The Sophistication of Golden Age Piracy

Entertainment-media has done a profound job of casting pirates in a negative light. Often pirates are depicted as barbaric murderers and villainous robbers. Justly so. These sea-faring criminals plundered thousands of ships through the 17th and 18th centuries, before being hunted down by state sanctioned Naval missions and hired privateers. They were infamous for the brutal and swift nature of their attacks, which were comparable to colonial, naval blitzkriegs. However, underneath this superficial facade lays an unexpectedly diverse, sophisticated hierarchy approximating many modern liberal ideals. Even their microeconomic climates modeled contemporary Laissez-Faire practices. Pirates were not a disbanded group of villains, but rather a syndicate of indispensable wanderers.

Acting as crucial pin in the triangular trade, pirates were an economic anchor point in the Caribbean. They provided connection between African import routes and European export routes, while providing as hired mercenaries and cargo escorts for royalty. Raw materials were extracted from the Americas, converted into fine product in Europe, and were exchanged for slaves on the West African coast. Pirates facilitated the trade by offering protection to European cargo vessels as they transported their goods. In fact, Governors such as Port Royal’s Nicholas Trott frequented pirate services in order to eliminate economic threats in the Caribbean. These pirates served as a second layer of defense in many Caribbean and Southern English Colonial port cities because said cities provided as a docking area, and means of employment for many crews. In fact, the downfall of Caribbean and Colonial piracy by the mid 1700s may have aided in the success of many western revolutions. Without export revenue, normally facilitated by pirates, authoritative figures in these localities could not field successful counters to the American and Latin American revolutions. While, pirates played a very important role in the macroeconomic landscape of colonial America, their economic microcosms were also ahead of their time. Laissez-Faire economics, the crux of the US’s modern capitalist free market, was practiced by pirates long before any nation-state adopted it. An authoritative figure, such as the captain, did not interfere with the exchange climate of the ship. All plunder was divided equally amongst crew members, almost communist in nature, and remaining items were auctioned off to the highest bidders. This practice was crucial to maintaining the interior integrity of the ship, and was a factor in the extreme longevity of piracy as an institution.

Not only were their economic doctrines ahead of their time, but the liberal ideals which permeated pirate ranks were revolutionary, quite possibly the first accounts of complete race and gender equality in the world. There was no better place for a black man or woman to be more empowered than on the deck of a pirate vessel. Female pirates such as Mary Read and Anne Bonny were respected by their crews and became co-mates to “Calico” Jack Rackham. In fact, on the other side of the world in the China Seas, female pirate Ching Shih, better known as Madame Ching, commanded over 80,000 outlaws and over 300 junks. She has also been dubbed the most successful pirate in history, terrorizing the Qing dynasty and imperial treasure ships. There are very few instances in recorded history where a female achieved such stature, overcoming unjust patriarchy. Piracy was the first substantial account of gender equality in modern history. Similarly, pirates condemned slavery, viewing it as a degrading economic practice. Black men who had either escaped slavery or were rescued by Pirates were given equal opportunity amongst their white comrades. Aside from providing equality, pirates practiced direct democratic voting. They elected their captains, impeached them based on performance, and extended their voting to all members of the crew. Ideals which would not properly be adopted by society until the 20th century were the crux of pirate life almost 200 years earlier. These social structures put pirates at the forefront of liberal enlightenment.

Unlike their legal, European counterparts, pirates did not have the funding for massive fleets. Pirates instead turned to deceptive ploys and ambush based naval tactics. The most famous example of this is the Madagascan cover Henry Avery and Thomas Tew used in their capturing of the Mughal’s annual treasure fleet headed by the, Gunsway, a massive Ghanjah Dhow. Pirates stalk a target ship for hours or even days, unnoticed, gauging its fire power and weaknesses. By ambushing the Gunsway off the coast of Madagascar, Tew and Avery were able to destroy the exposed main mast by broadsiding the ship and plundered the treasure fleet. Deception tactics such as false guides were also used by pirates to take advantage of their enemies. For example, during his employment by the English Crown, Sir Francis Drake was a high priority target to Spanish Armada officers due to his expertise in capturing ships and navigation in English waters. In one famous incident Drake out maneuvered captain San Juan de Anton by purposefully slowing down his Golden Hind and incited commotion on board to fool Anton into thinking the ship had run into a mechanical issue. As the Cacafuego caught up, Drake turned his ship to the starboard side and broadsided the Cacafuego with a volley of cannon fire. Aside from live fire tactics, pirates used scouts or spies in order to carry out espionage and gauge military strength for their clients.

Pirates have long been condemned by governments and monarchy. The very powers which used them as a means of defense and economic security turned on pirates in the 1700s, hiring privateers and pirate hunters to eliminate prominent captains and their crews. Renowned hunters such as Woodes Rogers and Robert Maynard brought an end to the Golden Age of Piracy. The old adage “history is written by the victors” could not be more relevant. Overlooking the intricacies of their institutions, pirates were written into history as barbaric thieves.

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