Decatur, Stephen

Decatur, Stephen (dēkā`tər), 1779–1820, American naval officer, b. Sinepuxent, near Berlin, Md.; son of a naval officer, Stephen Decatur. After joining the U.S. navy in 1798, he rose to fame in the Tripolitan War. In 1804 he and his men stole into Tripoli harbor and destroyed the captured U.S. frigate Philadelphia. This daring exploit won Decatur promotion to captain. He helped in the bombardment of Tripoli and, after peace was concluded (1805), negotiated successfully with the bey of Tunis. In 1808 he was one of the judges at the court-martial of James Barron; thereafter the two men were enemies. In the War of 1812 Decatur commanded three vessels, with the United States as his flagship. On Oct. 25, 1812, the United States met and captured the British frigate Macedonian. Afterward the British blockade held him powerless until Jan., 1815. Then (unaware that the war had ended) he put to sea in the President, outran three enemy ships and defeated the fourth, the Endymion, but the battle delayed him and he was forced to surrender to the other pursuers. In the so-called Algerine War in 1815 he used his squadron with vigor to force the dey of Algiers to sign the treaty that ended American tribute to Algeria. As one of the three navy commissioners (1815–20), he was powerful in naval affairs. His opposition to reinstating the unfortunate and disgraced James Barron led to bitter words. Barron challenged him, and in the ensuing duel Decatur was mortally wounded at Bladensburg, Md., on Mar. 22, 1820. Known for his reckless bravery and stubborn patriotism, he is also remembered for the toast, "Our country! In her intercourse with foreign nations may she always be in the right; but our country, right or wrong!"

Bibliography

See biographies by C. T. Brady (1900), C. L. Lewis (1937, repr. 1971) and H. Nicolay (1942).

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Decatur, Stephen

Stephen Decatur, detail from an engraving by Henry Meyer after a portrait by John Wesley Jarvis.

(credit: U.S. Navy photo)

(born Jan. 5, 1779, Sinepuxent, Md., U.S.—died March 22, 1820, Bladensburg, Md.) U.S. naval officer. He entered the navy in 1798. In the Tripolitan War, he led a daring expedition into the harbour of Tripoli to burn a captured U.S. ship. In the War of 1812 he commanded the USS United States and captured the British ship Macedonian. In 1815 he commanded a squadron in the Mediterranean that forced a peace with the Barbary states on U.S. terms. At a banquet on his return he gave a toast that included the words “Our country, right or wrong.” In the same year he was made a navy commissioner, an office he held until he was killed in a duel.

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Decatur, Stephen (1779–1820) naval officer; born in Sinepuxent, Md. He became a midshipman (1798) and joined the Tripoli Squadron as a first lieutenant in 1801. He led a daring raid into the harbor of Tripoli and burned the captured USS Philadelphia (1804). He held various commands in home waters (1805–12) and served on the court-martial that suspended Captain James Barron (1808). He led the USS United States to a thrilling victory over the British Macedonian (1812). In 1815 he surrendered the President after fighting against a much larger British naval force. He commanded the squadron that ended corsair raids from Algiers, Tunis, and Tripoli (1815) and returned home to give a famous toast, "Our country! In her intercourse with foreign nations may she always be in the right; but our country, right or wrong." He was a member of the newly created Board of Naval Commissioners (1815–20) until his death in a duel with Captain James Barron.

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Decatur, Stephen (1752–1808) naval officer; born in Newport, R.I. (father of Stephen Decatur, 1779–1820). He commanded five different privateer vessels during the American Revolution and became a captain in the U.S. Navy in 1798. In command of the USS Delaware, he captured the first prize in the undeclared war with France.