At their peak the pirates mustered several thousand men, a significant number of whom were members of the ‘Flying Gang’ that originated in the Bahamas in 1715. British mercantile interests were threatened by the number of Anglo-American pirates, first basing themselves at New Providence in the Bahamas, and then expanding their operations throughout the Caribbean, north along the American coast to Newfoundland, across the Atlantic to Africa and round the Cape of Good Hope into the Indian Ocean. The Jacobite movement attracted supporters from all sections of society, including a number of criminal gangs, and the practitioners of all forms of Jacobite protest have been seen collectively as a ‘subculture’. In 17 armed rebellions were mounted by Jacobites in England and Scotland with the assistance of troops from France and Spain, but Jacobite activity was not limited to military action. Overseas, unemployed sailors were turning in large numbers to piracy while, at home, the peace of the realm was threatened by the growing popularity of Jacobitism.
The years between 17 saw the British Government alarmed by the rise of two phenomena. The role of liberated “Negroe” and “Mullato” slaves is also examined throu The last part of this essay is dedicated to piracy regarding an alternative way of life for disadvantaged social groups in the 17th and 18th century and contemporary negative or positive portrayal of piracy. Hence, this work analyses both legal and practical actions against pirates in British colonies and their effectiveness after 1715. Despite the fact that they all issued privateering licenses and therefore they had to face similar problems connected to privateering, the outburst of piracy in the case of England was so dangerous that England (Great Britain) during the late 17th and early 18th century was called a “nation of pirates”. Particularly the transition between legal, semi-legal and illicit separates England and Great Britain (from 1707 onwards) from other colonial powers such as France, Spain or Dutch. Further, this essay discusses an interesting development of piracy from state-funded expeditions into utterly illegal activity driven by various reasons.
The entire topic is examined through various cases of pirates including Bartholomew Roberts, Sir Henry Morgan, Thomas Tew, William Kid, Jack Rackham, Stede Bonnet, Edward Teach, Samuel Bellamy, Mary Read, Anne Bony or Henry Avery as well as historical records including letters, trials and pamphlets.
This work analyses the public perception of the role of privateers and their transition to pirates and examines both negative and positive outcomes in various areas like diplomacy, international trade, legal, racial and gender issues.
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