Swedish–Tripolitanian war (1796–1802)

Swedish–Tripolitanian war (1796–1802)
Date 1796 - October 1802 Location Mediterranean Sea Result Tripolitanian victory
Belligerents
Ottoman Tripolitania	Sweden
Commanders and leaders
Yusuf Karamanli Burak Rouse	Gustav IV Adolf Rudolf Cederström David Gustaf Blessingh Carl Gustaf Tornquist
Strength
Unknow	4 Frigates: Thetis Fröja Camilla Sprengporten 1 Brig: Husaren 1 Warship: Thundera
Casualties and losses
Unknown	Over 20 ships captured 160 sailors captured

The Swedish-Tripolitanian War was a naval conflict that took place from 1796 to 1802 between Sweden and Tripolitania over Yusuf Karamanli taking advantage of Sweden to gain large amounts of tribute.

Background

Yusuf Karamanli aimed to maintain power by reorganizing the military, expanding the fleet, and pushing into the southern Sahara. Trouble arose when Sweden and Denmark were slow to send gifts to him. In response, he seized ships from both countries to pressure them. Despite new demands reaching Sweden in 1794, Yusuf Qaramanli insisted on renegotiating a peace treaty, ignoring objections from both Constantinople and Stockholm.Unlike his father, who had honored peace agreements with Sweden, Yusuf Qaramanli repeatedly declared war on Sweden and captured several ships.

War

In 1797, Major David Gustaf Blessingh left Sweden with the frigate Thetis and the brig of war Husaren to resolve the conflict.In June 1798, the Tripolitanians captured 20 ships and 160 Swedish sailors, Sweden started the negotiations. Sweden and Dannmark paid $100 000 for returning their captives.Thetis returned to Tripoli. The new 1798 treaty was unstable, and Yusuf Karamanli declared war on Sweden again in 1800. This time under Lieutenant-Colonel Carl Gustaf Tornquist, who negotiated a new peace treaty in early 1801 to free the hostages. The Swedes didn't ratify it due to Tripolitan demands. In January 1801, the Swedish warship "Thundera" sailed into Tripoli Harbor with a white flag. During the conflict with Sweden, four merchant ships were seized and sold to Tunis, with their crews held as hostages by Karamanli.

Blockade of Tripoli Harbor

Main article: Blockade of Tripoli Harbor

In 1802, Swedish and American warships worked together to blockade Tripoli's port. They helped each other with convoys for their merchant ships, and a new peace treaty was signed. Sweden's Consul Burström reported that despite the treaty, the joint blockade didn't work because Tripoli's corsair galleys still accessed the port. Burström noted that the blockade's failure pleased Yusuf Karamanli.

Aftermath

In October of 1802, Sweden withdrew from the First Barbary War and paid a significant tribute to Tripolitania, while the Regency of Tripoli continued the war against the Americans before eventually signing peace with the United States in 1805.

Sources

• Mika, Suonpää (2019). Diplomacy and Intelligence in the Nineteenth-Century Mediterranean World. Bloomsbury Publishing. ISBN 9781474277051.
• Müller, Leos (2021). Facing the Sea. Nordic Academic Press. ISBN 9789189361119.
• Raymond, F.Aubé (2001). Across Troubled Waters. ISBN 9780759617247.
• Goetze, Dorothée (2023). Early Modern European Diplomacy. De Gruyter. ISBN 9783110672008.
• Ahmida, Ali Abdullatif (2011). The Making of Modern Libya. State University of New York Press. ISBN 9781438428932.