Pirates: Predators of the Sea: An Illustrated History

Angus Konstam, Roger Michael Kean

Skyhorse Publishing Inc., 2007 - History - 240 pages

Pirates have captivated our imaginations for generations, and the popularity of the recent Pirates of the Caribbean films has planted them even more firmly in our minds. But what were pirates really like? Author Robert Ritchie guides us on a tour of piracy from ancient times through the present, and dispels the false image of pirates created by adventure stories and Hollywood. The truth is, unbelievably, even more intriguing than the fiction. Pirates were usually men (and sometimes women!) who turned to piracy in desperation—to avoid starvation or to save their own lives. They were from countries across the globe, from every social class, and of every race. Their average age was only twenty seven. In this lavishly illustrated book, you will see pirates’ brutal lives and bloody deaths, get a peek at their ships and the lives of their crews, and meet some of history’s most famous and infamous buccaneers. You’ll finally learn the truth about the way they lived and died. Full of color and history and danger, this book is as fun as a Johnny Depp movie—but it’s all true!

Contents

• The Pirate Ship: 12
• The Ancient World: 30
• Into the Middle Ages: 44
• Pirates of the Barbary Coast: 54
• War on the Spanish Main: 70
• A Piece of the Action: 92
• The Most Notorious Pyrates: 124
• And More Notorious Pyrates: 150
• Violence and Savage Justice: 176
• Everyone Hates Britain: 182
• The Last American Pirates: 192
• Piracy in the Far East: 204
• Home Sweet Home: 216
• Myths Manners Codes: 230
• Index: 237

Popular passages

Page 6 - Death was preferible to being link'd with such a vile Crew of Miscreants, to whom it was a sport to do Mischief; where prodigious Drinking, monstrous Cursing and Swearing, hideous Blasphemies, and open defiance of Heaven, and contempt of Hell it self, was the constant Employment, unless when Sleep something abated the Noise and Revellings.

About the author

Angus Konstam has made a lifelong study of maritime history and archeology, the history of early European development, and he holds degrees in history and archeology. He is a museum professional with experience in both Britain and the United States, where he was a chief curator of the Mel Fisher Maritime Museum in Key West. He is also the author of Blackbeard: America's Most Notorious Pirate. Konstam lives in Edinburgh, Scotland.

Roger Michael Kean has been a journalist, filmmaker, and editor of historical reference books for many years, including The History of Pirates and The History of Shipwrecks. Kean is also the author of The Complete Chronicle of the Emperors of Rome and Forgotten Power: Byzantium--Bulwark of Christianity. He lives in the medieval, walled town of Ludlow in the Welsh Marches of England.

David Cordingly is an English naval historian and an authority on pirates. He is the author of Under the Black Flag, Heroines and Harlots: Women at Sea in the Great Age of Sail, The Billy Ruffian: His Majesty's Ship Bellerophon and the Downfall of Napoleon, and Spanish Gold: Captain Woodes Rogers & the Pirates of the Caribbean.

Gail Selinger has been fascinated with pirates since the age of nine. She has studied fencing and black powder weaponry, and has been a gunner on several tall ships. She has lent her expertise to many television and movie productions. As a pirate historian she writes, teaches, and lectures on the social, political, and economic ramifications of pirates throughout world history. She resides in Redlands, California.

Bibliographic information

• Title: Pirates: Predators of the Sea: An Illustrated History
• Authors: Angus Konstam, Roger Michael Kean
• Contributor: Roger Michael Kean
• Edition: illustrated
• Publisher: Skyhorse Publishing Inc., 2007
• ISBN: 1602390355, 9781602390355
• Length: 240 pages
• Subjects: History / Military / Naval; History / World