The term “pirate” means one who plunders on the sea. “Sea-Thief” might be a more apt description. Pirates plundered for themselves but, at times, for their governments. Both ancient and modern civilizations that were situated near the sea had to contend with various robbers of the seas.

Ancient Greeks were the first civilization to have a word for pirates: “peirates”. But the Mediterranean had long been plagued by sea raiders even before they had a word for them.

In 694, the Assyrian King Sennacherib successfully defeated sea raiders from the Persian Gulf who threatened his kingdom on the coast of Elam. The ancient Phoenicians were also plagued by the earliest sea raiders. Even Alexander the Great tried to rid the Aegean of pirates during his rule.

Besides loot and valuable cargos like wheat, early pirates were also interested in kidnapping individuals for ransom or for service aboard their vessels. In 75 BC, a young Julius Caesar was kidnapped by pirates on his way to Rhodes. He was held for five weeks until his ransom was paid. He later took revenge on these pirates by tracking them down and having them crucified.

Even Greek Mythology mentions pirates. When a foolish band of pirates tried to capture Dionysus, the God of Wine, he punished them by turning them into a school of dolphins.

Northern sea raiders were known as Vikings. Their sea-hardy ships were built with flat bottoms so they could row up shallow rivers to surprise unsuspecting villages with battle axes and broadswords—their weapons of choice. Generally, besides riches, Vikings were after land.

Islamic Barbary pirates were termed so because their Christian opponents called them “barbarians.” They used slaves to propel their ships and were said to inflict severe torture on their Christian captives.

Privateers were pirates given license to plunder by their governments. They practiced piracy without fear of reprisal because they shared their gains with their country and caused much distress for their nation’s enemies.

Queen Elizabeth I honored Francis Drake, “her pirate,” with knighthood in 1581 after he added to her wealth considerably by his plunder. He brought her so much wealth that it would have amounted to millions by today’s equivalent.

Pirates of the Indian Ocean cargos of spices which they could themselves sell at market. Cloves, cinnamon and nutmeg were a few of the goods they would plunder around the spice islands.

French Corsairs enjoyed a capital on the island of St. Malo. They were so wealthy that even the French king borrowed money from them to pay for his wars.

Pirates were adept at using the sea to punish their captives. Victims might be suspended from the yardarm for dunkings. Some were tied up and weighted down by dead bodies and then tossed into the sea.

Pirates of the Spanish Main were some of the most dangerous. Rock Braziliano is said to have roasted two farmers alive because they refused him their pigs.

Buccaneers who sailed the American waters were named such because they learned to cure meat from the Arawak Indians in smokehouses called boucans. Captain Henry Morgan was a famous Buccaneer who eventually became governor of Jamaica.

Caribbean pirates, like Blackbeard, generally represent our stereotypical view of pirates. Many worked as privateers, however, during wars of the 17th and 18th centuries.

Women pirates, though rare, existed and fought quite fearlessly beside their male counterparts. Mary Read and Anne Bonny were notable female pirates who escaped death sentences due to the fact of their pregnancies.

Rum was, indeed, the pirates drink of choice, but they would swill anything with alcohol—probably in order to counter their continuous diet of turtles and fish. Shipwrecked pirates may have been reduced to a diet of their slaves or one another!

Often pirates who stole from their mates were left marooned on desert islands where they were left to starve with little chance of rescue. The tale of Robinson Crusoe by Daniel Defoe is based on the life of Alexander Selkirk who was marooned on an island in the South Pacific.

Pirates of China and Southeast Asia extorted money from coastal villages. If they were paid on time, they would not attack the town and plunder its residents.

Pirates faced extreme penalties if caught. Pirates would be hung and then displayed in gibbet cages to warn others of a similar fate if caught pirating.

by J. A. Young