The only things that matter are these, what a man can do, and what a man can't do... also, PIRATES!
Okay so this?
Don't worry, is totally not a secret for me. This movie is my life-spiration. Shame on me, I suppose. I've never read the original book, even though I own it. There was no singing! Argh! This has totally sparked off my pirate fever again. Despite my Naruto cosplay, I will always choose Pirates over Ninja's. No seriously Queensland Government, the more you accuse me of Piracy, the less guilt I will feel. Your add's against it aren't working. Which probably makes me a horrible person, but if there is a guilt I am meant to be feeling, it's not there. Really. Lock me in jail if you will, but it won't help any.
Piracy (for me) is the ultimate rejection of every law put in place, of having your own honor, not one that is asked of you or that you are forced into. That was always the draw of piracy both then and as a symbol now.
"But Lily!" you say, "I know nothing about being a pirate, and I don't want to rush into this decision. What do I need to know about Pirates and Piracy?"
"Arrr," reply Lily "I see yer point, so I here compiled a bit of information on the way of the Seas in yonder time, so ye too can make a informed decision about Piracy as a occupation, arrrrrr!"
Let's start with the real basis of it, what are the other options to being a Pirate that makes being a pirate so much more preferable. The men that took up the calling were often press-ganged into the Navy or other lines of works, but usually the Navy, where the money was shit house, even then. You could almost die and still get nothing. That was the "Navy" or Merchants in those days. For instance, Captain Cook, was commander material -- would never have been promoted if it weren't for "finding" New Zealand and charting the East Coast of Australia, as he was of common birth. It's not that before that he hadn't proven his worth. It just was never going to happen. Poor bastard ended up getting eaten by some group of Islanders from the pacific somewhere anyway, on Valentine's Day. Fuck nightmare fuel, much? Heck, when there wasn't a war on, you were out of a job anyway. But if you were a good pirate and sucked up to a particular monarch, you got off scott free.
Picture above: Pirating bad-ass Sir Francis Drake.
Bestie of Queen Lizzie the Ist herself.
Look at that Mou/Beard. It says I will board your ship, and burn shit. Also give me your gold, Spain!
That is not to say Pirates didn't do the same but as much as they in turn press ganged men into their crew, more often not they were offered the choice. If not, there was always the chance to escape more freely then you ever had in the Navy, who are the Pirates going to report you too for nicking off? But in the end it was far more preferable to the Merchants or Military. The money was better for a start, conditions were healthier then on the slave ships, and you had more rights and a choice. A pirate can never in the end say "they MADE me do it", or at least, fewer people would believe you. If you wanted any to believe that when you got caught you better have some serious back up from the other crew members that go "Yeah, Jimmy fucking hated it on the ship", as well as be ready to sell out your fellow men. 'Cause otherwise you just got killed with the rest of them. Usually the only one's with any serious objection to Piracy were the Commanders and First & Second Lieutenant's (anyone that stands to move up the ladder at some later point), they are the only ones with career's ahead of them. Most often then not upper or lower class, merchant or military, these men would join when they were ten or eleven and be on ships for the rest of their life but never actually go anywhere, because of their low rank. Or join up when they were eleven and be lieutenant straight off the mark. Like this little boy:
haha, you thought this movie was making it up, didn't you?
Don't worry, this kid ends up Dictator of Rome.
You can see why Piracy was preferable to the lower classes, with it, they had a chance to be a Captain or a Quarter Master no matter who you were born as.
But wait, there is more! As I know there are women reading this, Piracy is a equal opportunity employer. More often then not, the women of the seas scared the shit out of the men. Take for instance Gráinne Ní Mháille, or Granny O'Malley in the angelicised version of her name. The woman was "The Pirate Queen", also BFFL with Queen Elizabeth (yeah, Elizabeth really liked her pirates). Granny burnt, raided, pillaged her way around the Irish and English coasts like it was nobodies business, and no one tried to stop her. Not only was this woman a apt sea commander, her own castle was besieged twice and she held them off, twice. Not cool enough okay? How about Ching Shih, who worked a prostitute then married a Chinese Pirate, who first united all the various Pirate groups around China. He then died in mysterious causes (people think she did it... by gouging out his eyes. With her fingers) She commanded the largest fleet that "guarded" Merchant vessel, for a moderate fee. Guess what happened if they didn't want guarding and refused to pay? At estimate this woman commanded up wards of about 80,000 men. She was pardoned by the Chinese government (more like told them what to do...) where she settled down to a quiet life of... Opium Smuggling.
One Queen to another. They got on like a house on fire.
Another fun thing is revenge. If you were a mean captain, you better watch it. Because the Captain's of Pirate ships would often give the crew a chance to kill their previous Captain, as a show of good will. As was recorded in one particularly cruel incident. Where a Merchant Captain would take extra delight in flogging his men, repeatedly, resulting in some deaths, was boarded by a Pirate crew. Immediately most of the crew jumped ship to the pirates (haha get it? *shot*). The Captain was tied to a chair and had a grenade shoved in his mouth. You can imagine how the rest of it went.
Good times.
Most of their treasure isn't what you think it is though. Usually it was sugar, which as we all know makes Rum. Alcohol was the back bone of the Nautical world. Yeah you could say it was that sense of a adventure. But let's be serious here, these voyages took months upon months of endless droning across flat expanses of water. You need something to pass the time. Alcohol was it. Also, late night raves. Of the Sea Shanty style. Sort of. Some kind of late night ship partying happened. To keep men's hopes up, because a desolate world is what they were in usually. They would frequently mutiny if they couldn't get their alcohol. Where do you think Navy Rum got it's name from? Not to say there wasn't some serious stealing of gold and such, just not as much as people think there is. Which is kinda a downer. But they did have some fabulous clothes however. Pirates liked to call themselves "The Gentlemen of Fortune". As such, they had some spiffy outfits, fitting of any noble of the time. It was a subtle, fuck you to the men at the top.
Pirates vessels were little floating boats of Democracy. In the code that we have recorded in Bartholomew (which is yes why they call it in the POTC movies "the code as set down by Morgan and Bartholomew"), the first rule is:
1. Every man shall have an equal vote in affairs of moment. He shall have an equal title to the fresh provisions or strong liquors at any time seized, and shall use them at pleasure unless a scarcity may make it necessary for the common good that a retrenchment may be voted.
This is more or less of a big deal in the era. It's not that democracy was **omfgshinynewconcept** that exploded out of the deep and ate America's face by mistake one night. They knew of it, it was more that someone who was captain was willing to give over a power equally. That was more of a big deal, when the men would have accepted taking more control then he did. In the case of Bartholomew, he continually struggled with it, because he knew that if he let them free too much, one night they would get attacked and his crew would be drunk, but knew that he couldn't control too much or they would mutiny him. Sadly, the former happened to deal old Barty. So if you are thinking up on the Pirate ladder, it's a important thing to remember.
Anyway. I hope I have helped you make an informed decision next time Tim Curry Long John Silver propositions you in song to join his pirate crew. I'll be there, to be sure. Arrrrr~!
Don't worry, is totally not a secret for me. This movie is my life-spiration. Shame on me, I suppose. I've never read the original book, even though I own it. There was no singing! Argh! This has totally sparked off my pirate fever again. Despite my Naruto cosplay, I will always choose Pirates over Ninja's. No seriously Queensland Government, the more you accuse me of Piracy, the less guilt I will feel. Your add's against it aren't working. Which probably makes me a horrible person, but if there is a guilt I am meant to be feeling, it's not there. Really. Lock me in jail if you will, but it won't help any.
Piracy (for me) is the ultimate rejection of every law put in place, of having your own honor, not one that is asked of you or that you are forced into. That was always the draw of piracy both then and as a symbol now.
"But Lily!" you say, "I know nothing about being a pirate, and I don't want to rush into this decision. What do I need to know about Pirates and Piracy?"
"Arrr," reply Lily "I see yer point, so I here compiled a bit of information on the way of the Seas in yonder time, so ye too can make a informed decision about Piracy as a occupation, arrrrrr!"
Let's start with the real basis of it, what are the other options to being a Pirate that makes being a pirate so much more preferable. The men that took up the calling were often press-ganged into the Navy or other lines of works, but usually the Navy, where the money was shit house, even then. You could almost die and still get nothing. That was the "Navy" or Merchants in those days. For instance, Captain Cook, was commander material -- would never have been promoted if it weren't for "finding" New Zealand and charting the East Coast of Australia, as he was of common birth. It's not that before that he hadn't proven his worth. It just was never going to happen. Poor bastard ended up getting eaten by some group of Islanders from the pacific somewhere anyway, on Valentine's Day. Fuck nightmare fuel, much? Heck, when there wasn't a war on, you were out of a job anyway. But if you were a good pirate and sucked up to a particular monarch, you got off scott free.
Picture above: Pirating bad-ass Sir Francis Drake.
Bestie of Queen Lizzie the Ist herself.
Look at that Mou/Beard. It says I will board your ship, and burn shit. Also give me your gold, Spain!
That is not to say Pirates didn't do the same but as much as they in turn press ganged men into their crew, more often not they were offered the choice. If not, there was always the chance to escape more freely then you ever had in the Navy, who are the Pirates going to report you too for nicking off? But in the end it was far more preferable to the Merchants or Military. The money was better for a start, conditions were healthier then on the slave ships, and you had more rights and a choice. A pirate can never in the end say "they MADE me do it", or at least, fewer people would believe you. If you wanted any to believe that when you got caught you better have some serious back up from the other crew members that go "Yeah, Jimmy fucking hated it on the ship", as well as be ready to sell out your fellow men. 'Cause otherwise you just got killed with the rest of them. Usually the only one's with any serious objection to Piracy were the Commanders and First & Second Lieutenant's (anyone that stands to move up the ladder at some later point), they are the only ones with career's ahead of them. Most often then not upper or lower class, merchant or military, these men would join when they were ten or eleven and be on ships for the rest of their life but never actually go anywhere, because of their low rank. Or join up when they were eleven and be lieutenant straight off the mark. Like this little boy:
haha, you thought this movie was making it up, didn't you?
Don't worry, this kid ends up Dictator of Rome.
You can see why Piracy was preferable to the lower classes, with it, they had a chance to be a Captain or a Quarter Master no matter who you were born as.
But wait, there is more! As I know there are women reading this, Piracy is a equal opportunity employer. More often then not, the women of the seas scared the shit out of the men. Take for instance Gráinne Ní Mháille, or Granny O'Malley in the angelicised version of her name. The woman was "The Pirate Queen", also BFFL with Queen Elizabeth (yeah, Elizabeth really liked her pirates). Granny burnt, raided, pillaged her way around the Irish and English coasts like it was nobodies business, and no one tried to stop her. Not only was this woman a apt sea commander, her own castle was besieged twice and she held them off, twice. Not cool enough okay? How about Ching Shih, who worked a prostitute then married a Chinese Pirate, who first united all the various Pirate groups around China. He then died in mysterious causes (people think she did it... by gouging out his eyes. With her fingers) She commanded the largest fleet that "guarded" Merchant vessel, for a moderate fee. Guess what happened if they didn't want guarding and refused to pay? At estimate this woman commanded up wards of about 80,000 men. She was pardoned by the Chinese government (more like told them what to do...) where she settled down to a quiet life of... Opium Smuggling.
One Queen to another. They got on like a house on fire.
Another fun thing is revenge. If you were a mean captain, you better watch it. Because the Captain's of Pirate ships would often give the crew a chance to kill their previous Captain, as a show of good will. As was recorded in one particularly cruel incident. Where a Merchant Captain would take extra delight in flogging his men, repeatedly, resulting in some deaths, was boarded by a Pirate crew. Immediately most of the crew jumped ship to the pirates (haha get it? *shot*). The Captain was tied to a chair and had a grenade shoved in his mouth. You can imagine how the rest of it went.
Good times.
Most of their treasure isn't what you think it is though. Usually it was sugar, which as we all know makes Rum. Alcohol was the back bone of the Nautical world. Yeah you could say it was that sense of a adventure. But let's be serious here, these voyages took months upon months of endless droning across flat expanses of water. You need something to pass the time. Alcohol was it. Also, late night raves. Of the Sea Shanty style. Sort of. Some kind of late night ship partying happened. To keep men's hopes up, because a desolate world is what they were in usually. They would frequently mutiny if they couldn't get their alcohol. Where do you think Navy Rum got it's name from? Not to say there wasn't some serious stealing of gold and such, just not as much as people think there is. Which is kinda a downer. But they did have some fabulous clothes however. Pirates liked to call themselves "The Gentlemen of Fortune". As such, they had some spiffy outfits, fitting of any noble of the time. It was a subtle, fuck you to the men at the top.
Pirates vessels were little floating boats of Democracy. In the code that we have recorded in Bartholomew (which is yes why they call it in the POTC movies "the code as set down by Morgan and Bartholomew"), the first rule is:
1. Every man shall have an equal vote in affairs of moment. He shall have an equal title to the fresh provisions or strong liquors at any time seized, and shall use them at pleasure unless a scarcity may make it necessary for the common good that a retrenchment may be voted.
This is more or less of a big deal in the era. It's not that democracy was **omfgshinynewconcept** that exploded out of the deep and ate America's face by mistake one night. They knew of it, it was more that someone who was captain was willing to give over a power equally. That was more of a big deal, when the men would have accepted taking more control then he did. In the case of Bartholomew, he continually struggled with it, because he knew that if he let them free too much, one night they would get attacked and his crew would be drunk, but knew that he couldn't control too much or they would mutiny him. Sadly, the former happened to deal old Barty. So if you are thinking up on the Pirate ladder, it's a important thing to remember.
Anyway. I hope I have helped you make an informed decision next time Tim Curry Long John Silver propositions you in song to join his pirate crew. I'll be there, to be sure. Arrrrr~!