Prophet vs Profit: Thomas Jefferson and the Barbary Pirates

 

The history of the First Barbary War (1801–1805), which was the United States' first overseas war and a pivotal moment that shaped the US Navy and Marine Corps.

Here is how these historical dots connect into a single narrative:

1780s: The Crisis Begins

• 1784–1785: Following the Revolutionary War, American merchant ships no longer had the protection of the British Royal Navy. Barbary (Muslim) pirates from North African states (Algiers, Tunis, and Tripoli) began seizing American merchant ships in the Mediterranean.
• Crews as Slaves: The captured sailors were taken to North Africa, where they were auctioned as slaves or held for massive ransoms under brutal conditions.

1786: The Diplomatic Failure in London

• The Meeting: In 1786, Thomas Jefferson (then minister to France) and John Adams (then minister to Britain) met with Sidi Haji Abdul Rahman Adja, the ambassador from Tripoli, in London.
• The Justification: Jefferson and Adams asked why Tripoli was attacking American ships when the US had done nothing to provoke them. The ambassador responded that according to their laws, all nations that did not acknowledge their authority [Muslim] were sinners [1], and it was their right and duty to make war upon them and take slaves.
• The Divide: Adams favored paying the tribute (protection money) to avoid war, while Jefferson strongly opposed it, arguing that paying tribute would only invite more demands.

1801–1805: President Jefferson and the US Marines

• President Jefferson: When Jefferson became President in 1801, the Pasha of Tripoli demanded a massive increase in tribute. Jefferson refused. Tripoli declared war, and Jefferson dispatched the newly re-established US Navy to block the North African coast.
• The US Marines & "To the Shores of Tripoli": The climax of the war came in 1805. General William Eaton and a small detachment of US Marines, alongside a mercenary army, marched 600 miles across the Libyan desert. They launched a surprise attack and captured the Tripolitan city of Derna.
• This victory was the first time the American flag was raised in victory on foreign soil. It permanently immortalized the conflict in the Marines' Hymn with the famous line: "From the halls of Montezuma to the shores of Tripoli."

Islamic Justification Explained 

[1] The ambassador was explicitly referring to Islamic law and scripture as he interpreted them.

The Meeting: In 1786, Thomas Jefferson (then minister to France) and John Adams (then minister to Britain) met with Sidi Haji Abdul Rahman Adja, the ambassador from Tripoli, in London.

The Justification: Jefferson and Adams asked why Tripoli was attacking American ships when the US had done nothing to provoke them. The [Muslim] ambassador responded that according to their laws, all nations that did not acknowledge their authority were sinners, and it was their right and duty to make war upon them and take slaves. 

The ambassador was explicitly referring to Islamic law and scripture as he interpreted them.

When Thomas Jefferson and John Adams met with the Tripolitan ambassador, Sidi Haji Abdul Rahman Adja, in March 1786, they co-signed a letter to John Jay (the Secretary of Foreign Affairs) reporting the exact exchange. In that letter, they noted that the ambassador’s justification was “founded on the Laws of their Prophet, that it was written in their Koran...” 

The concept of "authority" and "laws" the ambassador used translates to specific historical frameworks of Islamic jurisprudence regarding warfare and international relations:

1. The Division of the World (Dar al-Islam vs. Dar al-Harb)

In classical Islamic law, the world was traditionally conceptualized into two geopolitical spheres:

• Dar al-Islam (The Abode of Islam): Territories governed by Islamic law and authority.
• Dar al-Harb (The Abode of War): Non-Muslim territories that did not recognize Islamic authority or have a formal peace treaty (sulh) with a Muslim state.

Because the newly independent United States was a non-Muslim nation and had not negotiated a treaty or paid tribute to Tripoli, it fell into Dar al-Harb. Under the ambassador’s logic, a perpetual state of hostility existed by default until a peace contract was bought.

2. The Treaty and Tribute System as Jizya

To the North African Barbary States, the "protection money" or tribute demanded from Western nations was viewed through the legal lens of Jizya (a tax levied on non-Muslims) or a mal al-hudna (peace payment). In their interpretation of Islamic law, non-Muslim nations could only secure safety for their citizens and property by submitting to this financial obligation, effectively acknowledging the overarching authority of the Islamic state.

3. Enslavement of Prisoners of War

The ambassador’s assertion that it was their right to "make slaves of all they could take as prisoners" aligned with medieval maritime warfare rules. Under the historical jurisprudence of the region, captured combatants or citizens of a state in Dar al-Harb who had no treaty of protection could legally be enslaved, ransomed, or exchanged.

Economic Motives Masked as Religious Law

While Ambassador Adja used the Quran and Islamic law to provide a formal, legal justification for piracy, modern historians emphasize that the primary driver for Tripoli was economic. 

The Barbary States relied heavily on the state-sanctioned piracy and ransom economy to fund their governments and maintain naval power. Interestingly, Jefferson himself suspected the religious arguments were a negotiation tactic to extract higher prices; in his personal notes, Jefferson jokingly misspelled the word "Prophet" as "profit," indicating he believed the conflict was ultimately about money, not theology. 

During the 1797 Treaty of Tripoli, the U.S. explicitly stated it had no inherent animosity toward the laws of Islam.

Thank you Gemini AI for your wisdom and research assistance. -- Drifting Cowboy

Our connection to U.S. President Warren G. Harding

 

The connection between our Matteson lineage and President Warren G. Harding (29th U.S. President) comes through our shared ancestor Deputy Governor John Greene Jr. (1620–1708) and his wife Ann (Almy) Greene (c. 1622–1709).

Because our 4th great-grandmother Dinah Matteson descends from Audrey Greene, you and President Harding share a direct genealogical connection as distant cousins through the colonial Greene family of Rhode Island.

The Shared Ancestry Chart

                        Dr. John Greene "The Surgeon" (c. 1590–1659)

                                       │

                        Deputy Governor John Greene Jr. (1620–1708)

                                       m. Ann Almy

                      [7th Great-Grandparents to Warren G. Harding]

                                       │

                 ┌────────────┴──────────────┐

                 ▼                                           ▼

          Audrey Greene                                (Sibling Line)

        (1667–1733) m. John Spencer          Greene Descendants

                 │                                           │

                 ▼                                           ▼

       John Spencer (1698–1763)                 Harding Lineage

                 │                                           │

                 ▼                                           ▼

      Sarah Spencer (1727–1824)                George Tryon Harding 

    m. Jonathan Matteson (Gen 4)               m. Phoebe Elizabeth Dickerson

                 │                                           │

                 ▼                                           ▼

       Josiah Matteson (Gen 5)                    President Warren G. Harding

                 │                                        (1865–1923)

                 ▼

      Dinah Matteson (Gen 6)

Key Takeaways of the Connection

• Common Ancestors: Deputy Governor John Greene Jr. and Ann Almy are documented as the 7th great-grandparents of President Warren G. Harding, according to lineage tracking on FamousKin and Geni.com.
• Kinship Relationship: Because Audrey Greene (our direct ancestor) was a daughter of John Greene Jr. and Ann Almy, President Harding shares a line of descent through one of Audrey's siblings. This makes President Warren G. Harding a distant cousin (approximately a 7th to 8th cousin, depending on generation spacing) to our Matteson/Pierce branches.
• Colonial Roots in Rhode Island: Like many early New England lines, as families migrated west during the 18th and 19th centuries (with branches of the Greene line moving into New York, Pennsylvania, and Ohio, where Harding was born), their roots trace directly back to the 17th-century settlements of Warwick, Portsmouth, and East Greenwich.

Comparing the colonial journeys of the Greene and Matteson families in 17th-century Rhode Island.

From Gentry to Homesteaders: The Divergent Colonial Journeys of the Greene and Matteson Families

While both the Greene and Matteson families became foundational pillars of early Rhode Island, their arrivals and initial decades in the New World stood in stark contrast. One family brought gentle English status, professional wealth, and immediate political power, while the other represented the quietly resilient frontier immigrant carving a home out of the wilderness.

The Greenes: Establishment, Civic Power, and Religious Leadership

The Greene line arrived in New England not as landless pioneers, but as established English gentry. When Dr. John Greene Sr.—a surgeon from Salisbury, Wiltshire—emigrated in 1635 aboard the James, he carried both financial capital and strong convictions. Clashing with the Puritan establishment in Massachusetts over religious liberty, Dr. Greene aligned himself with Roger Williams, becoming one of the 12 original proprietors of Providence and later a founding purchaser of Warwick (Shawomet).

His son, Deputy Governor John Greene Jr., inherited his father's standing and elevated the family into Rhode Island's political elite. For nearly half a century, the Greenes shaped the legal and diplomatic architecture of the colony:

• Colonial Leadership: Serving as General Solicitor, Attorney General, Major of the Main, and ultimately Deputy Governor for a decade (1690–1700).
• Charter Defenders: Playing pivotal roles in securing and maintaining the historic 1663 Royal Charter, ensuring Rhode Island's religious freedoms and territorial integrity against neighboring Massachusetts and Connecticut.

For the Greenes, the 17th century was defined by high-level governance, diplomatic missions to London, and large land grants along Narragansett Bay.

The Mattesons: Frontier Resilience and Land Clearance

By contrast, the story of Henry Matteson reflects the classic struggle of the early Rhode Island homesteader. Arriving around 1666—traditionally held to be of Danish origin—Henry did not come with the wealth or status of an English surgeon. His initial years were spent on Prudence Island before he positioned himself on the expanding frontier.

Rather than drafting colonial charters, Henry Matteson spent his decades clearing timber, building homesteads, and defending the borders of raw settlements:

• Frontier Defense: Living through the total devastation of King Philip’s War (1675–1676), which temporarily wiped out many mainland Rhode Island farms.
• 1677 Founders of East Greenwich: Following the war, Henry was granted 100 acres in 1678 as part of the initial layout of East Greenwich—a township created specifically to reward soldiers and secure the colony's western interior.
• Local Leadership: Though working the soil, Henry earned the trust of his neighbors, serving as Town Sergeant and later representing East Greenwich as a Deputy to the Rhode Island General Assembly in 1685.

Convergence on the Rhode Island Frontier

While the Greenes governed from the coastal centers of Warwick and Newport, and the Mattesons broke ground in the hills of East and West Greenwich, their paths were destined to cross.

By the late 17th and early 18th centuries, the expanding Matteson family began intermarrying with the established coastal families. Through alliances with the Spencer and Briggs families—and eventually the direct union between lines descending from Audrey Greene and the Mattesons—the frontier homesteaders and the colonial gentry merged. This convergence combined the raw pioneer resilience of the Mattesons with the legal, civic, and royal charter legacy of the Greenes, creating a single, deeply rooted Rhode Island lineage.

Thank you Gemini AI for your wisdom and research assistance. -- Drifting Cowboy

Our Matteson Line of East Greenwich Rhode Island

 

The autumn salt air blowing off Narragansett Bay brought the familiar chill of late October 1677. Standing on a timber-littered hillside overlooking Cowesett Bay, Henry Matteson (our 9th great-grandfather) wiped sweat from his brow and adjusted his grip on the felling axe. Behind him lay the open blue waters that connected Rhode Island to the wider Atlantic; ahead lay dense, oak-choked wilderness that had never seen a European plow.

Henry had traveled far from Denmark—a long, treacherous journey across the Atlantic to Roger Williams’ colony of "Providence Plantations," where a man could worship as he saw fit and hold land in his own name. After the devastating fires of King Philip’s War had swept through the region just a year prior, the General Assembly in Newport had granted 5,000 acres to fifty men who were willing to settle and defend the frontier. Henry Matteson was one of those fifty.

Along with his young wife, Hannah Parsons, Henry built a modest timber frame home. Year by year, they cleared rocky fieldstone, planted Indian corn, and established a homestead that would anchor the Matteson name in Kent County for generations.

Fifty years later, Henry's grandson, Thomas Matteson Jr., stood in the doorway of a expanded homestead in East Greenwich. The wilderness his grandfather fought to clear was now a bustling township of stone-end houses, cider mills, and stone-walled pastures. Thomas looked out across the fields toward his son, young Jonathan, who was hauling firewood for winter. 

Through strategic marriages with local families like the Spencers and Briggs, the Mattesons had woven themselves tightly into the civic fabric of Rhode Island—serving as freemen, grand jurors, and militia captains.

By the time Josiah Matteson cleared his own land in West Greenwich on the eve of the American Revolution, and his daughter Dinah later married into the Pearce family of Foster, the Mattesons were no longer Danish immigrants in a foreign land. They were Rhode Islanders—part of a six-generation legacy that helped carve a colony out of the wilderness.

Historical Context & Rhode Island Contributions

The Matteson family represents one of the foundational pioneer lineages of Rhode Island's interior. Arriving as a Scandinavian immigrant in a English-dominated colony, Henry Matteson and his direct descendants played a key role in settlement, agricultural expansion, local government, and military defense across Kent and Providence Counties.

Gen 1: Henry Matteson & Hannah Parsons

• The Founding Pioneer: Henry Matteson stands out as a rare 17th-century Danish immigrant in early New England. He arrived in Rhode Island during a period of religious tolerance championed by Roger Williams.
• East Greenwich Incorporation (1677): Henry was among the original 50 founders who received 100-acre land grants to establish East Greenwich following King Philip's War (1675–1676). The colony granted this land to men who pledged to build homes and clear land, creating a military buffer against regional Indigenous uprisings and border disputes with Connecticut.
• Civic Role: Henry took the oath of allegiance in 1671 and served as a Freeman, actively helping transition East Greenwich from wilderness into a functioning township.

Gen 2 & Gen 3: Thomas Matteson Sr. & Jr.

• Western Expansion: As East Greenwich grew crowded, the Mattesons pushed west into the rugged "Outlands" (later West Greenwich and Coventry).
• Prominent Allied Families: The Mattesons intermarried with prominent early Rhode Island lines—including the Briggs and Spencer families. The Spencers were prominent civic leaders and landholders in East Greenwich dating back to the town's initial 1677 founding.

Gen 4 & Gen 5: Jonathan & Josiah Matteson

• Revolutionary Era & Frontier Farming: Operating farms in West Greenwich and Coventry, Josiah Matteson came of age during the American Revolution. Men from West Greenwich served extensively in local militia units and Rhode Island regiments guarding Narragansett Bay and the western border.

Spencer and Briggs Foundational Families in Early Rhode Island

By marrying into these lines, the Matteson family connected themselves directly to the original 1677 founders of East Greenwich, early civic leadership, and royal-charter colonial lineage.

The Spencer Family Lineage

The Spencers were among the premier families of East Greenwich, arriving in the colony during the initial wave of 17th-century settlement.

                           [THE SPENCER LINEAGE]

                 John Spencer Sr. (c. 1638–1684) m. Susannah

                 [Founder & 1st Town Clerk of East Greenwich]

                                     │

                 ┌───────────┴─────────────┐

                 ▼                                       ▼

    Susannah Spencer (1681–1743)     John Spencer Jr. (1666–1743)

     m. Richard Briggs (Gen 3)               m. Audrey Greene (Gen 4 line)

                 │                                        │

                 ▼                                        ▼

     Susanna Briggs (1707–1732)       John Spencer (1698–1763)

     m. Thomas Matteson Jr.                m. Ruth Spencer (1702–1794)

                                                          │

                                                           ▼

                                                    Sarah Spencer (1727–1824)

                                                    m. Jonathan Matteson (Gen 4)

Key Historical Details & Contributions:

• John Spencer Sr. (c. 1638–1684): John Spencer was one of the original 50 grantees who received a 100-acre lot to establish East Greenwich in October 1677 following King Philip's War. He was elected the first Town Clerk of East Greenwich in 1677 and served as Conservator of the Peace.
• Double Spencer Connection: Our Gen 4 ancestor Sarah Spencer (1722/27–1824) brings a heavy dose of Spencer lineage. Her father John Spencer (1698–1763) married his relative Ruth Spencer (1702–1794). Ruth’s father, Michael Spencer, was another early East Greenwich landowner and freeman.
• The Audrey Greene Connection: Sarah Spencer's grandmother was Audrey Greene (1667–1733), who connects this line to John Greene Jr., Deputy Governor of Rhode Island, and Surgeon John Greene, one of the 12 original purchasers of Warwick alongside Samuel Gorton.

The Briggs Family Lineage

The Briggs family was established in New England during the early colonial era, moving from the Plymouth Colony down into Portsmouth and East Greenwich.

                            [THE BRIGGS LINEAGE]

                       John Briggs Sr. (c. 1609–1690)

                       [Portsmouth, RI Pioneer & Freeman]

                                     │

                                     ▼

                      Richard Briggs Sr. (1647–1692)

                     [1677 East Greenwich Founder]

                                     │

                                     ▼

            Richard Briggs Jr. (1675–1733) m. Susannah Spencer

                                     │

                                     ▼

                        Susanna Briggs (1707–1732)

                     m. Thomas Matteson Jr. (Gen 3)

Key Historical Details & Contributions:

• John Briggs Sr. (c. 1609–1690): The immigrant ancestor arrived in Massachusetts in the 1630s before settling in Portsmouth, Rhode Island, in 1638. He was a Freeman in 1655, served as a Commissioner, and was an Assistant to the Governor in 1648.
• Richard Briggs Sr. (1647–1692): Like John Spencer Sr. and Henry Matteson, Richard Briggs Sr. was one of the original 50 grantees of East Greenwich in 1677. He cleared land in the western portion of the township and served as a local constable and surveyor.
• Richard Briggs Jr. (1675–1733): Married Susannah Spencer, merging the Briggs and Spencer families a generation before their daughter, Susanna Briggs, married Thomas Matteson Jr. in 1723.

Summary of Allied Impact on the Mattesons

Through these two marriages, our Matteson branch gained:

1. Triple Founder Descent: Henry Matteson, John Spencer Sr., and Richard Briggs Sr. were all among the original 50 founders of East Greenwich in 1677.
2. Civic & Political Influence: The Spencers provided local governance (town clerk, justices of the peace), while the Briggs brought deep roots in early Portsmouth and colonial defense.
3. Land Holdings: Intermarriage with the Spencers and Briggs allowed the Mattesons to expand their land holdings westward into Coventry and West Greenwich as new farm plots were surveyed and divided among heirs.

Deputy Governor John Greene Jr. of Rhode Island, and his Colonial Leadership

Deputy Governor John Greene Jr. (1620–1708) was a central political figure, diplomat, and military leader in colonial Rhode Island. Serving in public office for nearly 50 consecutive years, he helped defend Rhode Island’s royal charter, secure its physical borders, and preserve its founding principles of religious freedom.

Key Historical Contributions & Public Career

• The Royal Charter of 1663: John Greene Jr. was one of the original named petitioners and Assistants in the landmark 1663 Royal Charter granted by King Charles II. This charter established the Colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations and provided an unprecedented degree of religious freedom and self-governance that lasted until 1843.
• 
  
• 14th Deputy Governor (1690–1700): Greene served as Deputy Governor for 10 consecutive one-year terms alongside Governors John Easton, Caleb Carr, Walter Clarke, and Samuel Cranston. He voluntarily retired from office at age 80.
• Military Leadership ("Major of the Main"): He held commissions as Captain and later Major (the highest military rank in the colony at the time), directing local defense forces through King Philip’s War (1675–1676) and border skirmishes with neighbor colonies.
• Diplomat & Charter Defender: Greene traveled directly to London on diplomatic missions to represent the colony before the English Crown, successfully defending Rhode Island's territorial boundaries against encroachment by Massachusetts Bay and Connecticut.
• Extensive Legal & Civic Roles: Throughout his life, he filled almost every key post in the government:
• General Recorder (Secretary of State, 1652–1654)
• Attorney General (1657–1660)
• General Solicitor (1655)
• Member of the Governor's Council and long-serving Assistant (Colonial Senator)

The Surgeon Father: Dr. John Greene Sr. (c. 1590–1659)

John Greene Jr.’s prominence was rooted in his father, Dr. John Greene Sr., a surgeon from Salisbury, Wiltshire, England, who emigrated aboard the James in 1635:

• Founding of Providence: After clashing with Puritans in Massachusetts over religious principles, Dr. John Greene joined Roger Williams in 1636, becoming one of the 12 original proprietors of Providence and a co-founder of the First Baptist Church in America.
• 
  
• Founder of Warwick (Shawomet): In 1642–1643, Dr. Greene joined Samuel Gorton to purchase land from the Narragansett Sachem Miantonomi, establishing the settlement of Warwick. The family's ancestral farm estate, Occupassuatuxet ("Greene's Hold"), remained in the family for generations.

The Audrey Greene Connection to Our Matteson Line

Audrey Greene (1667–1733) was the daughter of Deputy Governor John Greene Jr. and his wife Ann Almy (daughter of early Portsmouth settler William Almy).

Through Audrey Greene’s marriage into the Spencer family, our ancestral line links directly back through Deputy Governor John Greene Jr. and Dr. John Greene Sr. This lineage connects our family to several notable American descendants, including Revolutionary War General Nathanael Greene, colonial governors William Greene Sr. and Jr., and U.S. President Warren G. Harding.

Thank you Gemini AI for your wisdom and research assistance. -- Drifting Cowboy