The Devil's Anarchy: The Other Loose Roving Way of Life & Very Remarkable Travels of Jan Erasmus Reyning, Buccaneer

by Stephen Snelders

In The Devil's Anarchy, Stephen Snelders examines rare 17th-century Dutch pirate histories to show the continuity of a shared pirate culture, embodied in its modes of organization, methods of distributing booty and resolving disputes, and tendencies for high living. Focussing on the careers of Claes Compaen, a cunning, charismatic renegado who claimed to have stolen more than 350 vessels, and Jan Erasmus Reyning, who hit the seas at age 12 and became a buccaneer in the pirate jungle of Santo Domingo, Snelders paints a salty picture of the excesses, contradictions, and liberatory joys of pirate life.

Genres: History, Pirates

212 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2004

Reviews

[Subvert · Rating 3 out of 5]

The book contains two histories of Dutch pirates and a lot of discussion about the politics of piracy. While I have always loved and fantasized a lot about pirates since I was a kid, I didn't really know shit. This book is a good introduction, mixing pirate history with anarchism. It is rather interesting to read a history book with quotes of hakim bey and the situationists inserted and the similarities between anarchism and the politics of pirates explored. As I didn't know shit, I loved learning about the brethren of the coast, the coalition of pirates that did land-raids with over 2000 pirates and sacked cities, and which was a force to be reckoned with for the European Empires in the Caribbean.

It's probably not the best book in its kind, but still entertaining enough to read and it's properly researched. Romanticized? The author admits to be an incurable romantic, that sympathizes with some of the pirate captains, but he has an eye for the violence, acceptance of slave-trade, sexual abuse and prostitution. Still, it was amazing to find out about how democratic and non-hierarchical pirates were, with clear codes of conduct for discipline and the distribution of loot and compensation for injured pirates. He makes a clear case that pirates were in-fact rebelling against hierarchical society for a day-to-day life of freedom and debauchery, with death and violence ever-present.

[Spicy T AKA Mr. Tea · Rating 2 out of 5]

A biographical look at two pirates who lived in the 1600 and 1700s with a small bit about anarchy and piracy as the last chapter. Not a whole lot of new material I haven't seen elsewhere. I wish the two pirate sketches were more source material and less interpretation. anyway, i read it; not bad and a nice intro for those who want to know more about pirates. cheers.