Pirates and Privateers

Accounts Worth Reading	Pirate Treasures
East Anglia and Its North Sea World in the Middle Ages Explorers and Their Quest for North America Fiddlers and Whores Hunting Pirate Heaven In the Wake of the Gods Maritime Exploration in the Age of Discovery, 1415-1800 Maritime Taiwan A New Voyage Round the World Privateer's Voyage Round the World Sailing Across the Seas	Barons of the Sea Children at Sea Conquering the Pacific Monsoon Traders Trading in War

Medieval travel is often easier to accomplish aboard boats, rather than going overland, and so the people of East Anglia, a region on the coast of England, trade with other European countries bordering the North Sea. This particular study stems from a 2010 conference where scholars with varying specialties discuss what is known and where future studies can be focused.

Robert Liddiard opens the book with an introduction to the North Sea from both historical and geographical perspectives. He also looks at trade routes and the difficulties crossing these waters pose for mariners. He explains “that the essays presented here are not intended to argue definitively for or against the existence of a ‘North Sea World’ in the Middle Ages . . . rather, they represent an attempt to place East Anglia in the broader geographical and social context within which it has long been recognized to have played a part.” (7)

Table of Contents

Part I: East Anglia and the North Sea World: Overviews

1. The Origins of East Anglia in a North Sea Zone by John Hines
2. East Anglia’s Character and the ‘North Sea World’ by Tom Williamson
3. Cities, Cogs and Commerce: Archaeological Approaches to the Material Culture of the North Sea World by Brian Ayers
4. Medieval Art in Norfolk and the Continent: An Overview by David King

Part II: Trade and Economy

5. The Circulation, Minting, and Use of Coins in East Anglia, c. AD 580-675 by Gareth Williams
6. Coinage in Pre-Viking East Anglia by Rory Naismith
7. The Castle and the Warren: Medieval East Anglian Fur Culture in Context by Aleksander Pluskowski
8. Economic Relations between East Anglia and Flanders in the Anglo-Norman Period by Elijas Oksanen
9. East Anglia’s Trade in the North Sea World by Wendy R. Childs
10. Iceland’s ‘English Century’ and East Anglia’s North Sea World by Anna Agnarsdóttir

Part III: Case Studies: Influences and Links

11. Ipswich: Contexts of Funerary Evidence from an Urban Precursor of the Seventh Century AD by Christopher Scull
12. Imports or Immigrants? Reassessing Scandinavian Metalwork in Late Anglo-Saxon East Anglia by Tim Pestell
13. Stone Building in Romanesque East Anglia by Stephen Heywood
14. Romanesque East Anglia and the Empire by Richard Plant
15. All in the Same Boat? East Anglia, the North Sea World and the 1147 Expedition to Lisbon by Charles West
16. The Liber Celestis of St. Bridget of Sweden (1302/3-1373) and Its Influence on the Household Culture of Some Late Medieval Norfolk Women by Carole Hill
17. Flemish Influence on English Manuscript Painting in East Anglia in the Late Fourteenth Century by Lynda Dennison

The purpose of this work is “to promote the study of the North Sea in the same way as the Mediterranean and Atlantic and in so doing [shed] light on the development of one of its most important sub-regions.” (14) In this regard, the authors and editors have done a commendable job in meeting that goal.

While there is no direct information on piracy in this book, there is a link between maritime trade and pirates. Understanding one assists us in knowing the other, and the commodities that are traded provide insight into the “treasures” of the period. Ayers’s chapter (3) will be of particular interest to those interested in medieval cogs, the vessels that carry bulk cargo for trade, while Childs’s essay (9) examines early ports and customs. Other chapters touch upon the difficulties in venturing across the North Sea and the dangers those waters bring to East Anglia. In addition to the individual essays, illustrations, maps, charts, and diagrams are included, as are an index and chapter notes. This book isn’t for the diehard pirate fan or those with little interest in the medieval world, but those in search of information on maritime trade in the Middle Ages will find this book an intriguing examination of one region in England and its connections to the world at large.

Review Copyright ©2014 Cindy Vallar

The fastest means of traveling from point A to point B is a straight line. In this case, point A is Europe and point B, the Middle East, India, and China. The overland route is arduous, long, and relatively straight. The only other option is to sail south along the west coast of Africa, around the Cape of Good Hope, and across the Indian Ocean to points east. Or so the majority of Europeans believe. After all, sailing west across the Atlantic Ocean means eventually the ship will fall off the world.

What if that belief is false? What if the world is round, and by sailing west, the ship reaches Asia faster than the known routes? In the latter half of the 15th century, this idea is relatively untried and quite a risk. (The Norse sagas claim that Bjarni Herolfsson does it in 985, and far in the future, evidence will show that Leif Eriksson reaches Newfoundland less than two decades later.) One intrepid seaman is convinced that this novel idea is doable, and after convincing the monarchs of Spain to fund the attempt, Christopher Columbus sails west and discovers the New World – although he believes he has reached the edge of Asia. Thus begins the Age of Discovery (also known as the Age of Exploration), which will span over three centuries.

Within the pages of this book, Potter introduces readers to fourteen explorers, beginning with Christopher Columbus and ending with Meriwether Lewis, who with his friend William Clark, will travel overland to explore and map the United States’ recent purchase of the Louisiana Territory in 1804. In between, readers meet the following men, many of whom are well-known and a few who are lesser known, to learn why they are remembered today:

John Cabot – First European to Reach and Explore the North American Mainland
Hernan Cortes – Conqueror of Mexico
Jacques Cartier – Founder of New France
Hernando de Soto – Explorer of American South-east and Discoverer of the Mississippi River
Francisco Coronado – Laid the Foundation for the Spanish Colonization of the American South-west
Samuel de Champlain – Father of French Canada
Captain John Smith – Mercenary Soldier, Governor of Jamestown Colony and Explorer of the American Coastline
Henry Hudson – Explorer of the Hudson River Valley and Canadian Arctic
Robert Cavelier de La Salle – Explorer of the Great Lakes and Mississippi Valley
Vitus Bering – Discoverer and Explorer of the Coastline of Alaska
Daniel Boone – Frontiersman and Pioneer of the Ohio Valley
Sir Alexander Mackenzie – Pathfinder of Western Canada

This book includes maps and illustrations, while each chapter lists the author and title of selected books about each man. There is a bibliography, but it is just one compilation of all the recommended sources in the chapters. There are no notes or an index, which means there is no way to interconnect individuals or accomplishments. While the narrative mentions some books that individual explorers write, these are not included in either the selected sources or the bibliography even though some of them are still available today.

Explorers and Their Quest for North America is by no means an inclusive list of explorers. While each makes a significant contribution to the subject this book explores, Potter doesn’t explain why he chooses these particular men or leaves out others. What this book does best is serve as an engaging refresher for readers about people they first meet in history classes as youngsters. In so doing, Potter presents each man with warts and all, making it clear that each is a product of his time and that not all of his accomplishments fall under the “good” category.

Review Copyright ©2022 Cindy Vallar

Fiddlers and Whores: The Candid Memoirs of a Surgeon in Nelson’s Fleet
by James Lowry
Seaforth, 2017, ISBN 978-1-5267-0147-3, UK £9.99 / US $17.95

review by Irwin Bryan

In 1798, Admiral Nelson describes Naples, Italy as “[a] country of fiddlers and poets, whores and scoundrels.” This quote, which appears on the title page, explains the book title’s origin and is also a good summation of its subject matter.

Lowry’s first ship, HMS Vanguard, is part of a fleet that lands troops in Egypt to attack the French. He is sent ashore to treat the wounded for this entire campaign. After a forced landing and initial assault, his “ears were saluted with the lamentations of the wounded and dying . . . and [he] was incessantly employed.” (73) When the commander-in-chief, General Sir Ralph Abercrombie, fell, Lowry says there are so many wounded it is “impossible for the medical gentlemen to render them all assistance in good time.” (81) So ends the description of his medical service on behalf of the king’s soldiers and sailors.

Instead, he writes this delightful memoir of his travels and adventures to share with his brother. As you read, it seems as if his brother is sitting beside you listening to Lowry’s tale.

There is plenty of detail in this memoir. While the British pursue the French to Alexandria, he devotes half a page to describe date trees. Pages of text paint word pictures of the places he visits. His telling of treks to holy sites and antiquities includes the Roman and Greek mythology associated with them, the history of each site, and his experiences getting there and back.

He was fortunate to have been to these places during the war and especially during the Peace of Amiens when he could travel more freely and take lodgings ashore. Among the many places he saw were Jerusalem, Bethlehem, Rome, Palermo, Malta, and Naples. He attended a grand ball and supper given by the Queen of Naples, saw the pyramids of Egypt, and climbed the active volcano Mt. Etna in Sicily.

On his appointment to each of his four ships – first as Surgeon’s Assistant and later as Ship’s Surgeon – he provides scant, if any, details about these vessels other than their names: Vanguard, Swiftsure, Pigmy, and Weazel. (Naval enthusiasts, such as myself, would prefer to know more about these vessels and life aboard them.) The only time Lowry mentions any firing of his ship’s guns is in one paragraph on page ninety when HMS Swiftsure is chased, engaged and captured. The only time he writes more about a ship concerns one to which he is assigned but never serves on, the ill-fated Queen Charlotte. While at Leghorn she catches fire and explodes, killing all but forty of her large crew. Although anxious to join this ship, he is grateful for the delay which saves his life.

After being a prisoner of war in Toulon, France, Lowry is hoping to head home, but decides to continue active service and accepts a promotion to Ship’s Surgeon aboard HMS Pigmy. He is appointed to Weazle when Pigmy returns to England during the peace. Weazle was sent to survey various navigational hazards, which gives him chances to travel inland to see many sites. These places and his experiences take up a fourth of the book.

His service ends with drama, danger, and hardship, which he covers in detail. Afterwards, he has difficulty getting a ship home and travels overland through Spain and Portugal to board a vessel in Lisbon. He arrives in England, passes the Surgeon’s examination, and heads to his home in Ireland. Still the happy traveler, he provides further anecdotes until his arrival in Dunaghmore.

The subtitle of this book, first published in 2006, may lead readers to believe this is both a narrative of Lowry’s experiences as a naval doctor and his adventures during his years of service. Anyone looking for information about life on a navy vessel from 1798 to1804, and the challenges a young doctor faces in treating the wounded are advised to look elsewhere. Instead, readers in search of a first-person, contemporary travelogue of the Mediterranean will be overjoyed to read Lowry’s memoirs of his adventures to these exotic places.

Review Copyright ©2017 Irwin Bryan

To commemorate the 400th anniversary of the New East India Company’s first voyage, Kevin Rushby decides to follow the routes of the pirates who prey on these treasure-laden ships. His goal is to locate pirate havens long since forgotten around the western coast of Africa. The journey begins in Deptford, England and ends in Madagascar, where he hopes to locate some remnant of Libertalia, a pirate utopia discussed in Captain Johnson’s A General History of the Robberies and Murders of the most Notorious Pyrates (1724).

This travelogue of Rushby’s journey details his thoughts, experiences, and historical background about the areas he visits. While he intersperses tidbits about the pirates into his tale, the majority of the narrative has little to do with piracy and much to do with the history and economics of western Africa, including the impact of the slave trade on various populations. At one point, he may have encountered modern-day pirates, but this episode is as murky as his quest for a utopia that may only exist within the pages of Johnson’s book. Hunting Pirate Heaven is an interesting journey to a part of the world rarely visited by most people, but Rushby’s conclusions come as no surprise.

Review Copyright ©2022 Cindy Vallar

Who hasn’t heard of Zeus, Poseidon, Aphrodite, Apollo, Athena, Demeter, Dionysus, or any of the other gods and goddesses who dwell on Mount Olympus? What of such heroes as Herakles, Perseus, Thesus, Jason, Achilles, and Odysseus? We study these and other figures of Greek mythology in school, but what if we can visit the places where their tales take place? This is one goal behind Sam Jefferson’s In the Wake of the Gods, which shows how and where sailors can voyage to various islands in the Ionian Sea and Saronic Gulf to visit the world of Ancient Greece, as well as modern Greece, and learn about the Titans and Olympians.

He begins his journey with a brief introduction to the original gods, the twelve Titans, and how they are superseded by the fourteen gods and goddesses known collectively as Olympians. What readers quickly learn is that humans often cross paths with these mythological creatures, finding themselves tormented or defiled. Jefferson includes short biographies of all these and then explains how the heroes mentioned above evolve. His tour begins on Ithaca and progresses from there to Othoni, Corfu, Paxos and Antipaxos, Ammoudia, Lefkas, Cephalonia, Zakynthos, Strofades, Pylos, Kardamyli, Cape Tainaron, Kythira, Cranae, Cape Maleas, Learna (now Myloi), Argos, Nafplio, Tiryns, Cape Skili, Troezen, Poros, Aegina, Agistri, Corinth, Megara, and Eleusis. The journey ends at Athens and Cape Sounion. The author also provides information about sailing in these waters and suggests tips on mooring when you stop to visit the islands. In addition to an index, there is a section on the ruins of Greek temples that can be visited throughout the region.

The narrative is laced with humor (sometimes dry wit and other times tongue-in-cheek, usually always geared toward adults), which sometimes makes learning about the gods and goddesses far more interesting than they are in school. The book is beautifully illustrated with paintings and photographs. Passages from early retellings of the myths are woven into the text to allow readers the chance to learn the stories from other perspectives. Where actual landmarks pertaining to the myths exist, Jefferson provides information on where they can be found and where to moor while visiting them. The recounted myths are sometimes gruesome, but definitely show that the gods aren’t perfect and like to act in mischievous ways. Heroes are equally flawed. His storytelling captivates, entertains, and enlightens without getting bogged down in detail.

This is an intriguing guidebook for those seeking to create their own itinerary for a voyage around the Greek isles. One cautionary note is that the book does not include any information about crime and dangers, other than those involved in the actual sailing and mooring of vessels. Readers are left to their own devices to find that type of information. The only drawback is that on a few pages the small black print against the blue sky may be difficult to read. Aside from that, this book is reminiscent of coffee-table books of old, but at a more reasonable price.

Review Copyright ©2004 Cindy Vallar

Written by an associate professor of history, this book is part of a series that examines historic events between 1500 and 1900. This particular volume concentrates on the search for a quicker passage to Asia and its exotic offerings, as well as the new territories those sea adventurers discover in the process. It readily acknowledges that Europeans aren’t the first to venture far from their shores, or even to make astonishing discoveries, but they are the first to capitalize on them on a grand scale, and their achievements forever change the world and impact history. Prior to the voyages of the Portuguese and Spanish explorers, the various world cultures are isolated from each other. These discoverers, who venture farther afield into new arenas, are the initiators of global commerce, which remains an important aspect of our lives today.

The book is divided into sections, the first being a timeline of noteworthy events from 1249 through 1791. Chapter one provides an overview, while the next four chapters examine “Portugal and the Search for a Sea Route to Asia,” “Spain and the Discovery of a New World,” “Circumnavigation and the Search for a Northern Passage to China,” and “Exploration of the Great South Sea.” While William Dampier is included in the narrative, he doesn’t appear in the “Biographies: Personalities of the Age of Discovery” section. Prior to the glossary, annotated bibliography, and index, Love shares a number of primary documents related to this period of history. These include a poem, letters, and excerpts from original manuscripts (including Sir Francis Drake’s The World Encompassed, Dampier’s A New Voyage Round the World, and Woodes Rogers’s journal).

Contrary to the more usual Eurocentric presentations on the Age of Discovery, Maritime Exploration provides a balanced approach while setting the subject within the historical context in which the events occur. The book is geared toward students in high school and the early years of college. It is equally valuable to the general reader who wishes to learn about the men and voyages whose initial purpose is to find gateways to increase commerce, but eventually devolves into the quest for land, riches, and world domination. While an interesting presentation, enriched by the inclusion of primary resources, this isn’t an absorbing history. For those looking for a well-rounded examination of and having an interest in the Age of Discovery, this is an informative introduction.

Review Copyright ©2008 Cindy Vallar

Maritime Taiwan: Historical Encounters with the East and the West
by Shih-Shan Henry Tsai
M. E. Sharpe, 2009, ISBN 978-0-7656-2329-4, US $27.95

A New Voyage Round the World
by William Dampier
1500 Books, 2007, ISBN 978-1933698-04-5, US$19.95

Three times William Dampier sailed around the world, quite an accomplishment in the late 17th and early 18th centuries. On his first voyage (1679), he did so as a buccaneer and privateer, but it was the journal he kept that earned him his fame. Within its pages he recorded fascinating details about the flora, fauna, lands, and peoples he encountered, as well as his nautical and pirating adventures. He downplayed the latter, for he admitted to not taking “any pleasure in relating them,” doing so only to acquaint the reader with how he came to have the opportunities to acquaint himself with the former. He eventually returned to England and turned his journal into a book that was published in 1697.

This edition of Dampier’s work includes an introduction by Kris Lane and a list of books for those who wish to read more about Dampier, his times, the writings of fellow buccaneers, and the writings of other authors whom he influences. Since his initial audience is English, he “used such names as are familiar to our English seamen, and those of our colonies abroad . . . .” 1500 Books retains the original punctuation, abbreviations, and language Dampier uses, but applies modern spellings and capitalization, as well as large print, to make the book far more readable than Dover Publication’s 1968 reprint entitled Memoirs of a Buccaneer. This new edition, however, lacks the chapter summaries, maps, charts, and index. Another plus for the 1500 Books’s edition is that this publisher uses the sixth edition of Dampier’s original work, first published in 1717, whereas Dover’s comes from a 1927 reprint.

Despite having appeared in print more than three centuries ago, A New Voyage Round the World remains as captivating and compelling a travelogue as when it first appears in print. Opening the pages takes the reader back in time to an exotic world few people of Dampier’s time know of, providing us with a fresh look at what has become commonplace.

Review Copyright ©2008 Cindy Vallar




Privateer’s Voyage around the World
by George Shelvocke
Seaforth, 2010, ISBN 978-1-84832-066-6, US $27.95 / UK £12.99

Originally published in 1726, George Shelvocke’s account of his three-year privateering venture, which takes him around the world, is rife with danger and adventure. He also strives to put himself in the best light possible when faced with situations that border on – if they aren’t outright – piracy and unending bouts of attempted mutinies from his crew.

This book is the second in the Seafarers’ Voices series, and the introduction recounts Shelvocke’s experience as a mariner before becoming a privateer. He begins his career in the Royal Navy in 1690, and within thirteen years he receives his first command. When further promotions aren’t forthcoming, he is appointed purser in 1707 – a position which he holds until Britain and France sign a peace treaty in 1713 and he is dismissed from service. Five years later, he becomes a “Gentleman-Adventurer,” becoming captain of Success and commander-in-chief of an expedition to capture Spanish treasure ships. Several problems arise and before year’s end Shelvocke is demoted to master of Speedwell, and that ship’s captain – John Clipperton, who had sailed with William Dampier on an earlier privateering venture – assumes both the captaincy of Success and head of the expedition, which departs England the following year.

While the information revealed in the introduction is important and necessary for the reader to gain a well-rounded picture of the events, it is somewhat dry in its rendering and it colors one’s reading of Shelvocke’s actual account. This can easily have been negated by confining the introduction to Shelvocke’s early life, the historical background for the venture, and what makes a privateer. After his account of the voyage ends, an epilogue or editor’s note to explain the discrepancies of the various accounts, the animosities between the parties involved, and the subsequent events that unfolded because of these will have allowed the reader to draw his or her own conclusions without being biased beforehand.

What makes this book important is it is a primary resource (firsthand account) that describes not only Shelvocke’s journey, but also the people, places, and flora and fauna he encounters just as previous privateers do. He also shares the many inherent dangers of a life at sea, although the reader soon wonders why he bothers to continue with so many mutinous crewmen. (More than once readers will see similarities to an earlier voyage (William Kidd's) where the men also tend to dictate to the captain and become pirates.)

Review Copyright ©2010 Cindy Vallar




Sailing Across the Seas: Fujian and the West
by Wu Weiwei
Royal Collins, 2023, ISBN 978-1-4878-1125-9, US $45.95 / CAN $61.95

China has been involved in maritime trade since the 1st century BC. Trading overseas takes on greater importance during the Tang Dynasty (AD 618 to 907) and their vessels sail on what comes to be known as the Maritime Silk Road (MSR). Sailing Across the Seas utilizes photographs, artifacts, and architecture with brief textual explanations to review the people, advancements, and cultural exchanges that play significant roles in maritime trade. The hope is that by studying the past, we can bring new life to the 21st-century Maritime Silk Road.

This title is one in a series (Illustrated Fujian and the Maritime Silk Road edited by Xie Bizhen) and it focuses on a region in southeast China that has played a central role in overseas trade. One of the most important ports is Quanzhou, which is both the embarkation and debarkation locus of the MSR. From the second half of the 10th century through the 13th, Fujian shipbuilders utilize the latest advances in their vocation to build the best vessels and their seamen implement the latest technology in navigation. The MSR upon which they sail permits cultural exchanges with other countries, be they as near as Japan or Korea or as far away as Africa, Europe, and America. For example, Zheng He makes seven such voyages while Europeans send missionaries who write about life in China and introduce Western religion and ways to the Chinese.

The book is divided into six sections. The first covers early voyages, which includes one that predates Marco Polo’s travels, and Christianity’s spread. The second part explores colonists, merchants, and trade commodities, while the next section discusses the conflicts and battles that impact trade and China. The fourth part focuses on disputes arising from religions, both Western intrusions and the spread of Neo-Confucianism in the West. Tea and coolies are the principal focus of the fifth section. The final section examines people, especially those involved in interactions between East and West and Fujians who help to spread their knowledge to other countries.

Sailing Across the Seas is beautifully illustrated and packs a wealth of introductory information. At times, the text doesn’t read as smoothly as it could if written by a native English speaker, but there is sufficient information provided for readers to get the point. One helpful feature that is missing are dates; at present, one must look up a dynasty name or a specific fact to determine when events happen. A bibliography is provided and even though there is no index, paging through the book and reviewing the table of contents makes it easy to find specific information. Wu does a commendable job providing opposing viewpoints, and it’s refreshing to view China and Fujian from a perspective not usually encountered in Western maritime literature.

Review Copyright ©2024 Cindy Vallar

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