Now while the aforementioned ‘doom and gloom’ statement might be a foil to the popular cultural depictions of the ‘swashbuckling’ pirates, we should also understand that under practical circumstances, the 17th-18th-century pirates operated like any other contemporary naval company. A pirate’s life was usually nasty, brutish, and short. Instead of a life of romantic glamor, with crews led by aristocratic swashbuckling heroes, the average pirate was a doomed man, lacking the education, abilities, and pragmatism to escape his inevitable fate. Historian Angus Konstam has this to say about the historical nature of pirates (in the book Pirates 1660 – 1730 ).
1) Beyond the ‘Glamor’ of Swashbuckling – Source: DigitalVortex So without further ado, let us take a gander at ten things you should know about the 17th-18th-century Caribbean Pirates. But as is often the case in history, there was more to these pirates than what their boisterously spirited personas suggest.
However, propelled by our popular culture, the very term ‘pirates’ brings forth reveries (to many of us) of the rambunctious 17th-18th-century Caribbean sailors and seamen who seemingly led their lives guided by the ‘pillars’ of adventure and freedom. For example, ancient Greek ships were plagued by the Mamertines of Sicily, while late medieval European vessels faced the scourge of the Barbary pirates of North Africa. Pirates and piracy have existed since the dawn of sailing.
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