Nelson & His World

Attacks on shipping by Somali pirates have been much in the news recently, and there have also been reminders that African piracy is nothing new. One commentator has remarked that modern piracy begins ashore, and that the lawlessness there needs to be halted if piracy is to cease.

Lord Exmouth certainly had a robust way with piracy and was prepared to tackle the root of the problem by bombarding Algiers when the Dey violated treaties he had negotiated with him.

http://chestofbooks.com/reference/Ameri ... mouth.html

I would welcome fuller comments/references from experts here.

I was amused to see this comment from Dominic Sandbrook, the academic mentioned on another thread, who is so against journalists etc. becoming historians. Clearly, he has nothing against historians becoming journalists!

http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/standard/ ... article.do

Here is an interesting, contemporary print of the surrender of Christian slaves by the Dey of Algiers to Lord Exmouth:


http://www.themaritimegallery.co.uk/Ass ... GP2786.jpg

I recently acquired a letter written by Sir Alexander Ball to Charles Biddle, congratulating him on the release of his son, Captain James Biddle, of the United States Navy, who had been held in captivity by pirates from Tripoli for 19 months. It is always salutary to have the face and a name of an individual to bring home the effects of great events on the mainly faceless participants.

Here is a transcript of the letter. Mark will post images later. (Thanks, Mark, for technical expertise.)


Malta 25 June 1805

Sir,

I beg leave to offer you my sincere congratulations on your Son’s release from Tripolin slavery, and particularly on his having obtained it by a Peace the most honorable for the United States. I am glad to find that his health has not suffered by his exile; and with respect to his Mind, it is probable that he will be a better and a happier /Man/ by the adversity he has experienced.

I did not answer your letter acquainting me with your wish to purchase your son’s redemption, because I saw the necessity of abstaining from an act that might raise the demands of the Bashaw, and hurt the American cause – I was persuaded from your character that /in this,/ I should be anticipating your patriotic spirit, more especially as I foresaw and predicted that a persevering Blockade only would soon terminate the war to the honor of the United States.

I beg you to command my services when they can be useful.

I have the honor to be with much consideration

Sir
Your most faithful and obedient servant

Alex. Jno Ball

Charles Biddle Esq




The oblique signs [/] indicate that Ball inserted the enclosed words into the text.

Here is more about Captain Biddle who had a most interesting career:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/James_Biddle

Here are scans of Alexander Ball letter:

Many thanks, Mark.

it is interesting to see the same conflict of interests in Nelson's day as today: the family of the seized want a speedy resolution and are prepared to pay for it; governments have to take a longer view and do not want to risk feeding the appetite of the pirates.

It looks as though America paid a ransom of $60,000 as part of the peace treaty with Tripoli that released Biddle!

Do you know what Alexander Ball's involvement had been? Britain had a peace treaty with Tripoli while America was at war.

Tony:

I have no idea of the background to the events touched upon in Ball's letter. It will be fun to research. If anyone has any pointers, useful sources, etc. I'd be grateful.

The link below gives a useful summary of events. The treaty Ball mentions was highly contentious in the United States, and didn't resolve the problem as this link shows:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/First_Barbary_War

Mira kindly pointed me in the direction of the diary of Captain Biddle's brother Nicholas who travelled in Europe about this time. I've managed to get hold of a copy and will post, in due course, one or two interesting and little-known anecdotes about Nelson that he records.

There's a new book out on Mediterranean Piracy, a little earlier than 'our' period, but it concludes with a chapter on Lord Exmouth's bombardment of Algiers in 1816 which brought the scourge to an end.

Pirates of Barbary: Corsairs, Conquests and Captivity in the 17th-Century Mediterranean by Adrian Tinniswood (Cape, £20 pp 352)

I haven't read the book yet, but I know Adrian slightly, and am familiar with an earlier book of his, 'By Permission of Heaven: the Story of the Great Fire of London' which is a masterly and gripping account of this landmark in London's history so I am sure this new book will be equally exciting.

Anna,

The Barbary Corsairs are always interesting reading. If you can find it a copy of the Corsairs of Malta and Barbary, by Peter Earle this is most probably the best on the subject. A very bloody period indeed.

Here's another recommended title while on the subject fairly recentas well, Empires of the Sea, The Final Battle for the Mediterranean 1521-1580, by Roger Crowley, Faber and Faber Limited 2008.

Includes a good account on that other Greatest of Sea Battles, Lepanto 1571

Hi all,
Whilst researching Sir AJB I came across a series of slavery and bondage novels by Commander Allan Aldis. In one novel-–Barbary Slavegirl—were two references to Captain Sir Alexander Ball but only in so far as he was giving a ball in the former Grand Masters Palace in Valletta, and it was a year after he had actually died!!
I don’t know whether the series is worth perusing--for hard historical facts on piracy of course!!!
EMP