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| Jefferson's Letter regarding his meeting with Tunisian Diplomats |
This is an interesting
piece of history......
Next time you hear the Marine's Hymn, "From the hall of Montazuma, to the shores of Tripoli", remember the war with Tripoli was a war against the Muslim pirates that demanded nations pay them ransom to sail the seas.
In 1786, John Adams and Thomas Jefferson met with Arab diplomats from Tunisia, who
were conducting terror raids and piracy against American ships (BarbaryPirates). Writing to John Jay, Thomas Jefferson described what he saw as the
main issue and the reason why they were attacking Americans who had done them
no harm. The following quote is from Thomas Jefferson....
“We
took the liberty to make some inquiries concerning the Grounds of their
pretensions to make war upon a Nation who had done them no Injury, and observed
that we considered all mankind as our Friends who had done us no wrong, nor had
given us any provocation.
THE AMBASSADOR ANSWERED US THAT IT WAS FOUNDED ON THE
LAWS OF THEIR PROPHET, THAT IT WAS WRITTEN IN THEIR KORAN, THAT ALL NATIONS WHO
SHOULD NOT HAVE ACKNOWLEDGED THEIR AUTHORITY WERE SINNERS, THAT IT WAS THEIR
RIGHT AND DUTY TO MAKE WAR UPON THEM WHEREVER THEY COULD BE FOUND, AND TO MAKE
SLAVES OF ALL THEY COULD TAKE AS PRISONERS, AND THAT EVERY MUSSELMAN (MUSLIM)
WHO SHOULD BE SLAIN IN BATTLE WAS SURE TO GO TO PARADISE"
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