Surprising Pirate Traditions That You Probably Haven't Heard Of
By
Michael Avery in
Facts
On 9th November 2017
When we think of pirates we tend to think about swashbuckling raiders sailing the high seas pillaging all they come across. This is in stark contrast to the picture painted by Disney and their Pirates of the Caribbean. Pirates are not nice people. Throughout their entire history, they have almost all the had the reputation of being merciless killers with devilishly creative ways to execute people.
They are the first people to hide treasures and popularized men wearing earrings. They even had their own language to communicate with other pirates. The pirate code was simply meant to be a peacekeeping measure among other pirates. It stated when pirates could fight other pirates and dictated what they could wear. In a way, the pirate code was like a school dress code.
#1
As far as flags go, the solid black background with a skull and crossbones drew across it is probably the most universally accepted pirate flag there is. It's known and the Jolly Roger. While it's the most widely known, the reality is that there are a wide variety of variations of this flag used.
#2
The Jolly Roger was first mentioned in 1724. In his book, A General History of the Pyrates, Charles Johnson tells all about the history of pirates up to that point. Still, there are many different versions of the flag seen throughout history. Take Blackbeard's flag for example. It featured the devil toasting a skeleton that was simultaneously stabbing a bloody heart.
#3
Speaking of Blackbeard, he just might be the most horrifying and best-known pirate to have ever lived. Born Edward Teach, he would earn his nickname as a reference to his thick bushy black beard and his fear-inspiring presence. Teach was actually more inclined to use fear tactics and his intimidating composure instead of violence when pillaging.
#4
As part of his horrifying appearance, Blackbeard would tie hemp into his hair and beard. He would then set the hemp ablaze which would make it appear as if his beard was flaming like some kind of demon. Gotta admit that's pretty intimidating.
#5
Men weren't the only ones who were pirates. There were plenty of female pirates as well. Mary Read and Anne Bonny were two particularly famous female pirates. Read would dress as a man so as to hide her true identity from her pirate mates but Bonny was such an impressive pirate that she became first mate.
#6
Like many pirates, Bonny's and Read's ships were captured. The women were then jailed. While in prison, Bonny blamed captain Calico Jack for their capture. She was quoted as saying: "Sorry to see you there, but if you’d fought like a man, you would not have been hang’d like a Dog."
#7
To keep British Navy sailors from drinking contaminated water, the Navy regularly gave out a pint of rum to every sailor each day. They would mix it with their water in order to sterilize it and kill any algae or microbes growing in it.
#8
Just like Navy sailors, pirates drank what was the most readily available for them. Since rum was so abundant in the Caribbean, people who spent large amounts of time at sea would regularly mix it with nearly every kind of liquid they drank. Pirates would enhance the flavors of these drinks by adding sugar and lemon juice. Doing so was thought to make "grog" useful in preventing scurvy.
#9
It's not unusual to see a pirate depicted wearing an eyepatch. This, however, does not mean that all pirates were missing eyes. Many pirates would just wear eyepatches so that one of their eyes could always be used to the night. This way, whenever the pirate went below deck, they could take off the patch and see much better without having to wait for their eyes to adjust.
#10
Pirate clothing was indeed fashionable and fancy in a way but this was the case out of necessity. It had nothing to do with looking good. Pirate earrings were supposed to be insurance in the event that a pirate should die. The gold or silver would be melted and used to pay for the pirates funeral. Some pirate earrings even featured engravings of their homeports hoping that their bodies would be shipped back home in the event that they died.
#11
More feared than even the Jolly Roger flag was the red flag or "Bloody Red." If you saw this flag it meant you were in for a bad day. The flag stood for no mercy. When people saw the red flag waving, they knew that if their ship was captured, that would be the end, as everyone on board would be mercilessly slaughtered.
#12
Movies love to show pirates burying treasure and creating elaborate maps that would lead them back to it. This actually wasn't a very common practice. Pirates normally would just steal whatever a ship was carrying and take it with them. That's why pirate ships often contained large amounts of cloth, lumber, alcohol, and food.
