Quasi-War

Quasi-War
USS Constellation in combat with French Insurgente
Date 7 July 1798 – 30 September 1800 Location Atlantic Ocean, Caribbean, Indian Ocean, and Mediterranean Sea Result American victory[2][3] Convention of 1800
Belligerents
United States  Great Britain[a]	French First Republic
Commanders and leaders
John Adams Benjamin Stoddert Thomas Truxtun Silas Talbot William Bainbridge Stephen Decatur	Napoléon Bonaparte Paul Barras Edme Desfourneaux Victor Hugues André Rigaud
Strength
Maximum 9 frigates, 4 sloops, 2 brigs, 3 schooners 5,700 sailors and Marines, up to 365 privateers	Unknown
Casualties and losses
c. 160 killed or wounded 22 privateers, up to 2000 merchant ships captured	c. 100 killed or wounded, 517 captured 1 frigate, 2 corvettes, 1 brig and 118 privateers sunk or captured[4]

The Quasi-War^[b] was an undeclared war fought between 1798 to 1800 by the United States and the French First Republic. It took place at sea, primarily the Caribbean and East Coast of the United States.

In 1793, Congress unilaterally suspended repayment of French loans incurred during the American Revolutionary War. France, then engaged in the 1792–1797 War of the First Coalition, also viewed the 1794 Jay Treaty between the USA and Great Britain, as incompatible with those treaties, and retaliated by seizing American ships trading with Britain. When diplomatic negotiations broke down, in October 1796 French privateers began attacking merchant ships sailing in American waters, regardless of nationality.

The dissolution of Federal naval forces following independence left the US unable to mount an effective response and by October 1797, over 316 American ships had been captured. In March 1798, Congress reformed the United States Navy, and in July authorized the use of military force against France. In addition to a number of individual ship actions, by 1799 American commercial losses had been significantly reduced through informal cooperation with the Royal Navy, whereby merchant ships from both nations were allowed to join each other's convoys.

The replacement of the French First Republic by the Consulate in November 1799 led to the Convention of 1800, which ended the war. The right of Congress to authorize military action without a formal declaration of war was later confirmed by the Supreme Court and formed the basis of many similar actions since, including American participation in the Vietnam War and the 1991 Gulf War.^[5][c]

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