"The Most Bold and Daring Act of the Age" - Today in Military History

On 16 February 1804, Lieutenant Stephen Decatur, Jr. led a party of 74 volunteers into Tripoli Harbor aboard the ketch Intrepid. Decatur's mission was to board and recover the grounded frigate USS Philadelphia, which had been captured and was guarded by Tripolitan forces. President Jefferson had sent Philadelphia to the Mediterranean as part of a larger US Navy flotilla to deal with the Barbary Pirates. She ran aground on an uncharted reef in October of 1803 while sailing through the harbor, and the captain and crew abandoned her to avoid capture.

Decatur was no stranger to the sea; he was raised by a naval officer and veteran of the War for independence. Decatur was born in Maryland, attended college at the University of Pennsylvania, and joined the navy at the ripe age of 19 as a Midshipman. He served through the Quasi War with France, and by 1799 was promoted to Lieutenant by President John Adams.

The young United States relied on trade with Europe, but its merchant ships were frequently pirated by the Barbary States along the northern coast of Africa. To avoid paying large ransoms or potentially losing cargo, ships and crew, the U.S. had routinely paid 'tribute' to these lawless powers. By 1801, President Jefferson was tired of this game, and he sent a squadron of US warships to the Mediterranean to convince the Barbary States to end this practice. This was the first time the US Navy was sent overseas to ensure freedom of navigation and to enforce the sovereignty of American vessels in the face of a foreign power.

The capture of Philadelphia by the Tripolitans cannot be understated. Although smaller than a 'ship of the line' and classified as a 36-gun frigate, she was only three years old and actually carried 44 guns of significant weight making Philadelphia a highly capable warship. Just the loss of her armament and munitions was a blow to the Americans, and the risk of the Tripolitans sailing her was unacceptable.

Around 1900 (7 PM), the evening of 16 Feb, Decatur led his crew including nine Marines into Tripoli harbor aboard the ketch Intrepid. They disguised themselves as Maltese sailors, brought an Italian who could speak Arabic, rigged their ship in the manner of a merchant, and flew a British flag. The Geneva Convention wouldn't exist for another 145 years, so this type of deception was a widely accepted practice at sea. After closing with Philadelphia under a light breeze, Decatur gave the order to board. His men took the Barbary soldiers by surprise and captured the ship without losing a single man. Realizing the ship was too hard aground and Intrepid too small to tow her, they set fire to the Philadelphia and prevented the Tripolitans from using it against the US. According to witnesses the ensuing secondary explosions from the powder magazines and loaded cannon were spectacular.

For his actions, Decatur became an overnight hero and was promoted to Captain at the age of 25. He is the youngest man to hold that rank in the US Navy. Admiral Horatio Nelson of the Royal Navy described the raid as, "The Most Bold and Daring Act of the Age". Decatur went on to command several ships including four of the original Six Frigates approved during the Washington Presidency, and he served courageously in the War of 1812 and the Second Barbary War. In 1816, he was assigned to the Board of Navy Commissioners supporting the Secretary of the Navy managing materiel support for the Navy. Stephen Decatur died on March 22, 1820 from a gunshot wound he suffered during a duel with a court-martialed US Navy Commodore, James Barron.

Today, Commodore Decatur is still honored by his namesake ship, USS Decatur (DDG-73), a highly capable Arleigh Burke class guided missile destroyer and the fifth ship of her name.