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Pirates and PrivateersA Reading A–Z Level W Quick Reader

Word Count: 1,898

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Piratesand Privateers

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Pirates and PrivateersLevel W Quick Reader© 2002 Learning Page, Inc.Written by Mary Fifield

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Pirates and Privateers

www.readinga-z.com

Written by Mary Fifield

Credits:Pages 5, 12, 13: Illustrations by Paula Schricker;page 6: The Mariners' Museum, Newport News,Virginia; page 19: Hulton-Archive/Getty Images.

CorrelationLEVEL W

Fountas & Pinnell SReading Recovery 26

DRA 44

43

Table of ContentsIntroduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .4

The “Golden Age” of Piracy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .5

Pirates Attack! . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .8

Life on a Pirate Ship . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .12

Well-Known Pirates . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .17

Conclusion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .22

Explore More . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .23

Glossary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .24

IntroductionWhat do you think of when you think of

pirates? Buried treasure? Ships with mighty sails?Black flags with a skull and crossbones?

Have you ever wondered what it was like to be a pirate? Pirates seemed to love adventure.They were often vicious men and women whowere robbers and murderers. Pirates sometimesare glamorized in movies and books. But theywere scoundrels, and the lives they lived werenot that pleasant. Their lifestyles often resulted in great discomfort and even death.

Bartholomew Roberts’s ships off the African coast (includingeleven captured merchant ships)

65

During the “Golden Age,” Spain colonizedlarge parts of Central and South America. TheSpaniards were very interested in the spices,gold, and silver found in the Americas. In order to get these treasures, they forced thenative people to work in mines and to gatherspices. They also stole gold and silver from thenative people.

The English and French royalty learned thatSpain was getting rich from gold, silver, andspices from the Americas. They wanted gold fortheir empires, too. At the same time, there were a lot of unemployed sailors. The sailors werelooking for adventure and a chance to get rich.

The “Golden Age” of PiratesThroughout history, pirates have sailed the

seas all over the world. From the 1500s to the1700s, many famous pirates raided ships andports in the Caribbean Sea. This was called the“Golden Age” of pirates.

A pirate crew secures cargo before returning to port.

The Caribbean Sea and surrounding area

8

Pirates Attack!Pirates quickly gained a reputation of being

ruthless villains. Sailors on other ships were filled with fear when they saw a pirate shipapproaching. They had heard tales of pirates and their nasty deeds. Most of the ships beingattacked were cargo ships that lacked weaponsfor fighting off the pirates. The sailors knew therewas little they could do to stop the pirates.

Some pirates used smaller and swifter boatsfor night attacks. They would come alongside acargo ship in the darkness of night. Then theywould quickly seize the ship and kill many of the unsuspecting crew.

The Queen of England developed a plan toget some of the wealth the Spanish were bringingacross the Atlantic Ocean on their ships. Her plan called for hiring unemployed sailors andproviding them with ships to attack the Spanishships. In England, these sailors were calledprivateers. In Spain, they were called pirates.

Many of the ships leaving the Americasloaded with riches passed through the CaribbeanSea. Since the Caribbean was full of small islands, it was a perfect place for pirates to hangout. It was also a perfect place from which tolaunch attacks on Spanish ships passing amongthe islands.

7

Sir Francis Drake, privateer for the Queen of England, capturesthe port city of Cartagena, Colombia.

Thomas Cavendish repels a native attack.

109

Once on board,pirates used manykinds of weapons totake over a ship. Oneof the most commonweapons was acutlass. A cutlass issimilar to a smallsword. It was used for close-up, hand-to-hand fighting. Piratesalso used guns, such

as flintlock pistols and flintlock muskets. Themuskets fired balls made of lead. The balls wereloaded into the barrel one at a time and shot outwith exploding gunpowder. Sometimes piratesmade crude grenades that they used in theirattacks.

Many people were wounded or killed inpirate battles. Sometimes, pirates would takehostages. They might even force members of a ship’s crew to join the pirate crew. Usually,pirates would simply tie up crew and passengersand then take anything of value to their ship. On occasion, pirates attacking in small boatswould hijack the entire ship. These ships werethen used to attack other ships.

Before they boarded a ship, pirates fired awarning shot from a cannon. They hoped that the captain and crew of the ship would simplygive up their cargo without a fight. Cannon shotswere also used to destroy masts and rigging onthe other ship. Pirates then threw smoke bombsonto the ship’s deck to confuse and frighten thecrew. The pirates then used grappling hooks toclimb aboard the ship.

Pirates favored small, fastships such as sloops, whichcould easily overtake anyship they wanted to capture.

Roche Brasiliano holds a cutlass.

11

It was the love of gold that caused mostpirates—and the queens and kings who hiredthem—to steal. But pirates stole many otheritems of value. The ships that were attacked often carried silver and precious gems, such asemeralds and pearls. They also carried tobacco,wine, brandy, coffee, tea, spices, and expensivefabrics like velvet and linen. Pirates sold ortraded most of these goods. They also kept some for their personal use.

Life on a Pirate ShipTo some people, a pirate’s life may seem

exciting. But a pirate’s life was not veryglamorous. They were criminals who were hatedas much as they were feared. They had toconstantly be on guard and often couldn’t eventrust their fellow crew members. The work washard and dangerous. Many pirates lost legs,arms, fingers, eyes, and even their lives in fiercebattles. Living conditions were not very pleasant,either. They often lived in dirty, smelly quarters.

A listing ofpirate booty soldto a sympatheticgovernor

During a violentstorm in theCaribbean, themast of a shipwould sometimessnap. The crewwould have toclimb into thedangerous riggingto cut the brokenmasts free so theywould not capsizethe ship.

12

But when the work was done, pirates had timefor eating, drinking, and entertainment. They atemeals together and drank liquor or wine. Theyplayed games like dice or cards. They also playedmusical instruments, sang, and danced. Pirateswere often lively and rowdy at mealtimes.

Like all sailors, pirates lived in close spaceswith little privacy. They slept in hammocks.Their personal belongings, like shaving kits andclothing, were stored in sea chests.

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Pirates on a ship were assigned different jobs.One person was always assigned to stand watch.This person would cling to rope ladders highabove the deck to look for enemies or ships toraid. Another person, called a helmsman, steeredthe ship with a lever called a tiller.

The cooper was the person who made,repaired, and sealed all of the barrels on the ship.Most of the food and drink was stored in barrels.The cooper had to make sure the barrels werewell-made and sealed. Otherwise, the food ordrink might go bad.

There were other jobs, too, like mending thesails, cooking for the crew, caulking the woodendeck planks, and pumping water from thebottom of the ship. Pirates celebrating

One of the many specialized jobs on a pirate ship was making and mending sails. The sailmaker also made and mended flags.

Pirates often stole clothes from people onother ships. The crew dressed differently than thecaptain. They needed comfortable and practicalclothes. A typical pirate wore simple shoes andpants, plus a waist sash and a jacket with woodor bone buttons. Crew members often worescarves over their heads.

The captain usually wore much fancierclothing. Some captains liked to wear silk pantsand shirts with lace cuffs and gold buttons. They often wore shoes with silver buckles. Many pirate captains grew their hair long. They liked to tie it with ribbon to make it looklike a gentleman’s wig.

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Not all pirates were men. There were a fewwomen pirates, as well. Most pirate ships did notallow women on board, so women pirates had todisguise themselves by dressing like men.

Many pirate ship crews had a voice in therunning of their ship. They voted on rules andhelped decide how the treasure from raids wouldbe divided. Of course, the captain always got thebiggest share. Other shares were divided by theimportance of a crew member’s responsibilities.In some cases, crew members even elected thecaptain of their ship.Captain Edward England

Mary Reade runs an opponent through.

Well-known PiratesMany pirates became well known. And

many stories of these pirates have been passeddown over the years. Let’s look at some of thebetter-known pirates and the lives they led.

Blackbeard, whose real name was EdwardTeach, was a notorious pirate born in England.He first served as a crew member on a pirate shipcaptained by a pirate named Benjamin Horngold.They attacked ships and port towns in theCaribbean. During that time, Blackbeard gained a reputation as a fierce fighter. EventuallyBlackbeard went on to captain his own ship.

Blackbeard became one of the most fearedpirate captains sailing the Caribbean. Rather thanwait for his victims to take off their rings and

give them to him,Blackbeard would cut offtheir fingers. He wouldplace burning, smokingflares in his beard. Blacksmoke would rise aroundhis face, causing people to think he was mad orcrazy. That made him even scarier.

In 1718, Blackbeard and his crew sailed up the Atlantic coast of America and into NorthCarolina. At that time, North Carolina was partof the British colony. Blackbeard sailed up coastalrivers and raided wealthy plantations.

People were scared and angry. They wantedto get rid of Blackbeard and his pirates. Theyasked the British Navy for help. A British Navycaptain and his crew fought a fierce battle withBlackbeard and his crew. Blackbeard lost his lifein that battle. According to legend, it took 20cutlass wounds and five shots to kill him.

1817

Blackbeard Robert Maynard fighting Blackbeard

Pegleg is another well-known pirate. Heworked as a privateer for a French king. He isbest known for his “wooden leg.” But Pegleg,whose real name was François le Clerk, did nothave a wooden leg. Instead, he used a woodencrutch after losinghis leg in a battle.Pirates withwooden legs areoften popularizedin movies andbooks, such asTreasure Island,probably becauseof Pegleg.

20

Anne Bonny was one of a few women pirates.She was born in Ireland. She moved to SouthCarolina with her family when she was a younggirl. Her father was a lawyer, and her motherwas a maidservant. Anne fell in love with asailor and ran away with him to NewProvidence, in the Bahamas. Then she met thepirate Calico Jack and joined his pirate crew.

She disguised herself as a man and was atough fighter. Most people did not know she wasa woman. She raided ships with Calico Jack until1720. They were eventually captured by theBritish Navy and were tried in a court in Jamaica.The judge firstsentenced Anneto death byhanging. Butbefore thehanging, theNavy learnedthat she waspregnant. Hersentence wasthen changed tolife in prison.

Do You Know?Captain Kidd was another famous English pirate. When he was finally captured and put to death, the authoritiesordered his body to be hung by the harbor for all to see.This was done to discourage others from becoming pirates.

Anne Bonny

Captain Kidd’s corpse on display as a

warning to others

19

ConclusionDuring the Golden Age of piracy, no ship was

safe on the sea. The Caribbean Sea was one of themost notorious hangouts for pirates. But piratessailed the seas in other parts of the world as well.

Pirates were often lawless, vicious men andwomen who made their living by stealing androbbing. Other pirates were ex-sailors hired bykings and queens who were greedy and wantedmore wealth.

Modern-day pirates still roam the seas of the world. But rather than sailing slow woodensailboats, they have high-powered speedboats.They attack small pleasure boats and ships. They steal valuables that they can then sell on the black market.

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Anotherprivateer was SirFrancis Drake, anEnglishman. Hestarted sailingwhen he was just14. He first sailedwith his cousinJohn Hawkins,who took slavesfrom Africa to the Americas. Sir Francis beganto captain his ownship in 1570. He attacked Spanish ships, stealinglarge amounts of treasure for Queen Elizabeth of England.

Sir Francis did not limit his pirating activity to the sea. When he learned that the Spanishwere taking more riches from mines in Panamaby mule train, he went inland and attacked themule trains. He even captured the town in thecenter of the mining region. Sir Francis Drakebecame a rich and successful pirate by attackingships and mule trains. Queen Elizabeth rewardedDrake for capturing so much treasure forEngland by making him a knight.

Sir Francis Drake

The captain of a ship taken by pirates often met a cruel fate.

Glossaryblack market an illegal trade network (p. 22)

caulking filling gaps and cracks with a watertight sealant (p. 13)

cooper a barrelmaker (p. 13)

cutlass a short, curved sword (p. 10)

glamorized artificially made morefascinating and attractive (p. 4)

grappling hook an anchor with several hooks,attached to a sturdy rope (p. 9)

helmsman the person who steers the ship(p. 13)

launch to start or set in operation (p. 7)

maidservant a female who does householdwork. A male who does thiskind of work is called amanservant. (p. 19)

privateer an independent pirateoperating with a license from aking or queen (p. 7)

rowdy rough, loud, excitable,quarrelsome, or aggressive (p. 14)

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Explore MoreOn the Web:

1 In the address window, type: www.google.com

2 Then type: pirates. Click on “Google Search.”• Read the colored links. Click on one that

looks interesting.• When you want to explore other links, click

the “back” arrow on the top left until you get back to the page with the links thatGoogle found.

• Then try a search using other words from thisQuick Reader, such as privateers, pirate ships,pirate flags, and Blackbeard.

In searching for pirates on the Web, you willquickly discover that there are many links to thePittsburgh Pirates, an American baseball team. To avoid these links, do the following:

1 In the address window, type: www.google.com

2 Click on Google’s “Advanced Search” link. • After “With all of the words,” type pirates.• After “Without the words,” type baseball and

Pittsburgh. Then click “Google Search.”

This will help you to access links that are about thekind of pirates in this Quick Reader.