Sparks Commentary: Piracy played a role, early in the “Second” Hundred Years’ War

“When I was a boy, there was but one permanent ambition among my comrades in our village [Hannibal, Missouri] on the west bank of the Mississippi River. That was, to be a steamboatman. We had transient ambitions of other sorts, but they were only transient. When a circus came and went, it left us all burning to become clowns … now and then we had a hope that if we lived and were good, God would permit us to be pirates.”

– Mark Twain, in “Life in the Mississippi” (1883), Chapter 4

Those pirate movies that you watched as a kid … probably took place during this period

In 2003, Disney released the first installment in their “Pirates of the Caribbean” film franchise. The film must have seemed a little risky, because there had not been a popular pirate movie for some years by that point. But, to everyone’s surprise, the film franchise did quite well at the box office, and in the later home movie sales as well. Other pirate movies (such as “Treasure Island”) have likewise captured the public imagination. As “Peter Pan” reminds us, pirates are a popular subject, especially with children. In “Life on the Mississippi,” Mark Twain once said that “we had a hope that if we lived and were good, God would permit us to be pirates” (as cited above). Obviously, the reality of piracy is a little less romantic, since pirates tended to be as violent and bloodthirsty as they’re usually portrayed to be. But, in some ways, the reality may be just as interesting as its depiction in these great movies. Today, I’d like to examine the role of piracy, during the aptly-named “Golden Age of Piracy.” This was the period when piracy became a significant factor in both the North Atlantic and the Indian Ocean. I should clarify that the term “Golden Age” is not meant to “approve” of the brazen theft that this piracy inherently involves. But, from the pirates’ point of view, it was indeed a “Golden Age,” where the world’s maritime trade was relatively vulnerable to their attacks. I will focus primarily on how it affected some of the major international wars of the period, particularly on the high seas. Indeed, it seems hard to discuss either the piracy or the wars in total isolation from each other. Specifically, I will start by talking about the three main Anglo-Dutch Wars, which were mostly at sea. Then I will focus on the naval parts of three other great European conflicts. These are (in order): the Nine Years’ War, the War of the Spanish Succession, and the War of the Austrian Succession. These three conflicts, along with four others that soon followed them, would eventually be grouped together into the broader term of “Second” Hundred Years’ War. Piracy and privateering played a major role, in the early parts of this much-larger conflict.

Spanish Men-of-War Engaging Barbary Corsairs, 1615

The buccaneering period (roughly 1650-1680), and the era’s official use of privateering

I should acknowledge that there’s some controversy today about what periods to include in the term “Golden Age of Piracy.” To increase the chances that I’ll cover everything relevant (at least in outline form), I will use the broadest mainstream definitions of what to include. Thus, I will start my discussion with the “buccaneering period,” which goes from approximately 1650 to 1680. As Wikipedia puts it, “Buccaneers were a kind of privateer or free sailors, and pirates particular to the Caribbean Sea during the 17th and 18th centuries.” (see source) Thus, in this context, the very term “buccaneer” is sometimes given an association with the Caribbean. But another Wikipedia page argues that this period was “characterized by Anglo-French seamen based in Jamaica, Martinica and Tortuga attacking Spanish colonies, and shipping in the Caribbean and eastern Pacific to western Pacific.” (see source) This involves a wider definition, which expands into the Pacific. Either way, this longest period within the “Golden Age of Piracy” was the first time that piracy became a significant factor in world trade. I should note that this was also an age of privateering, when nations gave official permission to do things that would otherwise be considered piracy. That is, in the context of naval warfare against other nations, a “letter of marque and reprisal” would authorize people (called “privateers”) to disrupt the trade of other nations. The nation granting these letters … would then reward the privateers with partial (or even complete) ownership of those spoils that they were able to capture. These spoils could then add up to a sizable reward. There are clauses in the United States Constitution about these “letters of marque and reprisal.” (More about that here.) Suffice it to say here that privateering was a major factor in the naval wars of the period.

Buccaneers attacking a much larger Spanish galleon

Role of the Anglo-Dutch Wars, and of legal distinctions between piracy and privateering

There were several naval conflicts during the “buccaneering period.” But the most significant of these conflicts may have been the Anglo-Dutch Wars, which I plan to describe in a later post. These conflicts were primarily naval wars. Thus, they were interconnected with both the official privateering and the not-so-official piracy. However, the Anglo-Dutch Wars had an “on again, off again” quality during this period. That is, they were not continuous (more about their timetable in a later post), although they were quite long. Obviously, things that were considered “privateering” by one nation were generally considered “piracy” by the victim nation. Thus, these terms could sometimes be in the eye of the beholder, as often happens in wars. And those who got these “letters of marque and reprisal” would sometimes stray outside the limits of whom they were allowed to plunder. That is, they sometimes raided the shipping of the granting nation (or of its various allies), at the times when a lucrative opportunity presented itself. They sometimes operated on the edge of the law, although they sometimes took pains to seem “legal” when dealing with official representatives of the granting nation. In other contexts, this kind of thing continues to this day, although official privateering was eventually abolished by international agreement in 1856. (More about that here.)

The Battle of Lowestoft, 1665 – part of the Anglo-Dutch Wars

The Nine Years’ War (1688-1697), and the coinciding “Pirate Round” (1690s)

Conflicts between Britain and France then had long precedents, going back to the Middle Ages. More specifically, they go back to the “Hundred Years’ Wars,” as these prior conflicts were sometimes called. But, when an international war began in 1688, Britain and France were soon at war with each other again. At the time, no one knew how long this conflict would last. But history would eventually remember this particular conflict as the “Nine Years’ War.” Some even consider it to be the beginning of the “Second” Hundred Years’ War. However, I should acknowledge that there is some controversy about this particular classification. The “Nine Years’ War” was primarily a land war, but it also involved a significant naval component. For example, naval power was often used in support of land campaigns. Control of the sea lanes was also important, and may have prevented a French seaborne invasion of England. The second phase of the “Golden Age of Piracy” coincides somewhat with this international naval conflict. That is, this phase of the “Golden Age of Piracy” is simply known as the “Pirate Round.” It is sometimes simply dated to the 1690s. Since the Nine Years’ War went from 1688 to 1697, it’s hard to separate these two things from each other. As Wikipedia puts it, the Pirate Round was “associated with long-distance voyages from the Americas to rob East India Company targets in the Indian Ocean and Red Sea.” (see source) Thus, perhaps, some comments on this “East India Company” might be relevant here.

The Battle of Lagos, 1693 – part of the Nine Years’ War

Some comments on the British East India Company, the biggest nemesis of the pirates

There were several corporations known as the “East India Company” in this time. But this term usually refers to the British East India Company. It was a private corporation, with both political and military power. It had many members of Parliament in its pocket, and invaded other countries with its own armies and navies. Some historians believe that, at its peak, the East India Company may have controlled roughly half of the world’s international trade. By any standard, the company was definitely a monopoly. But the pirates would sometimes prove disruptive to the company’s control over the sea lanes. This is why, in the movie “Pirates of the Caribbean” (which takes place in a slightly later period), the East India Company are thus portrayed as the primary nemesis of the pirates. Eventually, the British East India Company would be involved in the takeover of the Indian subcontinent itself. (More about this in a later post, about a much later time.) Suffice it to say here that, during the Pirate Round, the pirates were the bane of the East India Company’s existence. Each fought with the other for control of the world’s maritime trade.

English pirate Henry Every’s fleet captures the Mughal Ganj-i-sawai, 1695

The War of the Spanish Succession (1701-1714) involves major conflicts on the high sea

It is here that our story enters the eighteenth century. The “War of the Spanish Succession” began in 1701. Like the prior “Nine Years’ War,” it was primarily a land war. But, as with the prior Nine Years’ War, this War of the Spanish Succession still involved a significant naval component. In 1702, the Allies destroyed a Spanish treasure fleet in the Battle of Vigo Bay. And, in 1704, an Anglo-Dutch amphibious operation captured the strategic location of Gibraltar. French and Spanish privateers tried to disrupt the Anglo-Dutch control of the global trade routes. Nonetheless, the Anglo-Dutch navies managed to maintain their control over the sea lanes. There were conflicts from the Mediterranean Sea to North America and the West Indies. The War of the Spanish Succession would eventually end in 1714. This actually began the most famous period in the “Golden Age of Piracy.” The post-Spanish-Succession period, as it is sometimes called, has long been the most popular setting for Hollywood pirate movies – including “Treasure Island” and “Pirates of the Caribbean.”

Capture of Spanish treasure fleet, 1702 – part of the War of the Spanish Succession

The post-Spanish-Succession period (1715-1726): The dramatic climax of the period

As Wikipedia puts it, this is the “post-Spanish Succession period (1715 to 1726), when English sailors and privateers left unemployed by the end of the War of the Spanish Succession turned en masse to piracy in the Caribbean, the Indian Ocean, the North American eastern seaboard, and the West African coast.” (see source) I mentioned earlier that there is some controversy among historians … about what periods to include in the term “Golden Age of Piracy.” The narrowest definitions sometimes define it exclusively as this latter “post-Spanish-Succession period.” This was when piracy reached its most dramatic climax. By the end of the period, though, the world’s navies had fought back against the disruptive incursions of the pirates. This is why the “Golden Age of Piracy” is sometimes said to have ended in 1726. Piracy still continued after that, and so did the official “privateering” as arranged by various European nations. But the unofficial (and internationally condemned) piracy was no longer a significant factor in the histories of the North Atlantic or the Indian Ocean. The Golden Age of Piracy had finally ended, and so had its effect upon the “Second” Hundred Years’ War.

Capture of the Pirate, Blackbeard, 1718

Epilogue: The War of the Austrian Succession, including the War of Jenkins’ Ear

As a brief epilogue, it might be good to mention here the later “War of Jenkins’ Ear.” This soon became a part of the larger “War of the Austrian Succession,” which (perhaps) should also be mentioned here. Naval power played only a small role in the larger War of the Austrian Succession. However, the strangely-named “War of Jenkins’ Ear” (which was a portion thereof) involved significant naval fighting. It may have even involved more naval fighting than land fighting. The British wanted to destroy Spain’s dominance of the Caribbean trade routes. And privateering played a major role in this conflict, which sometimes stretched well into the Pacific. After 1742, though, the naval parts of the war had mostly ceased, and the land campaigns of both of these wars would become far more prominent. I mentioned earlier that some historians consider the “Second” Hundred Years’ War to have begun in 1688 or 1689. This included the aforementioned Nine Years’ War, the aforementioned War of the Spanish Succession, and this current War of the Austrian Succession (which also included the War of Jenkins’ Ear). It would also include some later conflicts. These are (in order): the Seven Years’ War, the American War of Independence, the French Revolutionary Wars, and the Napoleonic Wars (which ended in 1815). This is the scope of what historians include in the “Second” Hundred Years’ War. Again, that classification is not universally accepted, although most acknowledge that these wars were indeed part of a larger conflict between Britain and France.

Capture of a Manila galleon, 1743 – part of the War of Jenkins’ Ear

How our story continues in two other naval blog posts about this fascinating period

For more about the next phase of this naval struggle, see my next post in this series. This will cover the naval actions of the Seven Years’ War, the American War of Independence, the French Revolutionary Wars, and the Napoleonic Wars. In this next post, I will focus even more on the international naval wars between the official combatants. See also this parallel post describing the early rise of the United States Navy, and how the United States of America went from a vulnerable backwater … to a major world superpower. The conflicts at sea continue in these two posts – here and here, respectively.