looking for something else, came across this info ... 
(requesting 
with pirate hat and eye patch, thanks in advance) ... might be easier to read in the pdf
http://www.tsu.edu/pdffiles/media/center/BLACKPIRATESBACKGROUND_2-19-07.pdf
History of Black Pirates
Piracy has enjoyed a long, illustrious history. Despite the current efforts
from law enforcement agents, pirates continue to flaunt violence and
fear on the oceans and seas of the world, capturing cargo and
ransoming those captured.
The earliest records of piracy date back to the writings of Greek
historian Polybius around 140 BCE, who coined the term pirate
(peirato).
Known as the People of the Seas, early pirates (whose origins have
only been hypothesized, never confirmed) terrorized cities along the
Aegean Sea and Egypt's coast.
Early civilizations of the Tyrrhenians, Thracians and Illyrians also have
been associated with piracy. These seafaring societies wreaked havoc
on the trade routes of the Roman Empire, from its infancy through its
Golden Age and decline. Historians have attributed a contributing role
in the eventual fall of the Roman Empire to the land-based pirates, the Vandals.
Pirate ships usually carried far more crew and weapons than ordinary ships of a similar size, easily outnumbering their
victims.
The most famous pirates had a terrifying reputation. They flaunted this by flying gruesome flags including the “Jolly Roger”
with its images of skull and crossbones that often led victims to surrender quickly, not fight at all.
As the European powers increased exploration, the expansion of sea trade routes and colonization, piracy in the Caribbean
came to be known as the Golden Age of Piracy.
Half the pirates had ties to the British Isles, while a quarter came from colonies in the West Indies and North America.
Another group of men also entered into this number, but they tended to receive only cursory mention in history books.
These were the Black Pirates.
Pirates, as many people know, sailed under a black flag. What the general public doesn't know, however, is that many
pirates were as Black as the flags they flew.
The Golden Age of piracy was also the heyday of the Atlantic
slave trade. The relationship between piracy and the slave trade
is complex and ambiguous. Some pirates participated in the
slave trade and shared their contemporaries' attitude to Africans
as commodities for exchange.
However, many judged the Africans more on the basis of their
language and sailing skills – their level of cultural attainment –
rather than their race.
Piracy represented a way out, and a way to challenge the very
system that made slavery possible. Most of these black pirates
would have been runaway slaves, either joining with the pirates
on the course of the voyage from Africa, deserting from the
plantation, or sent as slaves to work on board ship.
Seafaring in general offered more autonomy to blacks than life on
the plantation, but piracy in particular, could. Although it was risky, it offered one of the few chances at freedom for an
African in the 18th century.
Black pirates would often lead the boarding party to capture a prize. The Morning Star had "a Negro Cook doubly armed" in
the boarding party, and more than half of Edward Condent's boarding party on the Dragon were black. Some black pirates
even became quartermasters or captains.
In the 17th century, blacks found on pirate ships were not tried in the courts with the other pirates because it was assumed
they were slaves, but by the 18th century they were being executed alongside their white 'brethren'. Still the most likely fate
for a black pirate, if he was captured, was to be sold into slavery.
Despite the actual waves of violence and destruction following in a pirate's wake, pirates have been admired by fiction
lovers regardless of medium, throughout time.
Books like James Fenimore Cooper's "The Water Witch" and Robert Louis Stevenson's "Treasure Island" or film classics
like "Adventures of Captain Fabian" and "Blackbeard the Pirate" are inspired, albeit romantically, by actual pirate
excursions.
Books such as Treasure Island and movies like Pirates of the Caribbean, portray white pirates not as hateful criminals, but
as lovable rogues, capable of cruelty, but also somehow admirable, even lovable. It became imperative, then, for the established powers of the European world to conceal the fact that many pirates were in
fact people of color. It would have caused havoc if slaves knew that freedom was just offshore, riding the waves, flying a
black flag.
Pirates were "marginal men" driven by desperation and rage to vengeful acts of theft, terrorism and violence against an
oppressive society.
Early 18th-century Europe was in the throes of severe economic, social, political and
religious changes that did not benefit all sectors of society equally. If it can be said that
many lives were thus "sacrificed on the altar of progress," then pirates belong in the
ranks of those men and women who refused to die quietly.
Blacks were an important part of most pirate crews, and statistical evidence suggests
that 25 to 30 percent of an estimated 5,000-plus pirate’s active during the years 1716
to 1726 were of African descent.
Tough enough and smart enough to escape bondage, a runaway slave could be
counted on to fight to keep his freedom. Indeed, at least two crews were entirely black,
with the exception of a single white man apiece.
Piratical racial tolerance did not proceed from a vision of the fundamental brotherhood of man but rather from a spirit of
revolt against political, economic and social oppression.
Mutual feelings of marginality meant that the primary allegiance of pirates was given to their brethren. It is hardly surprising
that so many blacks--confronted with far worse prospects by existing within the European or American social order--chose
piracy.
Black Caesar (
)
The black pirate most often written about is Black Caesar. Legend identifies him as a tall African chief with great strength
and keen intelligence. A conniving captain lured him and his warriors aboard a slaver with a gold watch that fascinated
Caesar. Once on board, the captain and his men plied the Africans with food while enticing them with musical instruments,
jewels, silk scarves, and furs. With his focus on these unusual treasures, Caesar failed to notice that the slaver put to sea.
Upon learning the truth, he and his men fought the ship’s crew, but the slavers eventually subdued the Africans.
During his confinement, Caesar refused to eat or drink.
One sailor showed Caesar kindness, and the two eventually became friends. When the slaver wrecked on the reefs off
Florida, the sailor freed Caesar, and the two escaped in a long boat loaded with supplies and ammunition.
Caesar and his friend decided to attack passing ships. Whenever one was spotted, they rowed the long boat near the
vessel and pretended to be shipwrecked sailors. Once aboard their victim, they seized control and took their treasure
ashore.
Caesar slew his friend in a fight over a beautiful woman and
took the woman for himself.
Alone, he continued his piratical raids until he acquired a
number of ships and men, attacking passing ships, then
escaping into the coves and inlets where their prey could not
pursue them.
In 1718, when the Royal Navy attacked the legendary pirate
Blackbeard, and his crew, near Ocracoke Island, under his
captain’s orders, Caesar stood in the powder room with a lit
match with which to blow up the ship, if the navy succeeded in
subduing the pirates. He was about to do just that when two
prisoners, whom Blackbeard had stowed below during the
fight, stopped Caesar. (Caesar was running with Blackbeard's crew)
(requesting with pirate hat and eye patch, thanks in advance) ... might be easier to read in the pdfhttp://www.tsu.edu/pdffiles/media/center/BLACKPIRATESBACKGROUND_2-19-07.pdf
History of Black Pirates
Piracy has enjoyed a long, illustrious history. Despite the current efforts
from law enforcement agents, pirates continue to flaunt violence and
fear on the oceans and seas of the world, capturing cargo and
ransoming those captured.
The earliest records of piracy date back to the writings of Greek
historian Polybius around 140 BCE, who coined the term pirate
(peirato).
Known as the People of the Seas, early pirates (whose origins have
only been hypothesized, never confirmed) terrorized cities along the
Aegean Sea and Egypt's coast.
Early civilizations of the Tyrrhenians, Thracians and Illyrians also have
been associated with piracy. These seafaring societies wreaked havoc
on the trade routes of the Roman Empire, from its infancy through its
Golden Age and decline. Historians have attributed a contributing role
in the eventual fall of the Roman Empire to the land-based pirates, the Vandals.
Pirate ships usually carried far more crew and weapons than ordinary ships of a similar size, easily outnumbering their
victims.
The most famous pirates had a terrifying reputation. They flaunted this by flying gruesome flags including the “Jolly Roger”
with its images of skull and crossbones that often led victims to surrender quickly, not fight at all.
As the European powers increased exploration, the expansion of sea trade routes and colonization, piracy in the Caribbean
came to be known as the Golden Age of Piracy.
Half the pirates had ties to the British Isles, while a quarter came from colonies in the West Indies and North America.
Another group of men also entered into this number, but they tended to receive only cursory mention in history books.
These were the Black Pirates.
Pirates, as many people know, sailed under a black flag. What the general public doesn't know, however, is that many
pirates were as Black as the flags they flew.
The Golden Age of piracy was also the heyday of the Atlantic
slave trade. The relationship between piracy and the slave trade
is complex and ambiguous. Some pirates participated in the
slave trade and shared their contemporaries' attitude to Africans
as commodities for exchange.
However, many judged the Africans more on the basis of their
language and sailing skills – their level of cultural attainment –
rather than their race.
Piracy represented a way out, and a way to challenge the very
system that made slavery possible. Most of these black pirates
would have been runaway slaves, either joining with the pirates
on the course of the voyage from Africa, deserting from the
plantation, or sent as slaves to work on board ship.
Seafaring in general offered more autonomy to blacks than life on
the plantation, but piracy in particular, could. Although it was risky, it offered one of the few chances at freedom for an
African in the 18th century.
Black pirates would often lead the boarding party to capture a prize. The Morning Star had "a Negro Cook doubly armed" in
the boarding party, and more than half of Edward Condent's boarding party on the Dragon were black. Some black pirates
even became quartermasters or captains.
In the 17th century, blacks found on pirate ships were not tried in the courts with the other pirates because it was assumed
they were slaves, but by the 18th century they were being executed alongside their white 'brethren'. Still the most likely fate
for a black pirate, if he was captured, was to be sold into slavery.
Despite the actual waves of violence and destruction following in a pirate's wake, pirates have been admired by fiction
lovers regardless of medium, throughout time.
Books like James Fenimore Cooper's "The Water Witch" and Robert Louis Stevenson's "Treasure Island" or film classics
like "Adventures of Captain Fabian" and "Blackbeard the Pirate" are inspired, albeit romantically, by actual pirate
excursions.
Books such as Treasure Island and movies like Pirates of the Caribbean, portray white pirates not as hateful criminals, but
as lovable rogues, capable of cruelty, but also somehow admirable, even lovable. It became imperative, then, for the established powers of the European world to conceal the fact that many pirates were in
fact people of color. It would have caused havoc if slaves knew that freedom was just offshore, riding the waves, flying a
black flag.
Pirates were "marginal men" driven by desperation and rage to vengeful acts of theft, terrorism and violence against an
oppressive society.
Early 18th-century Europe was in the throes of severe economic, social, political and
religious changes that did not benefit all sectors of society equally. If it can be said that
many lives were thus "sacrificed on the altar of progress," then pirates belong in the
ranks of those men and women who refused to die quietly.
Blacks were an important part of most pirate crews, and statistical evidence suggests
that 25 to 30 percent of an estimated 5,000-plus pirate’s active during the years 1716
to 1726 were of African descent.
Tough enough and smart enough to escape bondage, a runaway slave could be
counted on to fight to keep his freedom. Indeed, at least two crews were entirely black,
with the exception of a single white man apiece.
Piratical racial tolerance did not proceed from a vision of the fundamental brotherhood of man but rather from a spirit of
revolt against political, economic and social oppression.
Mutual feelings of marginality meant that the primary allegiance of pirates was given to their brethren. It is hardly surprising
that so many blacks--confronted with far worse prospects by existing within the European or American social order--chose
piracy.
Black Caesar (
)The black pirate most often written about is Black Caesar. Legend identifies him as a tall African chief with great strength
and keen intelligence. A conniving captain lured him and his warriors aboard a slaver with a gold watch that fascinated
Caesar. Once on board, the captain and his men plied the Africans with food while enticing them with musical instruments,
jewels, silk scarves, and furs. With his focus on these unusual treasures, Caesar failed to notice that the slaver put to sea.
Upon learning the truth, he and his men fought the ship’s crew, but the slavers eventually subdued the Africans.
During his confinement, Caesar refused to eat or drink.
One sailor showed Caesar kindness, and the two eventually became friends. When the slaver wrecked on the reefs off
Florida, the sailor freed Caesar, and the two escaped in a long boat loaded with supplies and ammunition.
Caesar and his friend decided to attack passing ships. Whenever one was spotted, they rowed the long boat near the
vessel and pretended to be shipwrecked sailors. Once aboard their victim, they seized control and took their treasure
ashore.
Caesar slew his friend in a fight over a beautiful woman and
took the woman for himself.
Alone, he continued his piratical raids until he acquired a
number of ships and men, attacking passing ships, then
escaping into the coves and inlets where their prey could not
pursue them.
In 1718, when the Royal Navy attacked the legendary pirate
Blackbeard, and his crew, near Ocracoke Island, under his
captain’s orders, Caesar stood in the powder room with a lit
match with which to blow up the ship, if the navy succeeded in
subduing the pirates. He was about to do just that when two
prisoners, whom Blackbeard had stowed below during the
fight, stopped Caesar. (Caesar was running with Blackbeard's crew
)
Last edited:
