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Ottoman Algeria in Western Diplomatic History with ... - Bibliothèque

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A detailed analysis of the three peak events which took place <strong>in</strong> 1786,<br />

1795, and 1815 provides the concrete historical context <strong>in</strong> which American<br />

economic and military overseas expansionism occurred. Based on the found<strong>in</strong>g<br />

pr<strong>in</strong>ciples of corsair<strong>in</strong>g diplomacy, the analysis refutes arguments of any<br />

<strong>Algeria</strong>n attacks aga<strong>in</strong>st the United States and proceeds to elaborate a ‘Deypawn<br />

theory’ that attempts to look <strong>in</strong>to a complex system of <strong>in</strong>ternational<br />

relations that was clocked <strong>in</strong> <strong>in</strong>trigues and secrecy as it was typical of ‘power<br />

politics’ of that time. The aim is to expla<strong>in</strong> the new role which the rival<br />

colonial powers attributed to the obsolete Turkish rulers of Algiers at a time<br />

Algiers had already lost the protective shield of its navy and corsair<strong>in</strong>g was on<br />

the decl<strong>in</strong>e. The thesis also reveals that the Christian-culture imbued<br />

Americans had displayed aggressive attitudes and signs of contempt and<br />

perfidy vis-à-vis Algiers long before any actual contact took place between the<br />

two countries. F<strong>in</strong>ally, this research concludes that the unfold<strong>in</strong>g events of<br />

1815 bear all the <strong>in</strong>gredients of gunboat Diplomacy and shows that American<br />

<strong>in</strong>herent aggressiveness, deceitfulness, and greed<strong>in</strong>ess could not be better<br />

displayed than at the mouth of the cannons of American naval officers.<br />

Structurally, s<strong>in</strong>ce much of the flavor and probative value of history may<br />

be lost when one paraphrases first-hand accounts of historical actors, the thesis<br />

makes deliberate and liberal quotations from the orig<strong>in</strong>al sources. In addition, it<br />

<strong>in</strong>cludes a number of tables that have been constructed from scratch either for<br />

the purpose of illustration, expansion, or summarization of an ongo<strong>in</strong>g<br />

argument. Conscious that the <strong>in</strong>clusion of such tables <strong>in</strong> the body of the text<br />

7

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