Founding Encounters

How did a small town in Iowa come to bear the name of an Algerian emir? And how did a resistance leader who fought French colonial rule become internationally recognized for protecting thousands of Christians in Damascus? In this episode of Founding Encounters , we trace the extraordinary journey of Emir Abdelkader, from Algeria’s struggle for independence to his exile in Syria, where he and his f...

In 1805, the United States made its first attempt at regime change. William Eaton led a small force across the Libyan desert to capture Derna and help an exiled ruler reclaim Tripoli’s throne. The Battle of Derna became an early milestone in U.S. military history, but Washington ultimately chose diplomacy over regime change. Watch the story behind America’s first intervention in North Africa.

In the 1820s, in the settlement of Little Pigeon Creek in Indiana, a lanky, dark-haired boy picked up an unusual book. For a child who had lost his mother at only nine, books were more than mere escapes. In the isolated frontier, they were the next best things to guide one through life. This particular volume was a stirring account of an American merchant captain who had been taken into slavery in...

Morocco became America’s first friend when it recognized the young nation and opened its ports to American ships. Roya Hakakian explores this overlooked chapter of history in a new episode of Founding Encounters . #FoundingEncounters #Morocco #AmericanHistory #USMorocco #Podcast

How a founder’s encounter with Islam’s holiest book shaped the future America’s commitment to religious liberties. On an October day in 1765, a young law student entered the printing office of the Virginia Gazette on Duke of Gloucester Street in Williamsburg, Virginia. Printing offices were the nerve centers of any major colonial city in those days: part newsroom, part post office, part bookstore....