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Pirates: A General History of the Robberies and Murders of the Most Notorious Pirates
A facsimile edition of a classic source for the history of piracy, as used by Robert Louis Stevenson in the writing of Treasure Island. Captain Charles Johnson's General History of Pirates was one of the best-selling books of 1724, when it was first published. It provides a sweeping account of what has come to be called the Golden Age of Piracy. It went through four editions in two years, and without doubt owed a substantial part of its success to a dramatic writing style that vividly captures the realities of pirates' savage existence. The book contains documentary evidence of events during the lives of its subjects. In the 270 years since its original publication, Johnson's work has come to be regarded as the classic study of one of the most popular subjects in maritime history.
370 pages, Paperback
First published January 26, 1999
877 people are currently reading
5653 people want to read
About the author
Charles Johnson
85 books11 followersCaptain Charles Johnson, the author of the 1724 book A General History of the Robberies and Murders of the most notorious Pyrates, has not been identified.
It has often been assumed that the name Captain Charles Johnson was a pseudonym, but nothing definitive has been determined about who he may have been. For a period of nearly fifty years, the prevailing theory was that the author's true identity was Daniel Defoe, author of Robinson Crusoe. But that theory has been challenged and invalidated based on a lack of supporting evidence. Nonetheless, his book, which is in the public domain, has been published in a large number of editions by various publishers and in translations around the world, often employing the name Daniel Defoe on the cover.
It has often been assumed that the name Captain Charles Johnson was a pseudonym, but nothing definitive has been determined about who he may have been. For a period of nearly fifty years, the prevailing theory was that the author's true identity was Daniel Defoe, author of Robinson Crusoe. But that theory has been challenged and invalidated based on a lack of supporting evidence. Nonetheless, his book, which is in the public domain, has been published in a large number of editions by various publishers and in translations around the world, often employing the name Daniel Defoe on the cover.
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October 23, 2022The pages stated on her is 600+ pages but the ebook I'm reading is over 1000+ pages. Don't know why but don't feel like the content is good enough to keep struggling along so I'll dnf it.
January 5, 2015
A book written by a sea captain about pirates and other sea captains during the time when pirates reigned. This book is essential for anyone who has more than a passing interest in the history of pirates. Johnson by no means appraises the deeds of these outlaws. As a sea captain himself, he is entirely against them and seems to be astounded by the public's interest of these outlaws. Due to the success of his book in 1724, he found himself writing more stories about pirates than he had previously expected he would.
As an outcome of the time period the book was written in, the writing can be dry and the details extraneous. Johnson will write excessively of the minute details of what a sloop was carrying, when the aspect the reader wants to know about is the people it carried and how they lived. He also finds every opportunity he can to insert God and biblical verses to explain how doomed the pirates are due to their actions. Obviously, now we would find this to be outlandish in a historical documentation.
If you are to read any of this book, I would suggest the chapters on Anne Bonnie and Mary Reed. Johnson appears to forget his dry listing of details when it comes to these two characters and starts telling the story of their lives based on historical documentation and word of mouth. It is obvious that something intrigued him about the ferocity of these two women, which in return makes their stories the most fun to read out of the bunch.
Bare with the dry narration, and you will be rewarded with some rich, exciting pirate tales.
As an outcome of the time period the book was written in, the writing can be dry and the details extraneous. Johnson will write excessively of the minute details of what a sloop was carrying, when the aspect the reader wants to know about is the people it carried and how they lived. He also finds every opportunity he can to insert God and biblical verses to explain how doomed the pirates are due to their actions. Obviously, now we would find this to be outlandish in a historical documentation.
If you are to read any of this book, I would suggest the chapters on Anne Bonnie and Mary Reed. Johnson appears to forget his dry listing of details when it comes to these two characters and starts telling the story of their lives based on historical documentation and word of mouth. It is obvious that something intrigued him about the ferocity of these two women, which in return makes their stories the most fun to read out of the bunch.
Bare with the dry narration, and you will be rewarded with some rich, exciting pirate tales.
September 26, 2025
An absolute cornerstone of pirate lore and maritime history. First published in the early 18th century, this book remains the definitive source for anyone fascinated by the golden age of piracy. One of the enduring legends surrounding it is the identity of its author. Long attributed to Daniel Defoe, that theory has since been debunked, leaving “Captain Charles Johnson” as one of history’s most intriguing literary mysteries.
The book vividly chronicles the lives and exploits of infamous pirates such as Blackbeard, Calico Jack Rackham, Anne Bonny, and Bartholomew Roberts. Each account bursts with drama, daring, and violence, offering an unflinching look into the brutal yet romanticized world of sea rovers. These stories are not just entertaining; they shaped much of what we know—and imagine—about pirates today.
More than a historical text, it’s a cultural milestone, influencing literature, film, and the very archetype of the pirate. While some details are undoubtedly embellished, the blend of fact and legend gives the work its unique allure. For enthusiasts of maritime history or lovers of high-seas adventure, this is a must-read classic that continues to inspire and captivate.
The book vividly chronicles the lives and exploits of infamous pirates such as Blackbeard, Calico Jack Rackham, Anne Bonny, and Bartholomew Roberts. Each account bursts with drama, daring, and violence, offering an unflinching look into the brutal yet romanticized world of sea rovers. These stories are not just entertaining; they shaped much of what we know—and imagine—about pirates today.
More than a historical text, it’s a cultural milestone, influencing literature, film, and the very archetype of the pirate. While some details are undoubtedly embellished, the blend of fact and legend gives the work its unique allure. For enthusiasts of maritime history or lovers of high-seas adventure, this is a must-read classic that continues to inspire and captivate.
November 7, 2021
È divertente come questo libro sia uscito nel 1724 sotto uno pseudonimo e solo nel 1932 se ne è accertata la paternità reale attribuendola allo stranoto Daniel Defoe.
Non ci sono avventure di corsari alla Salgari o alla Stevenson, quanto piuttosto documenti e osservazioni sui dominatori dei mari che hanno fatto la storia della pirateria, un excursus nato per illustrare agli inglesi quale pericolo derivasse dalla crescente potenza mercantile del paese, con conseguente sviluppo massivo delle attività di pirateria tra il 1717 e il 1724.
Non ci sono avventure di corsari alla Salgari o alla Stevenson, quanto piuttosto documenti e osservazioni sui dominatori dei mari che hanno fatto la storia della pirateria, un excursus nato per illustrare agli inglesi quale pericolo derivasse dalla crescente potenza mercantile del paese, con conseguente sviluppo massivo delle attività di pirateria tra il 1717 e il 1724.
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December 14, 2023The nearby, to me, port city of Bristol has a strong association with 17th and 18th century maritime history including trading, buccaneering/privateering, piracy and the shameful Atlantic slave trade (which enriched the city of that era). I’ve previously bumped into some of the naval tales via a historian friend, not least that Treasure Island is possibly based upon the piracy originating from Bristol sailors so I was hoping this book could expand on that.
It was published in 1724 so it’s one of the major sources for all the later tales involving pirates of that period. Robert Louis Stevenson and JM Barrie credit it as a source. The Jolly Roger flag, buried treasure and the missing limbs/wooden legs of still active pirates originate here.
The author is a mystery though another book was published later about Highwaymen and street robbers under the same name. The book has also been published with Daniel Defoe credited as the author though there seems no evidence other than he was in Bristol around that time and did know about the maritime adventures of the period (he probably based Robinson Crusoe on a rescued sailor, Alexander Selkirk, who was dropped off in Bristol by one of the characters featuring in this book - the privateer Woods Rogers).
Phew - a long intro to the book I’m reviewing but the background is probably as interesting as the content. There’s an introduction by the author about why piracy took off in the early 1700’s (partly due to privateers (mercenaries) having nothing to do once the wars they’d helped with had finished), especially in the Caribbean and off the Carolina’s coast. The introduction meanders as much as my review - the author making a prolonged analogy with Ancient Rome letting piracy take off in the Mediterranean while they were distracted by land campaigns and then later having to clamp down on it hard. Comparisons with Ancient Rome crop up in a couple of other later passages too!
The core of the book consists of 16 chapters each detailing (and I mean detailing!) the exploits of a pirate captain with sub sections on crew members who became notorious in their own rights. It also sometimes drifts away into descriptions of geography and culture, such as details of Portuguese African colonies in a rare break from the West Indies. It doesn’t sugar coat the exploits of the pirates, shown to be violent robbers who happened to be on sea going vessels. Sometimes they just offloaded provisions from ships they stopped and then let them continue; sometimes they burnt the apprehended ships and treated the crew from them brutally or sadistically. The slave trade is mentioned in passing as slaves aboard the merchant ships could be taken, like any other commodity, to be sold on by the pirates. Though some in the pirate crews are mentioned as being black, presumably free. They had plenty of small Caribbean islands on which to hide, usually got very drunk, and played cat and mouse with the Royal Navy sometimes sent to stop their activities.
The cover page makes a point of mentioning two female pirates, Anne Bonny and Mary Read, (both crew members of a Captain Rackham). Of course, it’s one of the more interesting sections given the era. The author seems to have a remarkable amount of background on them, before they became pirates, which makes you wonder how it was researched. One was brought up as a boy because of a deception by her mother to obtain money from relatives (who believed her/him to be her first born son, who had actually died unknown to them). She then joined the army as a male soldier and fought, before eventually becoming involved in piracy, also initially as a man - until discovered by the other woman on Rackham’s ship, a fiery pirate who seemed to fancy him/her and hadn’t disguised her sex. She also had a well documented background - the illegitimate daughter of an Irish attorney, who had quite a love tangle affecting his family.
Upon the capture of Rackham’s crew one female pirate died in prison but the other disappeared from history, apparently avoiding execution due to being pregnant.
I could go on. Blackbeard/Edward Teach (from Bristol) is shown to be exceptionally ruthless and fearless, hence his legendary reputation. His career was helped by the corruption of officialdom in the Carolina’s, well known to the author, where he operated until a bravely led naval expedition killed him in quite a battle. Israel Hands, a senior associate of Blackbeard’s, features in Treasure Island.
So I’ve learnt a bit about piracy from the source material. No ‘Pirates of the Caribbean’ romanticism. I’m not rating the book though. It doesn’t need my star rating. It’s of its time, the somewhat archaic English of the original text, its meanderings and heavy detail of ships and voyage details made it hard to read without frequent stops. I dipped in and out, skipped a few of the technical (boring) passages. More for the naval historian I suppose, but nonetheless fascinating in its own way if you want to see where 18th century pirate tales originated from.
It was published in 1724 so it’s one of the major sources for all the later tales involving pirates of that period. Robert Louis Stevenson and JM Barrie credit it as a source. The Jolly Roger flag, buried treasure and the missing limbs/wooden legs of still active pirates originate here.
The author is a mystery though another book was published later about Highwaymen and street robbers under the same name. The book has also been published with Daniel Defoe credited as the author though there seems no evidence other than he was in Bristol around that time and did know about the maritime adventures of the period (he probably based Robinson Crusoe on a rescued sailor, Alexander Selkirk, who was dropped off in Bristol by one of the characters featuring in this book - the privateer Woods Rogers).
Phew - a long intro to the book I’m reviewing but the background is probably as interesting as the content. There’s an introduction by the author about why piracy took off in the early 1700’s (partly due to privateers (mercenaries) having nothing to do once the wars they’d helped with had finished), especially in the Caribbean and off the Carolina’s coast. The introduction meanders as much as my review - the author making a prolonged analogy with Ancient Rome letting piracy take off in the Mediterranean while they were distracted by land campaigns and then later having to clamp down on it hard. Comparisons with Ancient Rome crop up in a couple of other later passages too!
The core of the book consists of 16 chapters each detailing (and I mean detailing!) the exploits of a pirate captain with sub sections on crew members who became notorious in their own rights. It also sometimes drifts away into descriptions of geography and culture, such as details of Portuguese African colonies in a rare break from the West Indies. It doesn’t sugar coat the exploits of the pirates, shown to be violent robbers who happened to be on sea going vessels. Sometimes they just offloaded provisions from ships they stopped and then let them continue; sometimes they burnt the apprehended ships and treated the crew from them brutally or sadistically. The slave trade is mentioned in passing as slaves aboard the merchant ships could be taken, like any other commodity, to be sold on by the pirates. Though some in the pirate crews are mentioned as being black, presumably free. They had plenty of small Caribbean islands on which to hide, usually got very drunk, and played cat and mouse with the Royal Navy sometimes sent to stop their activities.
The cover page makes a point of mentioning two female pirates, Anne Bonny and Mary Read, (both crew members of a Captain Rackham). Of course, it’s one of the more interesting sections given the era. The author seems to have a remarkable amount of background on them, before they became pirates, which makes you wonder how it was researched. One was brought up as a boy because of a deception by her mother to obtain money from relatives (who believed her/him to be her first born son, who had actually died unknown to them). She then joined the army as a male soldier and fought, before eventually becoming involved in piracy, also initially as a man - until discovered by the other woman on Rackham’s ship, a fiery pirate who seemed to fancy him/her and hadn’t disguised her sex. She also had a well documented background - the illegitimate daughter of an Irish attorney, who had quite a love tangle affecting his family.
Upon the capture of Rackham’s crew one female pirate died in prison but the other disappeared from history, apparently avoiding execution due to being pregnant.
I could go on. Blackbeard/Edward Teach (from Bristol) is shown to be exceptionally ruthless and fearless, hence his legendary reputation. His career was helped by the corruption of officialdom in the Carolina’s, well known to the author, where he operated until a bravely led naval expedition killed him in quite a battle. Israel Hands, a senior associate of Blackbeard’s, features in Treasure Island.
So I’ve learnt a bit about piracy from the source material. No ‘Pirates of the Caribbean’ romanticism. I’m not rating the book though. It doesn’t need my star rating. It’s of its time, the somewhat archaic English of the original text, its meanderings and heavy detail of ships and voyage details made it hard to read without frequent stops. I dipped in and out, skipped a few of the technical (boring) passages. More for the naval historian I suppose, but nonetheless fascinating in its own way if you want to see where 18th century pirate tales originated from.
August 19, 2018
Muito têm -se fantasiado sobre a vida dos piratas. E todo isso deve-se a indústria cinematográfica.
Este livro mostra quem foram os verdadeiros piratas das Craíbas. Não foram criaturas com poderes fora do comum. Nem eram nenhuns cavalheiros. Alguns nem tem vidas tão extraordinárias.
Os que mais se destacam são o Barba Negra pelos seus actos violentos e as sedutoras piratas ( Anne e Bonny) que se destacam pelo atrevimento assim como as diversas traições. É interessante notar que Mary declara ter sido obrigada a entrar no mundo da pirataria. A sua família criou-a como um rapaz, na ausência dos seus protectores utilizou-se das armas que possuia.
Outros episódios interessantes são os ataques as embarcações portuguesas e espanholas. Tenho de destacar a narração detalhada ao Brasil e os seus escravos. A obra possui ainda as correspondências e os processos de tribunal.
Um livro obrigatório para quem pretende aprofundar os seus conhecimentos sobre pirataria e para desmitificar o fascínio exagerado sobre a vida desses criminosos
Este livro mostra quem foram os verdadeiros piratas das Craíbas. Não foram criaturas com poderes fora do comum. Nem eram nenhuns cavalheiros. Alguns nem tem vidas tão extraordinárias.
Os que mais se destacam são o Barba Negra pelos seus actos violentos e as sedutoras piratas ( Anne e Bonny) que se destacam pelo atrevimento assim como as diversas traições. É interessante notar que Mary declara ter sido obrigada a entrar no mundo da pirataria. A sua família criou-a como um rapaz, na ausência dos seus protectores utilizou-se das armas que possuia.
Outros episódios interessantes são os ataques as embarcações portuguesas e espanholas. Tenho de destacar a narração detalhada ao Brasil e os seus escravos. A obra possui ainda as correspondências e os processos de tribunal.
Um livro obrigatório para quem pretende aprofundar os seus conhecimentos sobre pirataria e para desmitificar o fascínio exagerado sobre a vida desses criminosos
May 18, 2018
Excellent journalism. Please be advised this is original source material, written in 1724. Apparently they only used periods at the end of paragraphs then, the longest run-on sentences you have ever seen. Ascribed to Captain Charles Johnson but some old scholarship has decided it was really Daniel Defoe. Thats interesting but clearly whomever was the author, they were present at their trials and executions in England. Well researched, the author attempts to catalogue all the know pirates of Africa, Eastcoast of US, and Caribbean. Do not buy this if you want to read a novel or good yarn. But some of the graphic details of pirate activities will shock you. Includes a couple female pirates who had to pass as males.
April 19, 2022
Largely a dry read, written as it was as nonfiction with 1720s-era pacing. Interesting little bits about Blackbeard and Stede Bonnet tho!
August 19, 2016
almeno 4 stelle andrebbero a Defoe, qui non tanto romanziere ma comunque ottimo narratore capace di trasformare resoconti di processi e racconti di testimoni oculari rielaborandole in maniera assolutamente interessante, ma il voto ridotto si deve al fatto che nell'edizione italiana - che a quel che so (e qui bramerei di essere corretta) - curata da Mario Carpitella e pubblicata nel 1974 che, sebbene abbia quella che a me pare una buona traduzione, è mancante (per scelta dei curatori) di diverse vite di pirati e di alcune descrizioni in quanto secondo i curatori si sarebbe trattato di cose che non avrebbero interessato il lettore italiano (le descrizioni naturalistiche perché poco pertinenti la pirateria e alcune biografie in quanto simili a quelle di altri pirati).
Ora tra le biografie assenti figura anche quella di 'Calico' Jack Rackham (che viene nominato solamente per il suo legame con Anne Bonny e Mary Read) e - tra tutte le biografie espunte - quest'assenza è quella che mi ha disturbato di più in quanto fan della serie tv Black Sails (dove Jack è uno dei personaggi principali) e perché a questa figura si deve uno dei personaggi che hanno riportato in auge la figura del pirata negli anni 2000: Jack Sparrow. (niente io continuo a preferire il lasciare libera scelta al lettore di saltare le parti non di suo interesse al 'decidiamo noi cosa vi può interessare').
Ma torniamo al Defoe narratore, che tra le molteplici biografie 'reali' inserisce una biografia 'verosimile', lo stile è godibilissimo e non nasconde i giudizi estremamente severi che Defoe ha verso i pirati e le loro imprese, ma questi giudizi spesso sono posti con una ironia così fine che ci si ritrova a sorridere.
Inoltre è palese, leggendo quest'opera, quanto anche Larsson si sia ispirato alle vicende di questi pirati nel far raccontare al suo Long John Silver le sue avventure al Defoe personaggio.
Ora tra le biografie assenti figura anche quella di 'Calico' Jack Rackham (che viene nominato solamente per il suo legame con Anne Bonny e Mary Read) e - tra tutte le biografie espunte - quest'assenza è quella che mi ha disturbato di più in quanto fan della serie tv Black Sails (dove Jack è uno dei personaggi principali) e perché a questa figura si deve uno dei personaggi che hanno riportato in auge la figura del pirata negli anni 2000: Jack Sparrow. (niente io continuo a preferire il lasciare libera scelta al lettore di saltare le parti non di suo interesse al 'decidiamo noi cosa vi può interessare').
Ma torniamo al Defoe narratore, che tra le molteplici biografie 'reali' inserisce una biografia 'verosimile', lo stile è godibilissimo e non nasconde i giudizi estremamente severi che Defoe ha verso i pirati e le loro imprese, ma questi giudizi spesso sono posti con una ironia così fine che ci si ritrova a sorridere.
Inoltre è palese, leggendo quest'opera, quanto anche Larsson si sia ispirato alle vicende di questi pirati nel far raccontare al suo Long John Silver le sue avventure al Defoe personaggio.
November 5, 2025
fascinating and necessary read for anyone interested in pirates but most importantly if I was a pirate I would simply not go to a place called execution dock
May 8, 2022
Although dated, this was an interesting account of some very notorious pirates. Of course it focuses on the golden age of piracy and the scalawags it produced. Replete with battle scenes, a glimpse into the lives of the offenders along with fascinating facts concerning the origin of the phenomena in the Caribbean. Of particular interest are the accounts of captaIn Jack Rackham (Calico Jack) and his two female cohorts Anne Bonny and Mary Read.
March 19, 2025
I enjoyed it. It was cool learning about swashbuckling rogues and their crews. I think my favorite part was when Blackbeard refused to die. The book claims he was shot five times and took twenty sword wounds. It was cool because I recognized names and places from Assassin’s Creed. I’d be like, “I don’t like you” because he betrayed my pirate alliance.
November 27, 2025
Audiolibro che mi sono un po' troppo portata dietro con tempistiche lente che non meritava.
Ottimo comunque per porre le proprie basi di conoscenze piratesche. Il bello è che mischia fatti realmente accaduti alla finzione ormai diventata folkloristica. Quale sia cosa, eh, qui sta il fascino, tanto i pirati erano pazzi, quindi ..(ho trovato la mia gente!!).
Anne Bonny e Mary Read PER SEMPRE FAMOSEEE
Ottimo comunque per porre le proprie basi di conoscenze piratesche. Il bello è che mischia fatti realmente accaduti alla finzione ormai diventata folkloristica. Quale sia cosa, eh, qui sta il fascino, tanto i pirati erano pazzi, quindi ..(ho trovato la mia gente!!).
Anne Bonny e Mary Read PER SEMPRE FAMOSEEE
September 8, 2025
During the Golden Age of Piracy, a writer calling himself “Captain” Charles Johnson introduced London readers to the denizens of a savage world just beyond their shores. These pirates took up residence in readers’ imaginations, where they’ve been a mainstay of popular culture ever since.
Pirate history especially resonates for American readers, as what would become the wild frontier of the American west began in the piratical eastern seaboard of Colonial times. When revolutionaries gathered in Philadelphia to found a continental republic, it was with a memory of the Pirate Republic founded eighty years earlier in Nassau and its attempt at self-government, ship-board democracy, and defiance of empire. When Grant arrived in Virginia to restore thirteen breakaway states to that republic, he came with a memory of Woodes Rogers’ arrival in the Bahamas to reclaim those islands for the Empire. The legacy of triangular trade, on which these pirates preyed and depended, has continued to play out across the nation’s history.
For its contemporary readers piracy was serious business, and this book describes their exploits with a journalistic spirit. Johnson writes history, but history in the present tense. He editorializes, shares his personal knowledge of seamanship, and offers practical advice both to maritime merchants and to powerful policymakers. He draws stories from interviews with living pirates, draws from public and legal records, and develops historical context, bringing his own social analysis to bear. In some parts, he presents human interest stories as tabloid journalism with “a little the air of a novel,” recounted mostly because they’re interesting.
And they are interesting: the bored gentleman and inept pirate Stede Bonnet as he arrives unarmed to a battle of wits with the experienced, savage, and polygamous Edward Teach; Teach, who said of this crew that “if he did not now and then kill one of them, they would forget who he was”; the scandalous pirate-thruple of Mary Read, Anne Bonny, and “Calico” Jack Rackham. To the present day, in countless works, across media, Johnson’s pirates and the world they inhabit live on.
----
Read for production of e-book, available at
https://standardebooks.org/ebooks/cap...
Pirate history especially resonates for American readers, as what would become the wild frontier of the American west began in the piratical eastern seaboard of Colonial times. When revolutionaries gathered in Philadelphia to found a continental republic, it was with a memory of the Pirate Republic founded eighty years earlier in Nassau and its attempt at self-government, ship-board democracy, and defiance of empire. When Grant arrived in Virginia to restore thirteen breakaway states to that republic, he came with a memory of Woodes Rogers’ arrival in the Bahamas to reclaim those islands for the Empire. The legacy of triangular trade, on which these pirates preyed and depended, has continued to play out across the nation’s history.
For its contemporary readers piracy was serious business, and this book describes their exploits with a journalistic spirit. Johnson writes history, but history in the present tense. He editorializes, shares his personal knowledge of seamanship, and offers practical advice both to maritime merchants and to powerful policymakers. He draws stories from interviews with living pirates, draws from public and legal records, and develops historical context, bringing his own social analysis to bear. In some parts, he presents human interest stories as tabloid journalism with “a little the air of a novel,” recounted mostly because they’re interesting.
And they are interesting: the bored gentleman and inept pirate Stede Bonnet as he arrives unarmed to a battle of wits with the experienced, savage, and polygamous Edward Teach; Teach, who said of this crew that “if he did not now and then kill one of them, they would forget who he was”; the scandalous pirate-thruple of Mary Read, Anne Bonny, and “Calico” Jack Rackham. To the present day, in countless works, across media, Johnson’s pirates and the world they inhabit live on.
----
Read for production of e-book, available at
https://standardebooks.org/ebooks/cap...
February 23, 2016
This book, originally published in 1724, recounts the misadventures of several famous pirates including Blackbeard, Ann Bonnet, and Black Bart. Actually, Blackbeard, despite his fearsome reputation, came across as less bloodthirsty than for example Captain Spriggs or Captain Roche.
There is some debate as to who wrote the book. Some cite Daniel Defoe as the possible author. I'll stick the guy named on the title page. :)
Many of the stories are fascinating. The book contains incredible detail, including lists of ships and their captains, and transcripts of trial testimony and judgments. At times the book became so dense with detail, I struggled to follow it in places and had to resort to Wikipedia to fill in the gaps in my understanding. Also, the narrative on occasion pauses to give a local geography lesson for a couple of pages. However, overall, it is well worth the effort to read it and is a must for anyone with even a passing interest in pirate lore.
There is some debate as to who wrote the book. Some cite Daniel Defoe as the possible author. I'll stick the guy named on the title page. :)
Many of the stories are fascinating. The book contains incredible detail, including lists of ships and their captains, and transcripts of trial testimony and judgments. At times the book became so dense with detail, I struggled to follow it in places and had to resort to Wikipedia to fill in the gaps in my understanding. Also, the narrative on occasion pauses to give a local geography lesson for a couple of pages. However, overall, it is well worth the effort to read it and is a must for anyone with even a passing interest in pirate lore.
Read
November 21, 2021A must read for all pirate lovers.
December 16, 2024
It’s not a bad book but it’s incredibly dry. Additionally there was no information here that I didn’t always hear on The Pirate History Podcast. I’ll go 3.3 stars
August 1, 2013
"Noi spogliamo i ricchi con la sola protezione del nostro coraggio." E di coraggio ne hanno parecchio questi pirati. Non temono nulla. Navigano mari in tempesta, mari infiniti, e non risparmiano nessuno. Chiunque abbia la sfortuna di imbattersi in questi diavoli è spacciato. E tra le gesta del potente Barbanera, gli ideali di libertà del capitano Misson, le vite e gli animi turbolenti delle donne corsaro e le atrocità del capitano Low, veniamo trasportati in un'epoca e in un mondo che, purtroppo, non ci appartiene più. Sì, dico purtroppo perché io personalmente lo trovo affascinante.
Come ci viene detto nell'introduzione, questo non è un romanzo d'avventure alla Salgari, ma è una vera e propria documentazione su alcuni dei pirati più pericolosi e famosi di quegli anni. Sono uomini e donne realmente esistiti e questo lo rende ancora più affascinante, se non addirittura sconvolgente. Perché non si può negare che certe loro azioni siano crudeli e indecenti. Ma i pirati non sono solo questo. Non sono solo esseri spregevoli. Sono anche uomini fedeli ai loro capitani, intrepidi e astuti. Queste pagine ci fanno capire quanto fosse dura e difficoltosa la vita in mare. La manutenzione delle navi, il procurarsi i viveri, le battaglie, le tempeste, i tradimenti, le malattie, la legge che li perseguita. Hanno una vita intensa e incredibile. E il grande Defoe riesce, con grande abilità, a descriverci la vita dei predoni inglesi che per anni hanno infestato mari e oceani.
Come ci viene detto nell'introduzione, questo non è un romanzo d'avventure alla Salgari, ma è una vera e propria documentazione su alcuni dei pirati più pericolosi e famosi di quegli anni. Sono uomini e donne realmente esistiti e questo lo rende ancora più affascinante, se non addirittura sconvolgente. Perché non si può negare che certe loro azioni siano crudeli e indecenti. Ma i pirati non sono solo questo. Non sono solo esseri spregevoli. Sono anche uomini fedeli ai loro capitani, intrepidi e astuti. Queste pagine ci fanno capire quanto fosse dura e difficoltosa la vita in mare. La manutenzione delle navi, il procurarsi i viveri, le battaglie, le tempeste, i tradimenti, le malattie, la legge che li perseguita. Hanno una vita intensa e incredibile. E il grande Defoe riesce, con grande abilità, a descriverci la vita dei predoni inglesi che per anni hanno infestato mari e oceani.
June 1, 2021
I can't quite pinpoint what I find so fascinating about the history of piracy, but listening to the audiobook of A General History of the Pyrates by Daniel Defoe was certainly easier than slogging through the actual reading – so kudos to the narrator, John Lee, for the overall slick execution of the production. That being said, this book is very much a product of its time, and reflects the casual racism and cultural jingoism so inherent to the era and in the author's general outlook. But if you're prepared to look past this, there's a treasure trove of details about the history of piracy during the late 1700s, much of it allegedly drawn from interviews with primary sources.
If you're an author, like me, on the hunt for story seeds, there are certainly plenty to be found among the tales of awful people doing awful things. Which in my mind is pretty much a summary of what this book is about. Forget the golden glow of historical romances – the lives of pirates and indeed any sailors press-ganged into service during the 18th century – were often brutal, bloody, and short. If disease didn't carry you away, a storm might. Or a violent encounter with pirates or an enemy fleet. You'll meet cunning men and women among these pages, as well as wicked, greedy, and violent ones. The fact that the penalty for piracy was death did not deter those who sought opportunity on the high seas – no matter the cost of this dearly bought freedom.
I really don't have much more to say other than the fact that my continued research has offered me a clearer idea of the cultural mores of the era, the challenges faced in sea travel, and how far we've come as a global community compared to what things were like during the 1700s. While much of this book can be quite dry, a patient reader can glean fascinating insights about a time so vastly different from our own.
If you're an author, like me, on the hunt for story seeds, there are certainly plenty to be found among the tales of awful people doing awful things. Which in my mind is pretty much a summary of what this book is about. Forget the golden glow of historical romances – the lives of pirates and indeed any sailors press-ganged into service during the 18th century – were often brutal, bloody, and short. If disease didn't carry you away, a storm might. Or a violent encounter with pirates or an enemy fleet. You'll meet cunning men and women among these pages, as well as wicked, greedy, and violent ones. The fact that the penalty for piracy was death did not deter those who sought opportunity on the high seas – no matter the cost of this dearly bought freedom.
I really don't have much more to say other than the fact that my continued research has offered me a clearer idea of the cultural mores of the era, the challenges faced in sea travel, and how far we've come as a global community compared to what things were like during the 1700s. While much of this book can be quite dry, a patient reader can glean fascinating insights about a time so vastly different from our own.
March 21, 2023
This book is an early example of tabloid journalism combining lurid details with moralizing on the evil of their subjects. Many of the crimes the pirates are accused of seem to be sensationalized to sell books because Blackbeard never killed anyone and Captain Kidd was the fall guy for corrupt politicians. I picked this book up because it was a source of information for many of the pirate books I read as a kid. Calling pirates villains seems to be too harsh if you understand how their so called victims engaged in the triangular trade of slaves, sugar, and rum and the Spanish brutally plundered their colonized peoples. Many of the pirates were criminal sea predators but they did not use so called lawful methods to rob people like merchants and kings.
April 13, 2025
This book is an indispensable contemporary source for those interested in early 18th century piracy, but it is insanely dense and not conducive to reading straight through. It would be an excellent reference book to have on your shelf if you are researching for a project, but if you want to read a book that sums up the information in this book in a more readable format I recommend David Cordingly and Colin Woodward's books that all draw from this one but present the information in a more accessible format.
December 15, 2025
Divertente, con una narrazione a tratti didascalia, quasi storiografica ma al contempo un insieme di singoli racconti. storie di uomini e di donne che, qualche volta, si incrociano tra un capitolo e l'altro mentre scrivono un'avventurosa pagina della storia. Non lo considererei una fonte, ma l'intrattenimento è assicurato!
October 16, 2025
This is the original source material for so much of pirate history you read that if you have read a few books on the subject it feels like you are rereading this book
Still a fun bathroom book with short chapters on each pirate and their lives. Highly entertaining.
Still a fun bathroom book with short chapters on each pirate and their lives. Highly entertaining.
May 14, 2023
This "book" will be the death of me I swear to god
April 3, 2021
Was very interesting to read a book about pirates written at a time when pirates were still around. However due to it being written in the 1700's, the style of writing is quite dry and hard to follow. Still interesting to get a bit of background on actual pirates and what their lives were really like.
April 11, 2020
Truly fascinating but bloody hell its hard work - not surprising when you consider when it was written.
March 22, 2025
Really long, really informative.
December 3, 2014
"Captain Charles Johnson"
Such a day, rum all out - our company somewhat sober, a damnedd confusion amongst us! Rogues a plotting - great talk of separation. So I looked sharp for a prize - such a day took one, with a great deal of liquor on board; so kept the company hot, damnedd hot, then all things went well again.
- Edward "Blackbeard" Teach
First published in 1724, this book was an instant smash hit. Numerous editions followed, jam packed with lurid tales of murder, robbery, riches beyond measure and barbarism. Virtually any pirate story you have read or seen has details gleaned from this book. The dead man's chest, pirate brotherhood and code of conduct, Blackbeard, Mistress Anne Bonney, pirates and captains being buried at sea in their fine red overcoats and diamond jewelry are all here. The really amazing bit, though, is that these stories appear to be true.
At its publication, and for centuries after, readers assumed they were the works of overheated imagination. However, through careful searches of records, historians have found the credible evidence in newspaper, letters and court documents to verify most of the stories in this book.
The only real mystery left, is who "Captain Charles Johnson" was. No records of the time indicate a captain of the name. Various theories pin the writing on authors and playwrights of the time - including Daniel Defoe - though this theory has been disproven.
The writing style itself is oddly uneven. The bulk of the text is a unemotional account of the deeds of the pirates, recounted in a legalistic manner - backed by numerous quotes from court records and newspaper accounts of the trials. However, it is clear that the author is no stranger to the sea. Occasional comments like pirates who had been pardoned by the king soon returning to their old ways like "dogs returning to vomit" add a certain colorfulness to the narratives.
Occasionally, the author will break of mid-description to give a short history of an Island or coast that the pirates inhabited. These 2-3 page commentaries give a description of the vegetation, peoples, animals and weather equal to any 8th grade geography report. The language is a bit rough going in places, but read an account or two of your favorite villains just for fun.
Such a day, rum all out - our company somewhat sober, a damnedd confusion amongst us! Rogues a plotting - great talk of separation. So I looked sharp for a prize - such a day took one, with a great deal of liquor on board; so kept the company hot, damnedd hot, then all things went well again.
- Edward "Blackbeard" Teach
First published in 1724, this book was an instant smash hit. Numerous editions followed, jam packed with lurid tales of murder, robbery, riches beyond measure and barbarism. Virtually any pirate story you have read or seen has details gleaned from this book. The dead man's chest, pirate brotherhood and code of conduct, Blackbeard, Mistress Anne Bonney, pirates and captains being buried at sea in their fine red overcoats and diamond jewelry are all here. The really amazing bit, though, is that these stories appear to be true.
At its publication, and for centuries after, readers assumed they were the works of overheated imagination. However, through careful searches of records, historians have found the credible evidence in newspaper, letters and court documents to verify most of the stories in this book.
The only real mystery left, is who "Captain Charles Johnson" was. No records of the time indicate a captain of the name. Various theories pin the writing on authors and playwrights of the time - including Daniel Defoe - though this theory has been disproven.
The writing style itself is oddly uneven. The bulk of the text is a unemotional account of the deeds of the pirates, recounted in a legalistic manner - backed by numerous quotes from court records and newspaper accounts of the trials. However, it is clear that the author is no stranger to the sea. Occasional comments like pirates who had been pardoned by the king soon returning to their old ways like "dogs returning to vomit" add a certain colorfulness to the narratives.
Occasionally, the author will break of mid-description to give a short history of an Island or coast that the pirates inhabited. These 2-3 page commentaries give a description of the vegetation, peoples, animals and weather equal to any 8th grade geography report. The language is a bit rough going in places, but read an account or two of your favorite villains just for fun.
July 13, 2023
I may be biased, because I've always loved pirates and likely always will...
But I enjoyed this book immensely.
I have dabbled in pirate books since this one and they all seem to pale. No one gets anything as clearly, as precisely, and as truly, as Charles Johnson.
It seems every other history is just a retelling of his stories in new words, that all are cheep imitations.
Even Howard Pyle (who wrote King Arthur), attempted a retelling to make it more of a narrative, and instead chopped off good sections of account to do so.
This story (however creditable it may be.) is the most accurate, complete, and interesting, book of pirates that we have to date.
But I enjoyed this book immensely.
I have dabbled in pirate books since this one and they all seem to pale. No one gets anything as clearly, as precisely, and as truly, as Charles Johnson.
It seems every other history is just a retelling of his stories in new words, that all are cheep imitations.
Even Howard Pyle (who wrote King Arthur), attempted a retelling to make it more of a narrative, and instead chopped off good sections of account to do so.
This story (however creditable it may be.) is the most accurate, complete, and interesting, book of pirates that we have to date.
March 2, 2024
The experience of reading this has been like pulling teeth, and I only succeeded because it was rather short and I was trapped in a plane with many uncomfortable hours to kill ahead of me.
Firstly, my interest in it was close to zero, I only picked it because of the reading challenge, and having been written three centuries ago, the language was insufferably archaic, and I tend to have low patience for that.
Oh, well, I cannot say I enjoyed it, but there have been many other more difficult prompts in the challenges through the years. At least I’m ticking 2 categories with it.
Popsugar Reading Challenge 2024:
6. A book about pirates.
21. A book that came out in a year that ends in 24: 1924 or 1824, or 1724. => it was written in 1724!
Firstly, my interest in it was close to zero, I only picked it because of the reading challenge, and having been written three centuries ago, the language was insufferably archaic, and I tend to have low patience for that.
Oh, well, I cannot say I enjoyed it, but there have been many other more difficult prompts in the challenges through the years. At least I’m ticking 2 categories with it.
Popsugar Reading Challenge 2024:
6. A book about pirates.
21. A book that came out in a year that ends in 24: 1924 or 1824, or 1724. => it was written in 1724!
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