Pirates have existed throughout history, raiding ships and towns. Modern pirates still attack ships off the coasts of Africa, South America, and Asia, though their tactics have changed. Real historic pirates, unlike those in movies and books, often rebelled against cruel ship conditions and created democratic societies aboard ships. Three of the most famous pirates were Henry Morgan, Henry Avery, and Blackbeard, though most pirates only raided successfully for a few years before being killed or captured.

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Pirates!
Voice 1: I’m Shirley Griffith.
Voice 2: And I’m Steve Ember with Explorations in VOA Special
English. Adults and children alike enjoy stories and movies about
pirates: criminals who steal money or goods from people on
ships. One of the most popular has been the movie series, “Pirates
of the Caribbean.”
The movies star Johnny Depp as a pirate called Captain Jack Sparrow.
But history experts say that Captain Jack and other pirates in movies
and books are nothing like pirates in real life.
Modern pirates 0- 3:50 (music)
Voice 1: Attacks by pirates are a serious concern in the waters off the coasts
of Africa, South America, Indonesia and in the Caribbean. In 2003,
four hundred forty-five pirate attacks were reported around the
world. Sixteen people were killed.
In the first three months of 2006, sixty-one successful or attempted
pirate attacks were reported. Fifty-six such attacks were reported in
the same time period the year before. Still, many pirate attacks go
unreported each year.
In 2005, thirty-five pirate attacks were reported in Somalia. The
International Maritime Bureau says the pirates target both passenger
and cargo ships.
In March of 2006, Somali pirates seized twenty Filipino seamen on an
oil ship at a southern Somali port. The pirates demanded money
from the ship owners for their release. The men were released in
July following negotiations for their freedom.
Voice 2: Reports say modern pirates use high-speed motor boats. Most pirates
force their way on to the ships, take what they want and are gone
within minutes. Sometimes they kill or injure crew members.
Modern day pirates are difficult to catch. They return to small rivers
or ports where there is little or no law enforcement. In some areas,
pirates pay local officials to hide them from the law. And many times
it is difficult to take any legal action against pirates because their
attacks may take place outside any country’s territorial waters.
Pirates are still a major concern for most countries. International
efforts continue to catch them and bring them to justice.
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Pirates in history 3:50 – 6:45 (music)
Voice 1: Experts say pirates have existed throughout history. Pirates robbed
ancient Greek and Roman ships. People of one country sometimes
used ships to raid the ships of another country.
Often, pirate ships landed on foreign shores and their crews attacked
whole towns. They captured citizens and robbed them. The Vikings
of Norway, Denmark and Sweden made these kinds of attacks on
ships and towns in Europe. In the 16 and 1700s, many pirates from
Britain attacked the rich ships of France and Spain.
People may think these pirates are like those in popular books and
movies. Like Long John Silver from “Treasure Island” or Captain Hook
from “Peter Pan.” Or Captain Jack Sparrow from “Pirates of the
Caribbean.” But history experts who have studied pirates say this is
mostly false.
Voice 2: One expert is Marcus Rediker, a history professor at the University of
Pittsburgh in Pennsylvania. He has studied pirate life for more than
thirty years. Professor Rediker says many pirates were former
sailors. They rebelled against cruel ship captains and the poor pay
and food provided by their governments. The pirates created a
democratic society for themselves. They elected their own captains,
developed rules about how to live together and voted on
punishments for those who violated the rules.
Another modern pirate expert is David Cordingly. He wrote a book
called “Under the Black Flag: The Romance and Reality of Life
Among The Pirates.” The book provides information about real
pirates like Calico Jack and Black Bart. It tells about female pirates
too, like Anne Bonney and Mary Read.
We will tell about three of the most famous pirates -- Henry Morgan,
Henry Avery and Edward Teach, known as Blackbeard.
The three most famous pirates 6:45 – 12.30 (music)
Voice 1: The government of Spain considered Henry Morgan a pirate. The
British considered him a hero. Britain, France, The Netherlands and
Spain fought many wars for control of land, trading rights and the
riches from new territories. Tensions existed among them even after
they signed peace treaties.
Spain’s colonies in the western part of the world provided huge
amounts of gold, silver and jewels. These riches were transported to
Spain in ships.
In the middle 1600s, Henry Morgan attacked Spanish cities and ships
several times. He shared with the British government the gold, silver
and other goods he took from Spanish ships.
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Henry Morgan led one of the most famous attacks in history. He
captured and burned the city of Panama in 1671. At the time, it was
the richest city in all of Spain’s colonies. The British government
was very pleased with his work.
Spain’s Ambassador to Britain protested the attack. The British
government said Morgan would be tried for his crimes. But he never
was. He became the assistant governor of Jamaica before he retired.
Voice 2: But most pirates were not very successful. They lived as pirates for
only two or three years. The history experts say that men who
became pirates did not expect to live much longer than that. They
knew the chances were great that they would be killed, or captured,
tried and executed for their crimes.
One man, however, may have been the most successful pirate in
history. His name was Henry Avery. He was also known as Long Ben
Avery.
In 1695 Avery and his crew attacked a ship named the Gunsway. It
belonged to a great ruler of India. The Gunsway carried millions of
dollars in gold, silver and jewels.
Avery and his crew took the treasure. They sailed to the West Indies,
then left their ship. Some of the crew went to America. Others
sailed on different ships. Avery disappeared with a captain’s share
of the treasure. He was never caught. Nor was he ever heard from
again.
Voice 1: Edward Teach also became a famous pirate. He was called
Blackbeard because he grew long black hair on his face. It is thought
he was born in Bristol, England. He went to sea as a young man and
became a pirate around 1715.
Blackbeard was a successful pirate for about two years. Then a
British Royal Navy ship caught up with him near what is now the
American state of North Carolina in 1718.
Blackbeard and his pirates fought the British. Blackbeard was
killed. Members of his crew were captured and tried for their
crimes. Many were executed.
Voice 2: But that is not the end of the story about Blackbeard. One of the
ships Blackbeard commanded was a captured French ship he
renamed “Queen Anne’s Revenge.” He lost the ship when it ran
aground and sank in seventeen eighteen. Underwater research
experts found the remains of a wooden ship at the bottom of the
ocean off the coast of North Carolina in 1996. Many experts believe
the sunken ship is Blackbeard’s “Queen Anne’s Revenge”.
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The researchers say the shipwreck offers a lot to study. They have
found arms, ammunition, scientific devices, gold and personal
property on the wreckage. And they continue to investigate the ship.
They believe the ship is Blackbeard’s because they have no evidence
of any other kind of ship sinking in that area in the 18th
century.
Buried treasure 12:30 – 14:00 (music)
Voice 1: Old stories say Blackbeard may have buried some of his treasure
along the coast of what are now the states of North and South
Carolina. People have searched unsuccessfully for that treasure for
many years.
Most experts do not believe that Blackbeard buried gold and jewels
in that area or anywhere else. They say pirates in books and movies
may have followed maps to buried treasure. But real pirates did not
hide their money. The experts say real pirates spent their gold and
silver immediately because they did not expect to live long enough
to use it later.
People in the United States continue to be interested in pirates as
they are shown in books and movies. There are yearly pirate
celebrations in Key West, Florida and in Portland, Oregon. There are
pirate museums in North Carolina. There is a pirate ride at Disney
World in Orlando, Florida. There is a pirate hotel in Las Vegas,
Nevada. And there is even a yearly International Talk Like a Pirate
Day.
Voice 2: (music) This program was written by Nancy Steinbach. It was
produced by Mario Ritter. I’m Steve Ember.
Voice 1: And I’m Shirley Griffith. Join us again next week for EXPLORATIONS
in VOA Special English.
This audio has been used with kind permission from Voice of America.
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