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That's 20% off your first purchase with Code short history at LiquidIV. It's January 30, 1698. A few miles off the west coast of India. Captain William Kidd stands alone on the top deck of his ship, the Adventure Galley. Its three vast sails are stretched wide across its creaking wooden masts, and rows of identical cannons protrude from its sides. Kidd is a British privateer commissioned by the king to patrol these waters and attack enemy vessels, be they French, Spanish, or Dutch. But his job isn't easy, and today Kidd senses mutiny among his 150 strong crew. They are frustrated by his failure to fulfill his promise of making them rich by plundering valuable ships. Shoulders slumped, Kidd stares out to sea, lost in thought. Just then, he notices a speck on the horizon moving closer. Raising his spyglass, he sees it is a large ship flying the navy blue and golden flag of France. He lets out a cry of excitement. This could be his shot at redemption. He yells at one of his men to go and retrieve the false French flags from their counterfeit collection, and then they speed towards the vessel. As they draw alongside it, Kidd reads the words painted on its hull. The Keidar Merchant. He puts two fingers to his lips and lets out a piercing whistle to signal the attack. Warning shots are fired from the cannons, and Kidd's men charge on board. They brandish cutlasses and pistols, sabers and swords, peppering the victim's sails with bullets as they plunder everything in sight. Kidd searches the vessel and finds the captain cowering behind a wooden desk. Pressing his blade against his throat, Kidd demands his immediate Surrender. When the captain protests, Kidd recoils in horror at the sound of his voice. They've made a terrible mistake. This captain is British, just like Kidd's own crew. These sailors were flying false French flags, perhaps to avoid French privateers. Beads of sweat trickle down Kidd's neck as he hears this ship is owned by the Mughal Emperor and was headed for India, a nation on friendly terms with Britain. This means he has committed an act of treason, a crime punishable by death. Kidd can almost feel the hangman's noose that could be waiting for him back in Britain. But he's trapped between a rock and a hard place. If he asks his crew to return the treasures they've so hungrily stolen, they'll surely kill him. With nowhere left to turn, Kidd strides onto the main deck and tells his men that the Kedar merchant now belongs to them. Its captain and crew are their prisoners. What's more, they're not heading back to Britain, but instead to the lawless Caribbean. Captain William Kidd, once a respected privateer, has turned pirate. When news reaches Britain of Captain Kidd's crime, he becomes one of the world's most wanted men. An enormous manhunt unfolds, leading to his eventual capture and execution beside the Thames in 1701. But Kidd is far from the only pirate prowling the seven seas. By the Beginning of the 18th century, the Indian and Atlantic oceans are teeming with all kinds of criminal crews, from bloodthirsty barbarians to dandy gentlemen pirates. Based primarily around the islands of the Caribbean, these outlaws will be a thorn in the side of law abiding maritime traffic and international navies. For almost half a century, This era of swashbuckling buccaneers and insatiable treasure seekers will become known as the golden age of piracy. But how much of what we think we know about pirates is real? And how much is legend? What was life really like on board a pirate ship? And how were these fearsome bandits caught and brought to justice? I'm John Hopkins from Noiser. This is a short history of the real pirates of the Caribbean. From the moment humans first use the sea to transport wealth, piracy exists. A young Julius Caesar is captured by Sicilian pirates while voyaging across the Aegean sea in around 75 BCE. Centuries later, the Middle Ages are dominated by Vikings, who ravage the coastal communities of Northern Europe while also committing brutal acts of piracy. During the 14th century, the word pirate first appears in the English language. Deriving from the Greek pearumai and Latin pirata, it roughly translates to attempt attack and assault. But it's not until centuries later that the Caribbean becomes the epicenter of piracy. Eric J. Dolin is the best selling author of the pirate book Black Blue Waters.
