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

at Algiers. Later, the government at Algiers rejected the treaty but The
Netherlands was well intent upon imposing it. Given the importance of Dutch
commerce in the Mediterranean, The Hague sent a squadron to Algiers in
1624. 28 For the Dutch admiral, forcing the treaty on Algiers was as simple as
this: chase Algerian corsairs and seize them on the high seas then return and
hung them in front of the port of Algiers; the operation was repeated many
times. 29 In 1626, Algiers ended up by renewing the treaty of 1622; it was
reaffirmed in 1662. From then onwards, the use of force either effectively or as
a ‘muscle show’ for the purpose of intimidation and threatening, became a
feature of diplomatic negotiations of western powers with Algiers. 30
The renewed treaty of 1626 with the Dutch merits some consideration
because it served as a model for ultimate treaties between Algiers and the rest
of the European countries as well as with the United States.
Particular
adaptations were introduced from time to time throughout the next two hundred
years but in essence the agreed on principles remained the same. Because of
their importance, two points pertaining to the treaty deserve some highlighting:
first, the method the Dutch used to obtain that treaty and second, its provisions.
a) The method: Algerian naval supremacy—real at the beginning but
shadowy by late 18 th century—induced European countries to negotiate via
navy admirals and not ordinary diplomats. When a country desired to negotiate
28 In 1620, 1200 ships crossed the strait of Gibraltar of which 76 were captured by the Algerian
corsairs, Gérard Van Krieken, Corsaires et marchands: Relations entre Alger et les Pays-Bas: 1604-
1830 (Paris: Editions Bouchène, 2002), p. 10.
29 Panzac, Corsaires barbaresques, pp. 26-27.
30 The last show of force would be in 1815-1816 when an incessant ballet of British, Dutch, and
American squadrons forced Algiers to treaties to the convenience of those powers for the first time in
about 200 years of corsairing diplomacy.
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