had himself dictated the terms of peace to Yussef. He set out to be paid back for his many and diverse expenditures during his underfunded campaigns, and he also wanted to bring Lear and Jefferson under public censure for making him retreat from Derne and abandon Hamet. He detested the way Jefferson had treated him, but when it came time for Eaton to testify in the treason trial against Aaron Burr, he forgot about animosity toward Jefferson and did what he could towards Jefferson's goal of Burr's conviction (it didn't work). Bitter, poor, and unrewarded, he drank himself to an early death at age 47. A year after his death, a naval force under Stephen Decatur put an end to pirate nations demanding tributes, but that isn't really part of the story here. An often exciting tale of eccentric and self-centered officials, missed opportunities, the confusions of war and of diplomacy, media exaggerations, and human brutality and ingratitude as well as heroism, Zack's history does not explicitly invoke our current difficulties in the region, but no one will be able to read of Eaton's adventures without thinking of events two hundred years later.

A US Navy warship goes aground in the territorial waters of a hostil Muslim power, the crew is taken hostage, the President of the US dispatches a secret agent to overthrown the Mulsim leader and free the Americans ... Another Tom Clancy thriller? Not, just a history of what happened at the beginning of the nineteenth centry when the USS Philadelphia grounded in the harbor of Tripoli on the Barbary Coast, the officers and crews made prisoners, and Tom Jefferson sent former US Army Captain William Eaton to North Afric to find a brother of the ruler of Tripoli and support that brother in an attempt to gain the throne and free the Americans. It involved an incredible march across hundreds of miles of terrible desert with a small "army" of mercenaries (and eight US Marines), the successful capture of one of Tripoli's main cities, and betrayal of Eaton's mission by the politicians and diplomats. But in the process Eaton briefly became one of America's first post-Revolutionary military heroes. He was also a cantakerous, hot-tempered, hard-headed drunk, but nobody's perfect. Zacks skillfully tells the story of this remarkable adventure (one that was later immortalized by part of the US Marine Corps' hymn), although I wish he had provided few better maps so the action could be more easily traced.

Navy ships ply the waters off North Africa, deck guns trained on an insurgent stronghold where more than 300 U.S. sailors are being held captive. While diplomats negotiate for their release, the President has authorized a covert operation using a handful of Marines whose mission is to restore the terrorist leader's more amiable brother to power - by force.

Sound like the plot for a contemporary international thriller? Think again because this true story occurred 200 years ago and has plenty of seafaring action.

"The Pirate Coast - Thomas Jefferson, the First Marines and the Secret Mission of 1805" by Richard Zacks (Hyperion Books, New York, 2005), is an offbeat historian's well-researched and heavily-detailed account of a little-discussed military operation that had long-reaching impact on America's policy for dealing with state-sponsored terrorism.

Zacks breathes life into the characters such as President Thomas Jefferson, fiddle-playing U.S. Marine Presley O'Bannon, waffling diplomat Tobias Lear and, most importantly, staunch military commander William Eaton, the brave and uncompromising officer who ran the secret ops and opposed paying ransom to the terrorist network known as the Barbary Pirates.

The story unfolds as 29-year-old William Bainbridge, youngest captain in the fledgling U.S. Navy, runs aground one of America's premier warships, the 36-gun frigate USS Philadelphia, on an uncharted reef just off Tripoli (modern day Libya), where Barbary Pirates are waiting to take possession.

For America, the incident is a litmus test of sorts, the first real challenge to its role in the world as a democratic nation free of nobility and class distinctions. Although triumphant in its revolt against British Colonial rule, America is exhausted by years of warfare. Besides, its fledgling Navy has never faced pirates demanding tribute for permission to sail unscathed through the region.

Britain, France, Spain, Denmark and other European nations routinely pay tribute to the Barbary Pirates in gold, jewels, currency and political favors, in trade for peaceful passage in the Mediterranean and along the coast of North Africa.

For Jefferson, such arrangements could be construed as a cost of doing business, but for men like Eaton, they are acts of terrorism and affronts to civilization not to be tolerated. For Eaton, paying ransom for captives is simply out of the question. His view is simple -- you don't negotiate with terrorists. Rather, you insert a squad of Marines, hire local mercenaries in support, and take charge.

Historical documents show that seven Marines under Eaton's command fought valiantly and for the first time on foreign soil, giving rise to the verse in the Marine Hymn about "the halls of Montezuma to the shores of Tripoli."

The sea battles near Tripoli, like the torching of the USS Philadelphia by Stephen Decatur and other American sailors, to keep her from falling into the hands of pirates, are told in detail. Thankfully, Zacks' writing style never bogs down with research references. This is a book you can simply sit down and read.

The narrative moves quickly and images abound, such as when Decatur's brother, James, leads a raid on a pirate vessel in Tripoli harbor, forcing it to surrender, only to be treacherously shot during the battle. An enraged Stephen Decatur then takes 10 men and attacks an enemy gunboat crewed by 24 scimitar-wielding defenders. While fighting hand-to-hand against the vessel's gargantuan captain, an enemy sailor sneaks up behind Decatur and raises his sliver-moon blade in an imminent death stroke. According to lore, sailor Reuben James intercepts the blow with his head, sacrificing his life to save Stephen Decatur.

"The Pirate Coast" provides a glimpse of life aboard Navy ships in 1805 and shows how battle logistics often depended upon favorable winds or a vital hand-delivered document that may have been in transit for weeks. Imagine the USS Constitution, the same black-hulled ship now docked in Boston Harbor, tacking across strange waters to a land of Bedouin camps, exotic markets, endless desert and Moslem culture, to a place where alcohol is shunned and daily prayer revered, where sheiks with private harems rule over a slave trade that values white Christian women for pleasure and any strong back for work.

Filled with parallels to today's dilemmas over hostage taking, ransom demands, acts of state-sponsored terrorism and how to deal with them, this book belongs in every sailor's library. -- Reviewed by David Liscio

This book details a 19th century Middle Eastern historical event and in so doing raises issues not so dissimilar to those concerning America and the Middle East today.

After continuous intermittent torment from the Barbary pirates in the early 1800's, an American ship runs aground and all 300 crewman are captured in Tripoli. One prong of the effort to free them is a secret military raid that is eerily similar to Carter's doomed 1979 effort to free the Iranian hostages. For this Jefferson employs Thomas Eaton, a determined and bull-headed but uncompromisingly ethical former diplomat and soldier. With a borrowed force of only 8 U.S. Marines, Eaton single-handedly finds a prospective prince, rounds up 1,400 mercenaries, and marches them some 500 miles through the desert, where they succeed in capturing a neighboring town. On the eve of achieving their military goal, they are undermined by Jefferson and a conniving diplomat; but even the peaceful freeing of the captives is only achievable due to Eaton's threat of force, for which he never gets credit. The ending for Eaton is not happy, but the stubborn personality characteritics that lead to his downfall are the same ones that make him the only person who could have succeeded in the operation.

The book is simultaneously readable, detailed, historic, and well-researched. There is an eyebrow-raising jab at an uncooperative source in the Acknowledgments that makes one wonder about the author's composure, and the title is not very informative -- "The Pirate Coast" describes very little about this book, which is really about one man's amazing determination and struggle. But I suppose the title succeeds in attracting readers (like me) interested in pirate lore.

I enjoyed this book for its detailed insights into a short but decisive era of naval diplomacy for the United States and the United States Navy. I was unaware that christian slaves captured by the "Barbary Pirates" were really sold off to work on numerous projects across North Africa as well as on a sultan's fortress deep in the desert. The actual naval combat was a small part of the many failed "diplomatic" and then outright bribery (baksheesh) of the Muslim pirates to attain some semblence of safety for American shipping.

You will be amazed at the futility and frustrations of 19th century diplomacy with the result only being a temporary restrainment before the raids commenced again. It did thrust America for one of the first times into international politics and into a difficult cauldron of slavery, piracy, and bribery as was never known before, where even the great european powers had only succeeded making payments.

There are a lot of modern day similarities of the pirates and terrorists.

While I personally enjoyed this book very much, I can understand that some might not. It should be remembered (especially with all the "pirate hype" going on these days) that this is a book about actual historical events. Which means that it's not all swashbucklers, peg legs and buried treasure.

Where I found this story particularly interesting was in how it draws some parallels to today's diplomacy efforts. There is a divided nature in this country that seems to believe that paying homage and tributes is the way to go (a la Tobias Lear) and others who seem to think not a dime should be paid in tribute or respect and all enemies should be blown out of the water (a la William Eaton). It portrays the not often seen political nature of Jefferson. And it reveals the stark reality of colonial politics.

Finally--not to give away too much--be ready for a less than cinematic ending to the whole story. It's not what one who's not familiar with the story of the Barbary pirates would expect.

An historical novel that reads with the attention to detail of Tom Clancy and the action of a thriller novel.

What makes it even better is that everything that happened is true.

If you yearn for the days of action and adventure, and want to learn about a little-known corner of American history (yet one that was absolutely central in shaping the early days of the USA) grab this book. A rollicking ride. The hero is larger than life yet we find that he is also deeply flawed.

Wish they were all this good.

This is a well-written and informative book about the early history of the United States,and its first war against terrorism, the war against the pirates of Barbary Coast. The Barbary war has many similarities to the ongoing war against terrorism.

The author based his book on extensive research, which included sources from both the United States and the foreign archives of some European nations. The Dutch archives for diplomatic correspondence written by Antoine Zuchet, the Dutch Consul, provide a new source that establishes a much better understanding for the local conditions at Tripoli. It further provides appreciation for the daring and then unrecognized military success on the ground achieved the first Marines in 1805.

The main protagonist in this history book is William Eaton. Eaton's role seems to fit a role of as a classical Greek tragedy. He was a great American patriot, with great abilities, courage, persistence, and perseverance. However he also suffered from the tendency for heavy drinking, which turned to be his undoing at a relatively early age. Other protagonists include the sage of Monticello, Thomas Jefferson, Tobias Lear and others. The writer shows both the protagonists strengths and human frailties. Considering that the title of the book includes the First Marines, which included in this case both US marines and the Christian soldiers recruited from Egypt, perhaps the writer should have addressed the history and valor of those unsung heroes in more detail.

One of the similarities between this old conflict and the ongoing war against militant Islamic terrorism is the debate between two different schools of thought of the US polity, an appeasement school of thought that preferred paying tribute as the less costly option, and another one that preferred the use of force to meet the extortion of the pirates head on. Another similarity is use of violence and/or threat of violence by the pirates to extort the European nations and the USA, and contemporary militant Islamic ideology followers and rogue states use of terrorism to intimidate and extort the Western nations.

President Thomas Jefferson, though he preferred the use of force to address the challenge of the pirates before his election as president, vacillated between the two schools of thought. Ultimately he used a hybrid of diplomacy and modest, or more precisely inadequate, military force in the first Barbary War 1801-1805. This approach delayed the resolution of the conflict for years and resulted in higher cost in both lives and treasure. Jefferson later on came to believe that resorting to a more vigorous military action was needed, as evident by his letter to Lear of June 19, 1813.

President Jefferson exercised his limited military option by sending a naval squadron led by Samuel Barron to the Mediterranean, and authorized a modest effort for a regime change with strings attached, to be led by William Eaton to replace the hostile Pasha of Tripoli Yusuf with his brother Hamet, who was expected to be more amenable to US interests. Eaton was allowed only eight US marines to help with his effort on the ground. Eaton expanded the limited number of marines by recruiting about sixty-three Christian soldiers from Alexandria, Egypt. That combined US marines and Christian soldiers proved their valor as a disciplined professional force, which was essential for success in marching from Egypt to Libya. Eaton also recruited Arabs to assist Hamet. Against great odds this small force led by Eaton captured Derne.

Tobias Lear and Samuel Barron, however neglected Eaton's ground effort and his successful capture of Derne. Lear initiated premature negotiations with Yusuf, the hostile Pasha of Tripoli, forced an early pullout out of Derne, and signed a treaty in 1805. Regardless of the signed treaty and payment of tribute disguised as presents, piracy continued unabated. Long after the 1805 treaty, Lear in a couple of days in 1812, had to pay $33,750.00 to the Dey of Algiers, close to the cost of the Eaton's entire mission.

The challenge posed by the pirates ultimately had to be resolved by another military action in 1815 led by Stephen Decatur against Algiers, Tunis and Tripoli. It is interesting to note that the nations of Europe followed the lead of the successful United States military action of 1815, as an Anglo-Dutch naval squadron led by Lord Exmouth attacked Algiers in 1816. Exmouth forced the pirates to reaffirm the conditions imposed by Decatur and finally put an end for the enslavement of Christians by the pirates and their threat to trade.

This is a good history book that hopefully provides some insights for today's challenges.

This book deals with how America finally dealt with the Barbary prirates and their leaders. All I can say is, "WOW." This is the blue print on how a history book should be authored; straight to the point, without the author injecting his/her slant to the historical record. Zacks' volume should become a classic in the writings of American history. The book, with its wealth of information, reads like a novel. I am sure that you heard the term, "page turner." Too many times, "this book is a page turner" turns into a source to feed a fledgling fire. This volume is indeed a true page turner. You feel that you are with the cast of characters. William Eaton, the leader whose boots actually touched Northern Africa displayed courage and a conviction of what being an American means. To me, he was a true patriot. All I can say that this book is a masterpiece. The only two issues I had were, first the book needed more illustrations and prints, especially vessels and harbor views. Second, Hyperion Books did a poor job of type-setting....several mistakes.

Like many nations that had merchant vessels sailing in the Mediterranean, the fledgling United States, had some of it's ships seized by the Barbary Pirates. In actuality, they were three (Algiers, Tunis, and Tripoli) arab fiefdoms on the north african coast who had been enslaving europeans and raising havoc for hundreds of years. When the USS Philadelphia was run aground off the coast of Tripoli, the 302 sailors were taken as prisoners and used as slaves. The Bashaw (Pasha) Yussef, demanded $1,500,000 for their return, which was more than the US Navy budget for the year.

William Eaton, an erstwhile adventurer (and hard drinking near-do-well) goes off to africa (with the conivance of Jefferson and Madison) to find the Yussef's brother (Ahmet) and put him on the throne of Tripoli. It's the first attempt by the US government to overthrow a 'legitimate' government. The story of 'General' Eaton, his eight marines, navy lieutenant and navy midshipman finding Ahmet in civil war torn Egypt and then putting together an army and attacking the second largest port in Tripoli is amazing and adds new meaning to the words 'swashbuckling'.

After taking the city of Dunne, Eaton then goes on to hold it against a superior force sent by Yussef. In fact quite a few of Yussef's people come over to the side of Ahmet. At the same time, Tobias Lear is sent to negotiate a treaty with Yussef. Since Lear ends up giving Yussef almost everything he wants (instead of tribute, he gives him gifts and bribes which end up much more costly) while selling out Ahmet. It's not until 1816 when Stephen Decateur bombards and threatens all three Barbary States into submission that the US stops sending their yearly 'gifts'.

Lear who gives up all that Pasha Yussef wanted is later rewarded by the Jefferson and Madison governments. Pasha Ahmet is abandoned in Sicily and has to wait four years before his family is released (although the Treaty said immediately, Lear had made a secret codicil agreeing to the delay) and dies a pauper. Eaton, who is at first lauded as a hero, overstays his welcome and late dies a drunkard's debt-ridden death.

Richard Zack's "Pirate Coast" is a well written and very interesting piece of historical writing which moves quickly like a good mystery or historical novel. And as a bonus, the work presents some of the darker political qualities of Thomas Jefferson which are very often ignored. Jefferson's relationship with Tobias Lear is on display and there is much there to see. This is a great read.

Buy it today and enjoy.

The Pirate Coast: Thomas Jefferson, the First Marines, and the Secret Mission of 1805 by Richard Zacks is the story of the first American covert operation in a foreign country. This conflict inspired the words of the marine hymn "on the shores of Tripoli" commemorating the first raising of an American flag on foreign soil.

For centuries the principalities of the Barbary Coast of North Africa had sailed on the Mediterranean as pirates, taking merchant ships and selling captured seamen as slaves. Eventually, to safely sail theses trade routes, a system of tributes was established and annually paid by European nations.

When Thomas Jefferson came to the presidency he abhorred the practice and refused to pay tribute to these pirates. Then in 1803 the USS Philadelphia ran aground at Tripoli. 300 sailors and marines were captured and taken as slaves to be ransomed or sold. Jefferson sent a naval squadron to Tripoli to intimidate the Bashaw of Tripoli into releasing his captives. In addition, he sent his agent William Eaton to Alexandria with secret orders to incite a rebellion against the Bashaw. And finally, to negotiate their release, he sent diplomat Tobias Lear, Who supported peace at any cost and encouraged Jefferson to secretly pay the tributes and ransom.

Eaton was a patriot to the core. Plagued by debt and an impulsive nature he sailed under Jefferson's secret orders to Alexandria. Once there he was to raise an army, overthrow the Bashaw and replace him with an exiled prince. With 8 US marines Eaton raised a ragtag army of Muslims, Christians, and mercenaries. He then gave himself the title of General and set march for Tripoli. Before reaching their goal Jefferson was persuaded to stop funding the expedition, Eaton refused to betray his men and used his own money and negotiated loans to equip and feed his army. Battling the desert, each other, and betrayal they marched across the North African desert.

Reading this book will give you a new perspective on our problems with the Arab countries of the Middle East. It's also an eye opening tale of the political betrayal of those who make the greatest sacrifices for their country.

In the words of William Eaton, "My name shall be written in blood on the walls of Tripoli before I will consent to pay one cent for ransom or tribute". This is a fascinating book about a man we should have learned about in high school. Unfortunately too often the real heroes are replaced by self serving political opportunist. This book is well worth your time.