A Barbary show of force begins Independence's service

Stephen Decatur had already compelled peace with the Barbary States, so Independence's arrival reinforced the settlement rather than fighting another campaign. Leading William Bainbridge's squadron, she visibly demonstrated that the United States could now send line-of-battle power into the Mediterranean. She returned to Newport in November 1815 and continued as a flagship under Bainbridge and then John Shaw. Congressional underfunding limited opportunities to send her to sea and placed her in ordinary from 1822 to 1836. Those reserve years nevertheless preserved an expensive hull for later conversion and decades of additional service.