Who was the first head of state to declare war on the United States?

BRY2K

Yusuf (ibn Ali) Karamanli, He was the best-known Pasha (reigned 1795-1832) of the Karamanli dynasty (1711-1835) of Tripolitania (in present-day Libya), noted for being the first head of state to declare war on the newly independent United States. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yussif_Karamanli Jan 20 08, 2:35 PM

Trooper2196

Yussif Karamanli, the Pasha (or Bashaw) of Tripoli in 1801 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/First_Barbary_War Jan 20 08, 2:43 PM

star_gazer

Not to disagree but its worth a mention that King George III was the first head of state to lead a war against the US after its declared independence in 1776. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_Revolutionary_War Jan 20 08, 2:44 PM

Baloo55th

So far as George III was concerned, he was not so much declaring war as attempting to end a rebellion. Just in the same way, war was not declared on Prince Charles Edward Stuart or on the Parliamentarian forces. I'm not quite sure about Yusuf Karamanli's status as a Head of State, as the North African coast was technically part of the Ottoman Empire. Jan 20 08, 3:08 PM

author

Karamanli is regarded as a 'state leader' by this reference. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_state_leaders_in_1805#Middle_East_and_North_Africa Jan 20 08, 4:11 PM

author

The Ottoman empire did not have direct authority of the so called 'Barbary States' at this time. Tripoli was one of the Barbary States. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tripoli#The_Barbary_Wars Jan 20 08, 4:14 PM

author

Major rulers during the heydays of the barbary states were the Pasha or Dey of Algiers, the Bey of Tunis and the Bey of Tripoli, all nominally subjects of the Ottoman sultan, but de facto independent rulers. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barbary_States Jan 20 08, 4:16 PM

star_gazer

George III did not declare a war rather he led a war. Jan 20 08, 6:02 PM

Baloo55th

It wasn't a war. It was the attempted suppression of an insurrection in a part of the British lands of North America - a failed attempt which ended with British recognition of the rebels as a new nation. 1812 was a war, on the other hand. Jan 21 08, 1:23 PM