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“In his lively, vivid history of pirates, Lehr finds some striking continuities from ancient to modern times.” —Foreign Affairs A Choice Outstanding Academic Title of the Year In the twenty-first century, pirates have regained a central place in Western culture, thanks to an odd combination of a blockbuster film franchise and a dramatic rise in piracy around the Horn of Africa. In this global history of the phenomenon, maritime terrorism and piracy expert Peter Lehr casts fresh light on pirates. Ranging from the Vikings and Wako pirates in the Middle Ages to modern-day Somali pirates, Lehr delves deep into what motivates pirates and how they operate. He also illuminates the state’s r...
A short history of the sea-robbers and adventurers who roamed upon the world's oceans, from Central America to the China Seas, in search of treasure. This book, colourfully illustrated from the vast collections of the National Maritime Museum, explains why sailors turned to piracy, how they lived and the methods they used to plunder treasure ships. Book jacket.
In 1952 off the coast of Nova Scotia, Canada, fierce winds force a small boat into port. The sailor of the boat is the eccentric Captain Charles Johnson, who then takes up residence at the small inn run by a young boy, Jim, and his mother. With each day, Captain Johnson becomes more and more valuable to the family and changes the fortunes of their previously struggling business. But it soon becomes clear that the stranger living in their midst is more than just a sailor. Who is this man who tells such vivid stories about sailing on a pirate ship? And how can he possibly know so much?
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Discusses the lives and deeds of Henry Every, Stede Bonnet, John Rackam, Blackbeard, Captain Kidd, and other pirates.
Traces the history of piracy from the Spanish Main, where Drake and the Elizabethan sea dogs plundered vast quantities of treasure from Spanish galleons returning to the Old World, to the China Seas where, in the early nineteenth century, the female pirate Ching Yih Saou commanded a fleet of over 800 junks. It examines the realities of pirate life through everyday items that would have been used by the pirates themselves--weapons, navigational instruments, charts--and, by contrasting these with fictional portrayals and stereotypes, sets out to dispel some of the myths surrounding this perennially fascinating subject.
In the Medieval Period the English Channel was a particularly perilous stretch of water. It had two distinct (and often conflicting) functions: as a rich commercial seaway, on which the rising economy of the Western world depended; and secondly as a wide, lawless, political frontier between two belligerent monarchies, whose kings encouraged piracy as a cheap alternative to warfare, and enjoyed their own cut. Pirates prospered. They stole ships and cargoes, at sea or in port, and they carried out long-lasting vendettas against other groups. They ransomed the richest of their captives, but tipped innumerable sailors overboard. While kings were ambivalent, foreign relations were imperilled, and although it was briefly quelled by Henry V, piracy was never defeated during this turbulent epoch. Breaking new ground, on a subject that remains topical today, Jill Eddison explores medieval piracy as it waxed and waned, setting dramatic life stories against the better-known landmarks of history.
This edition present the history of the "Golden Age" of piracy. In this period the entire regions and islands in the Caribbean Sea were under their control and rule, at the extent that they subsequently proclaimed Nassau as the seat of the pirate republic. Authors' goal was to show the democracy pirates established, the rules by which they lived and died, their courage and ruthlessness, their most extraordinary exploits and battles. The lives of the most famous pirates of this era are depicted in the book: Charles Vane, Thomas Barrow (who declared himself "Governor of New Providence"), Benjamin Hornigold, Calico Jack Rackham, Anne Bonny, Mary Read, and the infamous Edward Teach, better known...
"This book provides a sweeping account of what has come to be called the Golden age of piracy. It went through four editions in two years, and without doubt owed a substantial part of its success to a dramatic writing style that vividly captures the realities of pirates' savage existence. The book contains documentary evidence of events during the lives of its subjects. In the 270 years since its original publication, Johnson's work has come to be regarded as the classic study of one of the most popular subjects in maritime history."--Publisher description.
This edition present the history of the period in which the piracy was at its pick in the Caribbean Sea. The entire regions and islands were under their control and rule, at the extent that they subsequently proclaimed Nassau as the seat of the pirate republic. Authors' goal was to show the democracy pirates established, the rules by which they lived and died, their courage and ruthlessness, their most extraordinary exploits and battles. The lives of the most famous pirates of this era are depicted in the book: Charles Vane, Thomas Barrow (who declared himself "Governor of New Providence"), Benjamin Hornigold, Calico Jack Rackham, Anne Bonny, Mary Read, and the infamous Edward Teach, better ...