The Plank
Day 1: Caribbean
Day 2: Charleston
Day 3: Carolina Coast
Day 4: Beaufort
Day 5: Bath
Day 6: Ocracoke

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THE PIRATE AS "CUTTHROAT"

There is mounting historical evidence that many pirates rarely had to or wanted to kill those aboard the ships they seized. Certainly along the eastern seaboard of the U.S. in the 18th century, this was rare.

First, poorly-paid crews aboard merchant ships had no incentive to defend the goods aboard their ship. In nearly every case, merchant ships -- which were not well-armed -- surrendered when a pirate ship carrying many cannons sailed into sight.

Second, pirates knew better than to provide an incentive to resist. To kill merchant seaman would only invite resistance in the future. Most pirates considered themselves independent businessmen, not combatants.

In most cases, pirates off-loaded provisions and valuables and sent their victim on. However, merchant seaman who did resist could count on being handled roughly or killed.

BLACKBEARD AS "BLOODTHIRSTY"

He often threatened a horrible end but there is no historical evidence that Blackbeard killed anyone aboard the ships he plundered (prior to the battle of Ocracoke). While little is known of his early life on the sea, his actions from 1716-1718 as a pirate are well-documented.

Several times during his 1718 siege of Charleston, Blackbeard threatened to kill hostages. But each time a deadline was broken by his adversaries, Blackbeard relented and spared his hostages. His fearsome demeanor -- and reputation as the only pirate to force a heavily-armed English man-of-war into retreat -- was enough to bring instant surrender. When a ship and its crew resisted, however, Blackbeard was quick to burn the ship and maroon its crew.

BURIED TREASURE

MGM/UA This scene from the 1945 film "Captain Kidd" shows Kidd (Charles Laughton, center) and crew with a treasure chest. However, pirates seldom found gold and jewelry in large quantities.

First, 18th century pirates rarely ran across merchant ships carrying gold, silver, and jewelry in any large quantity. Most merchant ships carried raw materials and foodstuffs that pirates later sold -- creating the only real bit of jingle in their pockets.

Second, most pirates were notoriously free-spending once they made landfall after months at sea. Most never had enough treasure or coin worth hiding.

Third, given a pirate's uncertain future -- who could say they might live beyond a year or that they might return to a particular spot -- there was little incentive to "bury" (or bank) their savings.

Finally, the notion of pirates banding together to bury treasure is amusing given their larcenous souls. It seems unlikely one pirate would trust another to know the whereabouts of hidden treasure.

WALKING THE PLANK

What romantic writers may have seized on is a practice called "Happy Despatch" that ancient pirates used when the Roman Empire was at its zenith. Given Rome's expansionist habits, she had many enemies -- and many of them were at sea plundering Roman vessels.

In his book "Under the Black Flag" (1925, Dial Press), Don Seitz writes: "To these gentlemen is due the distinction of inventing that chaste method called walking the plank, for it was their habit when taking a prisoner to ask him if he were Roman. Upon the victim's making a proud reply in the affirmative, they would bow low and tender their most humble services. Then, when the Roman was gulled into the belief that he had awed them to his own security, they would politely request him to mount upon the ship's ladder and step to liberty -- in the sea!"

ANARCHY ABOARD A PIRATE SHIP

Pirates prized their independence; they loathed authority. They adopted a curious form of democracy aboard ship: most captains were elected by the crew and they could be replaced by a simple vote of that crew; command was divided between the captain and the quartermaster, whose job it was to oversee how booty was divided among the crew; the captain received a larger share of the plunder, but his share was not much larger than the average crewman; the captain could not decide the punishment of prisoners; the crew often voted their own rules-aboard-ship and punishment that came from breaking those rules.

This form of governance naturally followed the economic system of piracy -- each crewman aboard a pirate ship viewed himself as an independent businessman of sorts. Each had a specific duty aboard ship and each would be compensated only if they were successful in plundering a ship. It was to everyone's advantage aboard a pirate ship that each pirate perform his duty in a "professional" manner.