The Pirates' Pact

Overview

Main description

The Secret Alliances Between History's Most Notorious Buccaneers and Colonial America

Was classical piracy an earlier version of state-sponsored terrorism?

Here's the story of how almost every well-known buccaneer of the “Golden Age of Piracy” enjoyed active sponsorship from England's governors in the American colonies- setting a pattern of official disobedience to the Crown that would ultimately contribute to the American push for independence. Relying on rare primary sources discovered in government archives in England, the Carolinas, Rhode Island, Jamaica, and elsewhere, Burgess combines true tales of derring-do with groundbreaking research in this fascinating history.

Author comments

Douglas R. Burgess Jr. is one of the world's foremost authorities on piracy. He holds a J.D. with a concentration in International Public Law from Cornell University and a Master's degree in International Law with a concentration in contemporary high-seas piracy. An award-winning writer of short historical fiction and nonfiction, his writings on piracy have appeared in the journal Legal Affairs and have been quoted in the New York Times.