The Danish–Algerian War was a conflict lasting from 1769 to 1772 between

Denmark–Norway Denmark–Norway (Danish and Norwegian: ) was an early modern multi-national and multi-lingual real unionFeldbæk 1998:11 consisting of the Kingdom of Denmark, the Kingdom of Norway (including the then Norwegian overseas possessions: the Faroe I ...

and

Deylik of Algiers The Regency of Algiers ( ar, دولة الجزائر, translit=Dawlat al-Jaza'ir) was a state in North Africa lasting from 1516 to 1830, until it was conquered by the French. Situated between the regency of Tunis in the east, the Sultanate o ...

which was a province of the Ottoman Empire, but it was mostly functionally independent. It is also known as the Algerian Expedition, or "The War Against Algeria".

Background and beginning of conflict

Danish-Norwegian trade in the Mediterranean greatly expanded in the mid 1700s. In order to protect their lucrative business against piracy, Denmark–Norway had secured a peace deal with the states of Barbary Coast, involving the payment an annual tribute to the individual rulers of those states and additionally to the States. In 1766 Baba Mohammed ben-Osman became

Dey Dey (Arabic: داي), from the Turkish honorific title ''dayı'', literally meaning uncle, was the title given to the rulers of the Ottoman Algeria, Regency of Algiers (Algeria), Tripoli, Libya, Tripoli,Bertarelli (1929), p. 203. and Ottoman Tu ...

of Algiers. He demanded that the annual payment made by Denmark–Norway should be increased, and he should receive new gifts. Denmark–Norway refused the demands. Shortly after, Algerian pirates hijacked three Danish-Norwegian ships and sold the crew into slavery.

Response

By Peter Cramer - Danish expedition to Algier, 1770

Fregatten Falster og Linjeskibet Grønland ud for Algier

A punitive expedition comprising four

ships of the line A ship of the line was a type of naval warship constructed during the Age of Sail from the 17th century to the mid-19th century. The ship of the line was designed for the naval tactic known as the line of battle, which depended on the two colum ...

, with two frigates and two bomb galiots, under the command of Frederik Christian Kaas, sailed from Copenhagen in 16 May 1770. They threatened to

bombard __NOTOC__ Bombard may refer to the act of carrying out a bombardment. It may also refer to: Individuals *Alain Bombard (1924–2005), French biologist, physician and politician; known for crossing the Atlantic on a small boat with no water or food ...

the Algerian capital if the Algerians did not agree to a new peace deal on Danish terms. Algiers was not intimidated, and the Danish-Norwegian bombardment ended in failure, as a large part of the crew fell seriously ill due to an outbreak of typhoid. The ships could not withstand heavy mortar attacks from the Algerians, which damaged their hulls. The Danish-Norwegian contingent fired approximately 75 bombs at the city of

Algiers Algiers ( ; ar, الجزائر, al-Jazāʾir; ber, Dzayer, script=Latn; french: Alger, ) is the capital and largest city of Algeria. The city's population at the 2008 Census was 2,988,145Census 14 April 2008: Office National des Statistiques ...

before the attack had to be abandoned. The contingent then resorted to a blockade of the city.
The '' De Fire Søstre,'' a merchant and hospital ship was present with the Danish squadron in the Mediterranean 1770 -1771, and its captain, Jens Knudsen, visited the sick who had been landed at Port Mahon.

Aftermath

In 1772, a delegation was sent to Algiers, and after five days of negotiations a new peace was concluded in which Algiers was well-paid. In addition,

had to pay for the return of each slave who had been captured during the war. Danish and Norwegian slaves who were sold to private slave owners had to individually negotiate the prices of their freedom. Today the war is mostly forgotten in Denmark and Norway, because it played a small role in Danish and Norwegian history.

In Fiction

The 2013 novel
1001 natt
' by Vetle Lid Larssen follows two Norwegians enslaved during the war.

References

Rxternal links