Naval Documents Related to the Quasi-War Between The United States and France; Naval Operations from December 1800 to December 1801

Washington, D.C. U.S. Government Printing Office, 1938. Presumed First Edition, First printing. Hardcover. vii, [3],596 pages. Illustrations. Abbreviations Index to Sources. Folding Map. Bookplate of noted Naval Authority John Lyman inside the front cover. This is the seventh volume of a project for publishing documentary material dealing with early American naval history. It covers naval operations from December 1, 1800 to December 31, 1801, inclusive, completing the series of seven volumes on the Quasi-War with France (1798-1801), and contains much hitherto unpublished matter concerning naval activity, together with related political and commercial affairs. In addition to the material relating to operations this volume contains supplementary date as follows: a register of naval officers serving in the war; a list of United States Ships of War with pertinent data; a list of such armed merchant vessels as have been found in various contemporary sources with data concerning their active part in the war; a list of Navy Agents; and a small Appendix which includes documents received after the publications of the preceding volumes. The Quasi-War was an undeclared war fought from 1798 to 1800 between the United States and France. Most of the fighting took place in the Caribbean and off the Atlantic coastline of the United States. The war originated in disputes over the application of the 1778 treaties of Alliance and Commerce between the two countries. France, then engaged in the 1792-1797 War of the First Coalition, which included Great Britain, viewed the 1794 Jay Treaty between the United States and Britain as incompatible with those treaties, and retaliated by seizing American ships trading with Britain. The United States responded by suspending repayment of French loans from the American Revolutionary War. When diplomatic negotiations, culminating in the XYZ Affair, failed to resolve the issue, French privateers began attacking merchant ships in American waters. On July 7, 1798, Congress authorized the use of military force against France, and reestablished the United States Navy. United States Marines were also reestablished to defend and board warships, as well as land troops if needed. The United States informally cooperated with Britain, chiefly in allowing merchant ships to join each other's convoys. Likewise, France cooperated with Spain on a minor scale. President John Adams continued diplomatic efforts to resolve underlying issues; this coincided with Napoleon taking power in France, who, for various reasons, was keen to agree to terms. This led to the Convention of 1800, which ended the war. Condition: Good.

Keywords: Quasi-War, France, John Lyman, John Barry, U.S.S. Constitution, U.S.S. Constellation, Henry Dearborn, George Little, Alexander Murray, Samuel Smith, Thomas Truxtun

[Book #81634]

Price: $125.00