After enduring a 600-mile trek across the unforgiving Libyan desert, on April 27, 1805, O’Bannon’s men attacked Derna, a coastal town in present-day eastern Libya. They overran the harbor fort at Ras del Matariz and raised the American flag in victory over foreign soil for the first time during a war. In further actions, they drove the forces of Yusef, under Hassan Aga, from the town. It was from this action that the line in the Marine Corps hymn, “…to the shores of Tripoli” originated. For his efforts, Prince Hamet presented O’Bannon with the bejeweled Mameluke sword that he had carried while serving with the Egyptian Mamelukes.