Pirates of the Caribbean: Buccaneers, Privateers & Freebooters 1493-1720 - Hardcover

Apestegui, Cruz

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0851779328 ISBN 13: 9780851779324

Publisher: Chrysalis Books, 2002

Synopsis

Pirates of the Caribbean is a study of pirates in the Americas during their heyday. Cruz Apestegui has drawn on a huge number of sources - both published and unpublished - to write the definitive narrative history of piracy in the Caribbean. The story begins with the arrival of the first Spanish settlers in the New World. They found an immense amount of wealth there, and the whole purpose of these early settlements was to extract this and send it back to Spain in great treasure galleons. When Spain found itself at war with France in the 1520s, these settlements and galleons became the target for privateers in the service of the French king. From these beginnings, the whole edifice of piracy, popularised by Hollywood films and the swashbuckling novels of Rafael Sabatini, emerged. The wealth of New Spain attracted ship owners who tried both legitimate trade and smuggling to turn a profit. European wars generated fleets of ships commanded by the same men who replaced illegal trade with outright seizure of ships and attacks on Spanish ports. Famous names such as Hawkins, Morgan, Drake, and Heyn all built their fortunes on these escapades. Piracy remained profitable until trade with Spanish colonies was opened after the end of the War of the Spanish Succession in 1713. Piracy in the Caribbean was then suppressed, and by 1720 had ceased to be anything but a marginal activity by small operators.

About this title

About the Author:

Cruz Apestegui is a practising marine archaeologist and is a course director at the Institute of Naval Engineering in Madrid.

About this edition

• Publisher: Chrysalis Books
• Publication date: 2002
• ISBN 10: 0851779328
• ISBN 13: 9780851779324
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 240