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Article: Filibustering
- Article from:
- Dictionary of American History
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FILIBUSTERING
FILIBUSTERING.
To Americans of the 1840s and 50s, the term filibusters referred to irregular armies of U.S. "adventurers" and the individuals who comprised them. Such bands often claimed to be acting on behalf of U.S. interests. But in most cases, filibusters acted without U.S. government authorization and sought conflicts with nations with which the United States was at peace. While some filibuster armies targeted Canada, most marched or sailed toward Latin America.
"Filibusters" derives from the Dutch word Vrijbuiter, itself descended from the English term "freebooter." During the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, filibusters referred to English buccaneers, maritime ...