90 Second Narratives
Season 8: “Journeys”
Episode 5: “On the Road to a Coup”
Sky Michael Johnston:
Welcome to 90 Second Narratives. As always, I’m your host, Sky Michael Johnston. Now, every time I introduce a guest on the podcast, I’m introducing a fellow historian. But today, our guest is a historian and a fellow podcaster. Dr. Abby Mullen, is a term assistant professor in the Department of History and Art History at George Mason University and the host and executive producer of the Consolation Prize podcast. And here is her story, “A US Consul on the Road to a Coup.”
Abby Mullen:
When American soldier William Eaton started his search for Hamet Karamanli in late 1804, he had an audacious plan. His goal: find Hamet in Egypt, bring him to Tripoli, and fight a battle to place Hamet Karamanli on the throne. Hamet would dethrone his younger brother Yusuf, who had been fighting a war against the United States since 1801. Eaton had been on the front lines of this war since the beginning, as consul to Tunis, and after he saw the navy fail time after time, he decided to take matters into his own hands—and stage a coup. In order to pull this off, Eaton assembled a company that included Hamet and his entourage, Christian Greek mercenaries, Bedouin chieftains, and many others, along with a few U.S. Marines. Despite lack of food, lack of funds, and constant fights between members of the company, somehow Eaton managed to make it to Derna, a city in Tripolitania, where the company took the city in a matter of hours. It wasn’t quite the throne of Tripoli yet—but Eaton felt certain that from Derna, he and Hamet could make their move. But for Eaton, the victory turned sour, when the Americans made peace with Yusuf before Hamet could take the throne in Tripoli—and Hamet was left out in the cold.
Sky Michael Johnston:
If Dr. Mullen’s story leaves you wanting to hear more stories about the wild and consequential history of US interventions around the world, then you need to check out Consolation Prize wherever you listen to podcasts.
Thanks for joining me today! Please subscribe to 90 Second Narratives and listen every Monday for a new “little story with BIG historical significance.”