Pirates: Predators of the Seas: A Guide to Real-Life Scallywags and Pillagers of the High Seas, from Blackbeard to Captain Kidd

Authors Angus Konstam and Roger Michael Kean reveal the truth behind our myths, fairy tales, and Hollywood-inspired images. The reality is, unbelievably, even more intriguing than the flashing swords, talking parrots, and mysterious eye patches portrayed in the movies. In this lavishly illustrated tour through history, you can explore the lives of real pirates, such as Blackbeard, Thomas Tew, and Captain Kidd. Find out how, even today, pirates regularly attack and plunder ships. Discover their motivations, diverse backgrounds, daily lives, and codes of conduct. Peek inside pirate ships, trace their journeys on the map, see their bloody battle, and thrill at the daring, brutal ways in which they live and die.

From prehistory to the twenty-first century, whenever trade takes to the sea, the predators are close behind. This new authoritative history details the derring-do of pirate through the ages, analyzing our fascination for the actions of men—and some women—who were, after all, vicious criminals. Packed with illustrations, this volume is the essential companion for every armchair swashbuckler.

Skyhorse Publishing, as well as our Arcade imprint, are proud to publish a broad range of books for readers interested in history--books about World War II, the Third Reich, Hitler and his henchmen, the JFK assassination, conspiracies, the American Civil War, the American Revolution, gladiators, Vikings, ancient Rome, medieval times, the old West, and much more. While not every title we publish becomes a New York Times bestseller or a national bestseller, we are committed to books on subjects that are sometimes overlooked and to authors whose work might not otherwise find a home.

Angus Konstam has made a lifelong study of maritime history and archeology, the history of early European development, and he holds degrees in history and archeology. He is a museum professional with experience in both Britain and the United States, where he was a chief curator of the Mel Fisher Maritime Museum in Key West. He is also the author of Blackbeard: America’s Most Notorious Pirate. Konstam lives in Edinburgh, Scotland.

Roger Michael Kean has been a journalist, filmmaker, and editor of historical reference books for many years, including The History of Pirates and The History of Shipwrecks. Kean is also the author of The Complete Chronicle of the Emperors of Rome and Forgotten Power: Byzantium—Bulwark of Christianity. He lives in the medieval, walled town of Ludlow in the Welsh Marches of England.

David Cordingly is an English naval historian and an authority on pirates. He is the author of Under the Black Flag, Heroines and Harlots: Women at Sea in the Great Age of Sail, The Billy Ruffian: His Majesty's Ship Bellerophon and the Downfall of Napoleon, and Spanish Gold: Captain Woodes Rogers & the Pirates of the Caribbean.

Gail Selinger has been fascinated with pirates since the age of nine. She has studied fencing and black powder weaponry, and has been a gunner on several tall ships. She has lent her expertise to many television and movie productions. As a pirate historian she writes, teaches, and lectures on the social, political, and economic ramifications of pirates throughout world history. She resides in Redlands, California.