Pirates: The Rise and Fall
The pirates ruled the world’s waters for centuries. They were, perhaps, the most successful criminals ever in history.
Pirates were free spirits who obeyed no law but their own, and roamed the world seeking the riches and fame. They have been around ever since the galleons were rumored to hold hundreds of pounds of gold; the pirates flocked towards the Caribbean and demolished European trading. Ever since the first attacks, the Europeans were at war with the pirates. They made their mark in history. Their rise to power was a turbulent one, and their fall from glory was violent. They still terrorize the seas today, but not on the scale that they used to. Their rise and fall has become legendary. (Platt 4)
Pirates are usually stereotyped as sailors with peg legs, eye patches, hook hands, parrots, bad teeth, treasure, and black flags with skulls and crossbones. The only difference is that they did not bury treasure or have all of those qualities at once. The word pirate is derived from the Latin word pirata, which means stupid drunk person. The pirates did drink a lot. Whether it was rum, whiskey, or just plain beer, pirates were always drinking. Most, if not all, pirates used cutlasses, swords that are only sharpened on one side and is curved. The hilt of a cutlass is made so it curves around ones hand so that he does not cut his hand on the blade. The earliest pirates lived in 13th century BCE. They were known as the sea people and they attacked the Aegean. (Wilczyński)
As long as there have been ships, there have been pirates. However, in the eyes of the general population, the pirates of the Caribbean were perhaps one of the more likable pirates among all others. Pirates were people who made a living by raiding, pillaging, and burning other ships for profit. They used brutality, torture, and terror to get what they wanted. There were pirates such as William Teach, Henry Morgan, Rock Braziliano, and even men like John Paul Jones. Despite the romantic tales of pirates that are still circulated through the market today, it is undeniable that almost all pirates were scumbags. No one liked pirates back in the day and the same goes for the present. (Kallen 12-23)
The pirates of the sea have been around since 1300 BCE and have been raiding ever since. Pirates now are small gangs that have boats and weapons. All the money that has ever been stolen by pirates was spent on either alcohol or weapons and ammo. This treasure burying idea came about in stories and fables. There were many types of pirates and none of them practiced this. (Wilczyński)
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