Engaging account of past piracy
The Pirate Menace, by Angus Konstam
Anyone looking for an enjoyable introduction to the golden age of piracy would do well to pick up this new book by expert researcher Angus Konstam.
Konstam puts piracy in context as a threat to the global world order, waged by disaffected seafarers – the 'enemies of mankind'. He then goes into the day-to-day lives of pirates and the safe havens they created at Port Royal and Nassau.
He also focuses in on the voyages of some especially famous/notorious buccaneers, including Blackbeard and Bartholomew Roberts, and how they (and eventually Caribbean piracy in general) were finally suppressed by government-sponsored pirate hunters.
Of interest to those with a bit more knowledge of pirate history, there is also the story of how Caribbean piracy blended into pirate activity off the African coast and in the Indian Ocean.
The Pirate Menace
By Angus Konstam
Osprey, £25
ISBN: 978 14728 57736
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