you what you do, than what you do, beside for why.
Real historical pirates focused on selling their plundered goods quickly and discreetly in pirate havens through corrupt merchants and officials.
Common Pirate Deception and Trade Tactics
Flying False Colors: A widespread and effective tactic was to fly the flag of a friendly nation (or no flag at all) to approach a merchant ship without arousing suspicion. Once close enough, they would quickly raise their true Jolly Roger flag (or a red flag) and attack, often causing the merchant to surrender without a fight.
Common Pirate Deception and Trade Tactics
Flying False Colors: A widespread and effective tactic was to fly the flag of a friendly nation (or no flag at all) to approach a merchant ship without arousing suspicion. Once close enough, they would quickly raise their true Jolly Roger flag (or a red flag) and attack, often causing the merchant to surrender without a fight.
Masquerading as Traders/Fishermen: Pirates in areas like the Strait of Malacca sometimes used small, maneuverable boats and dressed as ordinary fishermen or seaborne traders to avoid authorities.
Corrupt Havens: Pirates sold their stolen cargo at pirate havens like Port Royal, Jamaica, or Île Sainte Marie, Madagascar. In these places, unscrupulous dealers and even colonial governors (such as Benjamin Fletcher in New York) would purchase the goods at low prices and then use smuggling networks to get them into legitimate markets.
Transferring Cargo at Sea or in Remote Locations: After capturing a ship, pirates would typically transfer valuable goods to their own vessel or, if the captured ship was in better condition, they might keep the new ship and let the victims go in the older one. This exchange of "load" happened immediately after the capture, not as a separate, disguised operation in a busy port.
Fictional Depictions
The idea of pirates using elaborate disguises to blend in with society and exchange loot often appears in modern video games (like Sea of Thieves, where players can disguise themselves as chests and barrels) and heist fiction, but is not well-supported by historical evidence for large-scale heists or cargo exchanges.
In reality, the focus was on avoiding the law when selling goods, not on elaborate public deceptions that carried a high risk of exposure and capture.
Fictional Depictions
The idea of pirates using elaborate disguises to blend in with society and exchange loot often appears in modern video games (like Sea of Thieves, where players can disguise themselves as chests and barrels) and heist fiction, but is not well-supported by historical evidence for large-scale heists or cargo exchanges.
In reality, the focus was on avoiding the law when selling goods, not on elaborate public deceptions that carried a high risk of exposure and capture.
While some pirates during the
Golden Age of Piracy (roughly 1650–1730) did liberate enslaved people, calling them "armed merchants" who rejected all flags but their own is a complex mix of historical reality and romanticized legend.
Golden Age of Piracy (roughly 1650–1730) did liberate enslaved people, calling them "armed merchants" who rejected all flags but their own is a complex mix of historical reality and romanticized legend.
1. The Reality of "Liberation"
Historically, pirates were opportunists rather than abolitionists. While some crews were famously diverse, their treatment of enslaved people varied wildly:
Recruitment vs. Resale: Some captains, like Blackbeard or Samuel Bellamy, allowed liberated Africans to join their crews as equals. However, many others simply viewed enslaved people as "human cargo" to be resold for profit or kept as forced labor on their own ships.
Tactical Alliances: Pirates occasionally armed Maroon communities (escaped slaves) to destabilize colonial authorities, but often "for a price" rather than out of humanitarian ideals
Ship Swapping: Pirates often targeted slave ships because they were large, fast, and heavily armed. When they captured one, such as the Whydah or the Concorde (which became the Queen Anne’s Revenge), they were "exchanging" the vessel for a more powerful warship.
2. Rejecting the "Crown"
The idea of pirates as an independent "nation" with their own flag (the Jolly Roger) has some historical backing:
The Pirate Republic: In Nassau, pirates under leaders like Benjamin Hornigold established a "Pirate Commonwealth" that operated outside the laws of any European Crown.
The Jolly Roger as a Statement: Flying the black flag was a deliberate act of sovereignty. It signaled that the crew had renounced their national identity ("refusing the Crown") to live by their own "articles" or laws.
Patriotic Limits: Some pirates, like early Hornigold, refused to attack ships of their own nation (England), viewing themselves as loyal privateers even when the Crown declared them outlaws.
3. "Armed Merchants" or "Hostis Humani Generis"?
Legally, pirates were never viewed as merchants. They were labeled hostis humani generis ("enemies of all mankind").
Historically, pirates were opportunists rather than abolitionists. While some crews were famously diverse, their treatment of enslaved people varied wildly:
Recruitment vs. Resale: Some captains, like Blackbeard or Samuel Bellamy, allowed liberated Africans to join their crews as equals. However, many others simply viewed enslaved people as "human cargo" to be resold for profit or kept as forced labor on their own ships.
Tactical Alliances: Pirates occasionally armed Maroon communities (escaped slaves) to destabilize colonial authorities, but often "for a price" rather than out of humanitarian ideals
Ship Swapping: Pirates often targeted slave ships because they were large, fast, and heavily armed. When they captured one, such as the Whydah or the Concorde (which became the Queen Anne’s Revenge), they were "exchanging" the vessel for a more powerful warship.
2. Rejecting the "Crown"
The idea of pirates as an independent "nation" with their own flag (the Jolly Roger) has some historical backing:
The Pirate Republic: In Nassau, pirates under leaders like Benjamin Hornigold established a "Pirate Commonwealth" that operated outside the laws of any European Crown.
The Jolly Roger as a Statement: Flying the black flag was a deliberate act of sovereignty. It signaled that the crew had renounced their national identity ("refusing the Crown") to live by their own "articles" or laws.
Patriotic Limits: Some pirates, like early Hornigold, refused to attack ships of their own nation (England), viewing themselves as loyal privateers even when the Crown declared them outlaws.
3. "Armed Merchants" or "Hostis Humani Generis"?
Legally, pirates were never viewed as merchants. They were labeled hostis humani generis ("enemies of all mankind").
Blurring Lines: The line between a merchant, a privateer (state-sponsored), and a pirate was often thin. Many started as legal merchant sailors but turned to piracy due to the "deplorable conditions" on legitimate vessels.
Ideological Rebels: Modern historians like Marcus Rediker argue that many pirates were radical egalitarians who rejected the oppressive hierarchies of the world’s navies and merchant fleets.
Would you like to know more about the specific pirate codes (articles) that governed these "flagless" crews, or are you interested in how they actually fenced their cargo once they had "exchanged" it?
Ideological Rebels: Modern historians like Marcus Rediker argue that many pirates were radical egalitarians who rejected the oppressive hierarchies of the world’s navies and merchant fleets.
Would you like to know more about the specific pirate codes (articles) that governed these "flagless" crews, or are you interested in how they actually fenced their cargo once they had "exchanged" it?
The term
hostis humani generis ("enemy of all mankind") is a foundational concept in maritime law used to justify universal jurisdiction—the right of any nation to prosecute a criminal, regardless of where the crime occurred.
hostis humani generis ("enemy of all mankind") is a foundational concept in maritime law used to justify universal jurisdiction—the right of any nation to prosecute a criminal, regardless of where the crime occurred.
1. Who coined the term?
Cicero (106–43 BCE): The Roman orator is credited with the earliest version: "Pirata est hostis humani generis". He used it to describe pirates as outlaws who had "broken the treaty of the human race" and were therefore not entitled to the protections of war or law.
Sir Edward Coke (1615): The English jurist revived and popularized the phrase during the Golden Age of Piracy to classify pirates as "sea-felons" whose crimes were so heinous they were equated to treason against society itself.
William Blackstone (1760s): He solidified its use in English law, arguing that by declaring war on all mankind, a pirate effectively renounced the benefits of society.
2. Connection to the Slave Trade
The label was not just for pirates; it was eventually extended to slave traders.
Shared Status: By the mid-19th century, international treaties (like the 1841 Treaty of London) declared the slave trade a form of piracy, officially labeling slavers as hostis humani generis.
Legitimacy: Ironically, many early proponents of this label were themselves representatives of nations (like Britain or the early U.S.) that had profited from slavery for centuries before turning to abolition.
3. Historical Terminology for Black People
During the 17th and 18th centuries, terminology was clinical and dehumanizing, reflecting the era's view of people as property:
"Negroes": The standard legal and trade term used in ship manifests and colonial laws.
"Pieces of Eight" / "Cargo": In commercial transactions, enslaved people were often
Cicero (106–43 BCE): The Roman orator is credited with the earliest version: "Pirata est hostis humani generis". He used it to describe pirates as outlaws who had "broken the treaty of the human race" and were therefore not entitled to the protections of war or law.
Sir Edward Coke (1615): The English jurist revived and popularized the phrase during the Golden Age of Piracy to classify pirates as "sea-felons" whose crimes were so heinous they were equated to treason against society itself.
William Blackstone (1760s): He solidified its use in English law, arguing that by declaring war on all mankind, a pirate effectively renounced the benefits of society.
2. Connection to the Slave Trade
The label was not just for pirates; it was eventually extended to slave traders.
Shared Status: By the mid-19th century, international treaties (like the 1841 Treaty of London) declared the slave trade a form of piracy, officially labeling slavers as hostis humani generis.
Legitimacy: Ironically, many early proponents of this label were themselves representatives of nations (like Britain or the early U.S.) that had profited from slavery for centuries before turning to abolition.
3. Historical Terminology for Black People
During the 17th and 18th centuries, terminology was clinical and dehumanizing, reflecting the era's view of people as property:
"Negroes": The standard legal and trade term used in ship manifests and colonial laws.
"Pieces of Eight" / "Cargo": In commercial transactions, enslaved people were often
referred to simply as "units" or cargo items.
"Maroons": Specifically used for those who escaped slavery to form independent
"Maroons": Specifically used for those who escaped slavery to form independent
communities, often allied with or joined by pirates.
4. Terms for Those Deported to Australia
People forcibly sent to Australia (starting in 1788) were categorized based on their legal status:
Convicts: The primary term for those sentenced to "transportation" for crimes ranging
4. Terms for Those Deported to Australia
People forcibly sent to Australia (starting in 1788) were categorized based on their legal status:
Convicts: The primary term for those sentenced to "transportation" for crimes ranging
from theft to political rebellion.
Transports: A common shorthand for the individuals being deported.
Ticket-of-Leave Men: Convicts who had been granted partial freedom to work for
Transports: A common shorthand for the individuals being deported.
Ticket-of-Leave Men: Convicts who had been granted partial freedom to work for
themselves before their full sentence expired.
Emancipists: Former convicts who had served their sentences and remained in
Emancipists: Former convicts who had served their sentences and remained in
Australia as free citizens
No, pirate towns were never legally recognized as sovereign nations by those who established maritime law. Instead, they were viewed as criminal "nests" or zones of lawlessness that required elimination.
1. The Legal Standing of "Pirate Republics"
While entities like the Republic of Pirates in Nassau (1706–1718) operated with their own codes and elected leaders, they lacked the key requirements for statehood in international law:
Hostis Humani Generis: As "enemies of all mankind," pirates were legally defined by
While entities like the Republic of Pirates in Nassau (1706–1718) operated with their own codes and elected leaders, they lacked the key requirements for statehood in international law:
Hostis Humani Generis: As "enemies of all mankind," pirates were legally defined by
their lack of protection from any prince or nation.
Private Ends: Maritime law specifically defined piracy as acts committed for private
Private Ends: Maritime law specifically defined piracy as acts committed for private
gain rather than for the political goals of a recognized state.
Illegitimate Governance: Colonial powers viewed pirate codes not as laws, but as
Illegitimate Governance: Colonial powers viewed pirate codes not as laws, but as
"articles" of a criminal conspiracy. These towns were considered "havens" for
outlaws rather than sovereign territories.
Privateers were often called pirates by their victims, and they frequently participated in the slave trade as both captors and sellers. The distinction between a "heroic" privateer and a "villainous" pirate usually depended on whose flag you served and who you were attacking.
1. Privateers: "Legal Pirates"
The line between privateering and piracy was incredibly thin.
A Matter of Perspective: A British privateer with a Letter of Marque was a legal hero to the British Crown but an illegal pirate to the Spanish or French victims he robbed.
Exceeding Authority: Privateers often "turned pirate" by attacking neutral ships or continuing to raid after their government commission expired.
2. Privateers and the Slave Trade
Privateers were motivated by profit, not social justice. When they captured slave ships, they viewed the enslaved people as "prize cargo" rather than individuals to be liberated.
Selling Captives: Many privateers, like the famous Frenchman Robert Surcouf or the American Thomas Metcalf, made fortunes by capturing slave ships and selling the people on board for profit.
The "Marlborough" Incident: During the American Revolution, the privateer Marlborough attacked British slave trading posts in West Africa. While this disrupted British trade, the goal was to enrich the crew by selling the captured Africans elsewhere.
Recruitment vs. Sale: Some privateers or pirates might allow a few enslaved people with useful skills (like carpentry or sail-making) to join the crew, but the vast majority were treated as commodities to be auctioned off.
3. "Armed Merchants" or Slave Traders?
While some early privateers like Sir Francis Drake and John Hawkins were among the first English traders to engage in the slave trade, they did so while operating as "armed merchants" with government backing.
Financial Impact: In some cases, high levels of piracy/privateering actually stunted the growth of the slave trade because it became too expensive for companies to lose ships to raiders. When piracy declined in the early 1700s, the slave trade expanded rapidly as shipping became safer.
Would you like to explore the specific legal cases where privateers were tried as pirates because they refused to stop their "raids" after a war ended?
Complicity vs. Recognition
In some cases, local colonial governors in places like New York or Jamaica collaborated with pirates because they brought wealth to the local economy.
In some cases, local colonial governors in places like New York or Jamaica collaborated with pirates because they brought wealth to the local economy.
De Facto Acceptance: These towns were sometimes "tolerated" as long as they served as a buffer against rival empires (like the British using pirates in Port Royal to harass the Spanish).
Sudden Rejection: Once these pirate "republics" began disrupting the trade of their own benefactor nations, the same legal authorities that tolerated them used maritime law to justify their total destruction.
3. The Exceptional Case of "Privateering"
The only time pirates were close to "legal" was when they carried a Letter of Marque.
3. The Exceptional Case of "Privateering"
The only time pirates were close to "legal" was when they carried a Letter of Marque.
State-Sanctioned: A privateer was an "armed merchant" authorized by a Crown to attack enemy shipping.
The Shift to Outlawry: If a privateer continued to attack after a war ended or targeted neutral ships, they immediately lost their legal status and reverted to being "enemies of all mankind".
Are you interested in the specific legal arguments used by 18th-century judges to dismantle the "Republic of Pirates," or would you like to see how modern maritime law treats unrecognized territories today
Are you interested in the specific legal arguments used by 18th-century judges to dismantle the "Republic of Pirates," or would you like to see how modern maritime law treats unrecognized territories today
So, you still can gfy. Go Fuck Yourself. But some need to die.
Today the Thrasher Mag and others use CGI to look like us and do what we do. Make him do that...again and then shoot him dead after failing before hearing is excuses.
