In the late 17th century, the pirate Henry Avery became the richest pirate in the world after raiding a treasure laden ship belonging to the Grand Ruler of India. He stole £600,000 in precious metals and jewels, equivalent to £89.6M today. The world’s first worldwide manhunt was called on him. Although a number of his […]
In 2013, Britney Spear’s music…
In 2013, Britney Spears’ music was used by British Naval Officers to ward off Somali Pirates in the east coast of Africa. According to one officer: “As soon as the pirates get a blast of Britney, they move on as quickly as they can.”
There is a Pirate Stock Exchange in Somalia…
There is a Pirate Stock Exchange in Somalia, where any one can invest with money or weapons, and bet on the results of hijacking. 00
The “Pirate speak” from movies and books was an actual…
The “Pirate speak” from movies and books was an actual distinct dialect of English which was spoken until the 19th century in the west country. It became associated with pirates due to the strong seafaring tradition from the area.
Notorious English pirate captain Benjamin Hornigold…
Notorious English pirate captain Benjamin Hornigold (1680–1719) once attacked a ship off the coast of Honduras just to replace his crew’s hats (they had drunkenly lost them the night before).
Pirates rarely plundered gold, silver, and jewels…
Pirates rarely plundered gold, silver, and jewels. Their most common plunder was trade goods such as bolts of cloth, tanned animal skins, spices, sugar, dyes, cocoa, tobacco, cotton, and wood. That’s because most ships didn’t sail around with gold, silver, and jewels. Those things were on land, and paid for the bolts of cloth, tanned […]
When pirate Jean Lafitte saw the governor advertising a $500 reward…
When pirate Jean Lafitte saw the governor advertising a $500 reward for his capture, Lafitte offered $5,000 for the capture of the governor.
Ching Shih was a prostitute, captured by pirates. She then became…
Ching Shih was a prostitute, captured by pirates. She then became a pirate herself, commanding a fleet of hundreds of ships and at least 20,000 pirates. She never lost a battle against the Chinese, British, and Portuguese navies before retiring rich after being pardoned.