As we all know, we live in a world
where rules must be followed, even if they are something we do not agree on. We
have laws that we have to abide by, and although we might consider pirates to
be lawless individuals, they had laws they had to live by as well if they did
not want to face death.
In the 1700's, Bartholomew Roberts,
also known as Black Bart, set out the Pirate Code. This code consisted of
"laws" that each and every pirate had to abide by and honor. This
helped keep order on the ships and allowed every pirate a set of rights, as
well as restrictions for them. If these codes were not honored, the pirates
were put to death or abandoned on an island, which was known as marooning.
These codes
were not in any way harsh towards the pirates but served in a positive way towards
them that guaranteed them their share of the booty. The Pirate Codes states, “The
captain and the quartermaster shall each receive two shares of a prize, the
master gunner and boatswain, one and one half shares, all other officers one
and one quarter, and private gentlemen of fortune one share each.” This was
necessary to make sure the pirates were not being sold short by the Captain.
Although
pirates lived off stealing from other people, they were not allowed to steal
from each other. According to Pirate Documents, “they contented themselves with
slitting the ears and nose of him that was guilty.” This helped keep the men
from being tempted to steal or betray each other on board the ships.
While
partaking in attacks and the sacking of cities, some pirates tended to get hurt
while doing so. This meant that some pirates lost their limbs or were crippled;
this is where the Pirate Code, again was beneficial to them. Hurt crew members
were offered, “800 pieces of eight of the common stock,” which was like, what
we know today as a disability check or settlement check.
One
of the Pirate Codes listed in Pirate Documents is, “Every man has a vote in the
affairs of the moment.” This meant that the pirates could help make decision,
whereas they were not ruled by the captain and had no say in what went on in
the ship. They had a democracy form of “government” within them.
Pirate
Codes served in favor of all crew members including the Captain and the crew. I
believe this allowed their travels together to go smooth sailing and allowed “justice
to be served” among themselves rather than acting on emotions and causing unnecessary
chaos.
Sources Consulted:
Pirate
Documents, “Bartholomew Roberts’ Shipboard Articles 1721.”
The Pirate Code (Provided by Dr. Harris
on D2L)
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