The Barbary Wars Essay Example

The United States’ response to the Barbary Wars set foreign policy precedent that has carried forward to this day and age. The main cause of the Barbary Wars was Jefferson’s refusal to pay tribute and so America went to war with the Barbary States over it. Through the wars America made the realization that it needed foreign policy precedent to set a standard for other nations so certain events, such as the Barbary Wars, did not occur again. This led to foreign policy precedents set up which included the refusal to pay tribute and the importance of maintaining world peace.

Another precedent put in place due to the wars would be having access to ports. Part of the reason behind this foreign policy was that Algiers had originally closed its ports to American ships, so after the wars the United States demanded the opening of Algerian ports and set the precedent to keep global ports open and available (“1814 Second Barbary War”). The use of gunboat diplomacy was yet another foreign policy precedent put in place due to the wars. This was because during the Barbary Wars an American squadron sailed to the Mediterranean and persuaded Barbary states to sign peace treaties using an early form of “gunboat diplomacy” (Treese and Phifer). The precedent of gunboat diplomacy continued to be used following the events of the Barbary Wars. For instance, in 1853 American Commodore Matthew Perry led the United States Navy warships to Tokyo Bay where he stated he would use gunboat diplomacy if Japan had not agreed to establish relations (“Gunboat Diplomacy”). It is clear that the Barbary Wars was one of the first official causes of the set up of foreign policies in the United States.

Without the Barbary Wars the United States would not have implemented certain precedents regarding tribute or global ports. These wars made the United States realize its standards and what needed to change in regards to how it deals with other nations. The Barbary Wars had a major impact on the United States that would be carried out to this day and age, that of setting up foreign policy precedent. It was because of the Barbary Wars that the United States realized that they needed a standard for other nations, so the wars impacted America by bringing forth foreign policies, much of which have impacted us to this day. The Barbary Wars allowed for the beginning of the end of piracy in the Mediterranean. The rampage of piracy that had been occurring for so long had finally begun to come to a close. The Second Barbary War had ended tribute paid by the United States and the piracy rampage slowed tremendously. This end to piracy throughout the Mediterranean would have also not been as successful if the treaty of Tripoli had not been as favorable as it was to the United States (The Editors of Encyclopaedia). Since it was only the beginning of the end of piracy, it took some time for a full impact to be made.

Therefore, even though most of the Barbary rulers were forced to end tribute due to Jefferson’s actions within the wars, some Barbary rulers were still able to receive some tribute. These wars would have continued if not for the American naval blockade as well as the actions Jefferson took, both of which stood as a major role in ending the war. For example, Jefferson took action in ending the piracy by initially refusing to pay the increasing demands of the Barbary rulers, then sending warships to the Mediterranean and blockading the Barbary States (Onuf). For the end of piracy to occur, people needed to strike first and battle for the beginning of an end. Jefferson was the only one to step up and put an end to the rampant piracy. If he had not done so it can be inferred that the raging piracy would have gotten far worse and destroyed the world economically. These wars were the only way to effectively overcome the Golden Age of piracy. It can easily be said that the wars and Jefferson’s actions within them were impactful to the beginning of the end of piracy as it led to a peace treaty with the Barbary States and an end of most tribute collected by Barbary rulers. The Barbary Wars significantly impacted the United States by allowing them to end the tribute it was forced to pay.

The winning of the Barbary Wars of the United States impacted America by bringing about change within Mediterranean waters and by initiating an end to the piracy. The global prestige of the United States was boosted and showed how strong America was as its own nation following the Barbary Wars. The Barbary Wars also resulted in foreign policies implemented for preventative circumstances and to create standards for other nations in regards to how they interact with the United States. The beginning of the end of piracy was brought about thanks to the help of Jefferson and the American Navy who ended the tribute of the United States after the wars. The United States’ global prestige, the foreign policy precedents set, as well as the clear beginning of the end of piracy showed how impactful the Barbary Wars were for America.

Ultimately, it was through the United States’ initial actions that helped to emerge much of the Mediterranean out of the hands and economic fatalities that were caused by the Barbary pirates.