William Eaton (23 February 1764 – 1 June 1811) was a United States Army officer and the diplomatic officer Consul General to Tunis (1797–1803). He played an important diplomatic and military role in the First Barbary War between the United States and Tripoli (1801–1805). He led the first foreign United States military victory at the Battle of Derne by capturing the Tripoli subject city of Derne in support of the restoration of the pasha (local monarch), Hamet Caramelli. He also gave testimony at the treason trial of former Vice President Aaron Burr. Eaton served one term in the General Court of Massachusetts, which is the state legislature both during and after the colonia era. Eaton died on June 1, 1811, at the age of 47.
Early life
William Eaton was born in Woodstock, Connecticut. He was one of thirteen children of Nathaniel and Sarah (née Johnson) Eaton. His father was a middle class farmer, who worked as a school teacher in the winter, "an employment for which he is represented as having been well qualified by more than ordinary means for a farmer". When he was ten years old, William's family moved to Mansfield, Connecticut.
Military career
Eaton ran away at the age of sixteen to enlist in the army. He joined the Continental Army in 1780 and served until 1783, attaining the rank of sergeant at the age of 19. He earned money for college working as a school teacher in Windsor, Vermont. In 1790, he graduated from Dartmouth College. He and a classmate presented a poetic dialogue at the commencement. Between 1791 and 1792, he worked as a clerk in the lower house of the Vermont legislature
In 1792, Eaton accepted a captain's commission in the Legion of the United States and began training at Legionville (Baden, Pennsylvania). He also married Eliza, the widow of General Timothy Danielson. In 1795, Eaton faced court-martial for charges resulting in a "misunderstanding" between himself and Lieutenant Colonel Henry Gaither. For the charges, which included those of profiteering and "liberating from confinement" a murder suspect, Eaton was sentenced to two months' suspended commission. Despite the conviction, Eaton held his commission until July 11, 1797, when he was appointed U.S. Consul at Tunis. He served at that post until war with Tripoli broke out in 1801. Other sources say he left the consul post in 1803.
Tunis (1799–1803)
Eaton's main task in Tunis was to negotiate peace and trade agreements with the bey (governor). During the nineteenth century, European and American merchant ships were under threat by pirates from what was called "The Barbary Coast". The Barbary Coast was made up of several Muslim states, under the rule of the Ottoman Empire, that bordered the Mediterranean Sea in Northern Africa. They acquired revenue from raiding merchant vessels of their cargo, ransoming their crews or selling them into slavery. The European nations opted to pay tribute to the Barbary states to prevent such raids. After the American Revolution, the United States was left without Britain's protection in Mediterranean, thus the Washington and Adams administrations chose paying tribute to the Barbary states as a cost-effective alternative to military action.
By 1796, the United States was behind in payments to the dey of Algiers. In 1797, Joel Barlow, United States Consul to Algiers, negotiated with the dey and promised him a frigate, at the cost of nearly one million dollars. He then sent a French merchant, Joseph Stephen Famin, to negotiate with the bey of Tunis. An agreement was reached, but Congress would not ratify it. United States President John Adams appointed William Eaton as Consult to Tunis to negotiate more agreeable terms. It took two years to accomplish the task. In that time, as the demands of Algiers and Tripoli increased, Eaton had come to believe that it was better to use military force to secure trade in the region, than to continually pay tribute. He wrote an impassioned letter to the Secretary of State, James Madison, voicing the opinion that, "The more you give the more the Turks will ask for."