During the seventeenth century and the
first
third of the eighteenth, sea rovers -- pirates, privateers*, and
buccaneers
-- preyed on ships. Fictional accounts of this time period tend
to
romanticize the era. Nonfiction books often examine the period as
a whole and what it was like to be a pirate. Neither, however,
spends
much time on how sea rovers accomplished their seizure of ships and
raiding
of towns. The Sea Rover’s Practice corrects this
oversight,
and does so in such a way that anyone -- general reader or scholar --
can
learn the methods these marauders employed. Benerson Little uses
quotes from primary documents to illustrate these practices, allowing
readers
to witness firsthand what and how sea rovers accomplished their deeds.
Twenty-three chapters cover such information as
the perils
and rewards of garnering wealth by force, the various types of sea
rovers
who roamed the seas, how they recruited and organized their brethren,
the
types of vessels and armament they used, life at sea and in port, and
how
they spied their prey, gave chase, and acquired their prizes at sea and
on land. Aside from the illustrations that accompany the text,
the
reader will also find seven appendices filled with additional
treasures:
comparative actions of sea rovers; lexicons pertaining to sea rovers,
ships,
and mariners; those sea rovers who kept journals of their exploits;
culinary
history and recipes; and information on ranges, distances, weights, and
measures from the time period. The text is footnoted throughout
so
readers can verify where quotes and details can be found. A
detailed
bibliography and index round out the book.
No self-respecting sea rover should be without
this manual!
Re-enactors and writers will find The Sea Rover’s Practice
invaluable,
but anyone who wishes a more in-depth look into the tactics of pirates
and privateers will not be disappointed.
Visit
the Author
* Throughout the book, Mr. Little uses
“letter
of mart” rather than “letter of marque” when discussing
privateers.
I wondered about this, since the reader is more likely to encounter the
latter, so I asked him about it. He found “letter of mart” used
in
many journals of the period. Among the examples he cited were:
- Nathaniel Uring’s The Voyages and Travels of Captain
Nathaniel Uring
from 1726 (Reprint: London: Cassell and Company, 1928).
...and having obtained a Letter of Mart from the Governour,
I
had orders to make Prize of such Vessels of the Enemies...
- Thomas Phillips’ The Voyage of the Ship Hannibal of
London, in 1693
(Excerpted in Slave Ships and Sailing, edited by George Francis
Dow in 1927 and reissued by Cornell Maritime Press, Cambridge,
Maryland,
in 1968.)
...so that had no colours flying most of the ingagement but
the
king’s pendant, which, by authority of my letter of mart, I fought
under...
Book Review Copyright
©2006
Cindy Vallar
The Buccaneer’s Realm: Pirate Life on the Spanish
Main,
1674-1688
By Benerson Little
Potomac Books, 2007, ISBN 978-1-59797-101-0, $29.95
Divided into twenty-two chapters, The
Buccaneer’s Realm
explores these particular pirates and their way of life in the
Caribbean.
But it is not just an examination of the buccaneers; it also touches on
the region and those who lived there whether they interacted with these
rogues or not. Of particular importance is the differentiation between
buccaneers and the pirates who came later. The topics covered are the
Spanish
empire in the New World; the hunters who became pirates; places where
they
sought safe havens; their connections with Virginia, Africa, and New
England;
religion and superstition; wrecks and wreckers; language; sea battles;
health and medicine; sex; raids on land; swords and duels; careening;
marooning;
and more. The book also contains eight appendices that talk about the
chasse-partie,
organization, captains and ships, published accounts, barbecue, places
attacked, exports and plunder, weights and measures, and nautical
jargon.
Notes, a bibliography, and an index complete the package.
“Cornucopia” is the word that best describes The
Buccaneer’s
Realm, for there are so many facts and examples crammed into 267
pages
that it’s impossible to grasp the treasures found within the book in
one
reading. Interspersed throughout are quotes from those who were or knew
the real buccaneers, which serve to enrich this journey back in time.
Anyone
wishing to learn more about the buccaneers and the Caribbean of the
latter
17th century should make this book a must read.
Visit
Benerson Little
Read
a chapter, see the table of contents, and peruse the notes and errata
Review copyrighted © 2008 Cindy Vallar
Pirate Hunting: The Fight against Pirates, Privateers,
and
Sea Raiders from Antiquity to the Present
By Benerson Little
Potomac
Books, 2010,
ISBN 978-1-59797-291-8, US $29.95
One aspect of maritime piracy often overlooked or merely
touched upon involves hunting pirates. Little’s book aims to correct
this
oversight. In fifteen chapters (listed below), he discusses strategies,
techniques, weapons, and ships used over the centuries in various
regions of
the world to hunt down and eradicate pirates.
- Of
Black Flags and Bloody Banners – The Pursuit of Pirates and Privateers
- Heroes
of the Fantastic – Pirate Hunting in the Age of the Iliad
- In
the Age of Ancient Empires – Pirate Hunting in the Mediterranean,
1450-700 BC
- Of
Laurel Leaves and Pirate Princes – Pirate Hunting in the Mediterranean,
700 BC
– AD 476
- The
Scourge of the North – Standing against the Norsemen, 780-1066
- A
Sea Roving Free-for-All – Pirate Hunting in the North Seas, 1066-1492
- Of
Faith, Galleys, and Greed – Defeating the Mediterranean Corsairs,
476-1492
- Spanish
Galleons and Portuguese Carracks – Plunderers Fighting Plunderers, 1492
– 1654
- Of
Blind Eyes and Opportunity – A Introduction to the “Golden Age,”
1655-1725
- The Real
Pirates of the Caribbean – Pirate
Hunting in the “Golden Age,” 1655-1725
- From
the Mediterranean to the North Sea – The
War against Pirates and Corsairs, 1493-1830
- Of Frigates
and Cruisers – In Pursuit of the
Commerce Raiders, 1688-1865
- Pirates,
Rebels, and Warriors – Pirate Hunting
in the East, 694 BC – AD 1896
- Death
from Beneath the Waves – Combating the
Submarine Menace, 1914-1945
- Ships, SEALs,
and Satellites – The Return of the
Pirate Hunters
But Pirate Hunting
isn’t just about searching for and destroying pirates. Such
concentration would
examine the topic within a void, rather than incorporating the
parameters that
necessitated the hunt in the first place. The author discusses sea
roving
history, the weaponry and ships both pirates and their suppressors
used, and
the technological changes that occurred over time.
Maps, illustrations, notes, an extensive bibliography, and a
detailed index accompany the text. A few chapters incorporate a broad
time
span, but this is because of the lack of resources or because those
resources
examine piracy from a western perspective, rather than the perspective
of the
region and cultures where it occurs. One example of this is the chapter
on eastern
piracy, which extends from the Persian Gulf and Red Sea to Asian
waters. Little
attempts to present a fairer picture in these cases.
He states in chapter one “[the] destruction of these sea
rovers is the subject of this book”, rather than the actual pirate
hunters
(although a few are mentioned). This is one drawback to the book. With
a few
exceptions, these men have little written about them, other than their
names
and who they captured. It would be nice to know more of their personal
histories and how they actually succeeded in their endeavors. The
title, too,
is a bit of a misnomer, for while the majority of the book does deal
with the
hunt for pirates, Little strays from just that focus. Since one
country’s
pirate is another country’s hero, he prefers to call these sea villains
“sea
rovers,” which also allows him to incorporate others who fall outside
the
narrower parameters of piracy. An example of this is found in the
fourteenth
chapter that covers submarine attacks during the first and second World
Wars.
In the preface, Little writes, “It is from the point of view
of those who sought to stop or prevent sea rovers of all sorts that
this book
is written, and in a way, it is an homage to all past and present who
have
fought to defend life, liberty, and, yes, even property from the
rover.” He
wants the book to be of use not just to general readers, but also to
those
finding ways to handle the problem of maritime piracy. He succeeds in
both
endeavors, and does so in a manner that makes the text interesting and
compelling to read.
Visit the
author's website
Read
the preface
Review Copyrighted ©2010
Cindy Vallar
The subtitle for this book – “The Stories, Techniques, and
Tactics of the Most Feared Sea Rovers from 1500-1800” – explains what
Little
focuses on as he explores the piratical careers of Kheir-Ed-Din
(Barbarossa),
Grace O’Malley, Francis Drake, Diego the Mulatto, Henry Morgan, Juan
Corso,
Bartholomew Sharp, Edward “Blackbeard” Teach, Bartholomew Roberts,
Edward “Ned”
Low, Kanhoji Angria, Cheng I Sao, and Jean Laffite. Aside from the many
illustrations, the book also includes end notes, a selected
bibliography, and
an index.
The author’s background as a former navy SEAL, his study of
black-powder
weaponry, his experience as a fencing instructor, and his study of
primary
evidence make him eminently qualified to write this book and provide it
with
greater realism than someone unfamiliar with ships, their armament, and
the
ways of pirates.
Little’s intent here is to demonstrate the “romantic
realism” of pirates – showing them as they were, not as we think they
were. Since
he focuses on how they pirated, readers clearly see the similarities in
the
techniques and tactics pirates used during this three hundred-year span
of time.
It’s interesting to learn that some practices date back further than we
might
think.
What I particularly like about this book is the variety of chosen
subjects. They are a combination of the most infamous and least-known
pirates;
they include men and women, as well as rogues from various parts of the
world,
rather than just those of the Caribbean or the Golden Age of Piracy.
This book
is a highly entertaining and informative look at pirates and how they
plundered
throughout history.
Review
Copyrighted ©2011
Cindy Vallar
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