Pirates might have dreamed of spending their final days living under an assumed name while enjoying the fruits of their thievery but it's likely they had a more realistic view of their retirement options.
Pirates in the 1800's had the same sailing duties as honest sailors, and a life at sea wasn't easy. Diets sometimes included weevils. Medical care as we know it was non-existent. Climbing the ratlines had to be done in all weather conditions on a moving vessel. Ships leaked and the deck might be slippery—sometimes with blood.
To reduce the amount of sailing time, pirate vessels could stay close to shore and rely on ambushing other ships. But this could lead to an increased chance of capture.
Pirates were often hanged when caught, and sometimes their bodies displayed in cages to deter others who might be tempted along the same path. Or, in the case of Blackbeard, the capturing ship hung his head on the bowsprit.
A few of the pirates were pardoned, but that seems to be the exception. Of course there's the theory that no one knows the names of the successful ones who escaped with their bounties. Enough of them met a quick end, however, to justify the assumption that a pirate didn't need a retirement plan.
The villains sometimes committed themselves to blowing up their ship or killing themselves before surrendering to capture. Some took their meeting with the hangman as a last chance to show their bravado. In Villain's of All Nations, Marcus Rediker tells of William Fly, a pirate who supposedly viewed his noose, and then re-tied it to show the proper way the rope should be knotted. His efforts worked.
Pirates in the 1800's had the same sailing duties as honest sailors, and a life at sea wasn't easy. Diets sometimes included weevils. Medical care as we know it was non-existent. Climbing the ratlines had to be done in all weather conditions on a moving vessel. Ships leaked and the deck might be slippery—sometimes with blood.
To reduce the amount of sailing time, pirate vessels could stay close to shore and rely on ambushing other ships. But this could lead to an increased chance of capture.
Pirates were often hanged when caught, and sometimes their bodies displayed in cages to deter others who might be tempted along the same path. Or, in the case of Blackbeard, the capturing ship hung his head on the bowsprit.
A few of the pirates were pardoned, but that seems to be the exception. Of course there's the theory that no one knows the names of the successful ones who escaped with their bounties. Enough of them met a quick end, however, to justify the assumption that a pirate didn't need a retirement plan.
The villains sometimes committed themselves to blowing up their ship or killing themselves before surrendering to capture. Some took their meeting with the hangman as a last chance to show their bravado. In Villain's of All Nations, Marcus Rediker tells of William Fly, a pirate who supposedly viewed his noose, and then re-tied it to show the proper way the rope should be knotted. His efforts worked.
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