A true, century-spanning saga of terror at sea, a dramatic trial, and a mystery at long last solved . . . In 1827 the Duke of Wellington—former Commander-in-Chief of the British Army and British Prime Minister—ordered the withdrawal of British soldiers from the island of Ceylon after years of bloody conflict there. English cargo vessels, including the unarmed English Quaker ship Morning Star, were dispatched to sail to Colombo to repatriate wounded British soldiers and a cargo of sealed crates containing captured treasure. By January 1828, Morning Star was anchored at Table Bay, Cape Town, before joining an armed British convoy of East Indiamen heading north. Heavily laden, she struggled to keep up with the ships ahead. But a heavily armed pirate ship and its master, the notorious Benito de Soto, were lying in wait off Ascension Island in the mid-Atlantic to pick off stragglers from passing convoys. This book tells the full story of how Morning Star was easily overhauled by the pirate and stopped with cannon fire, the bloody events that followed, the long quest to hold de Soto to account—and the remarkable discovery that was made nearly a century later.

In 1827 the Duke of Wellington – former Commander-in-Chief of the British Army and British Prime Minister – ordered the withdrawal of British soldiers from the island of Ceylon after years of bloody conflict there. English cargo vessels, including the unarmed English Quaker ship Morning Star, were despatched to sail to Colombo to repatriate wounded British soldiers and a cargo of sealed crates containing captured treasure. By January 1828 , Morning Star was anchored at Table Bay, Cape Town, before joining an armed British convoy of East Indiamen, heading north. Heavily-laden, she struggled to keep up with the ships ahead. The notorious pirate Benito de Soto was the master of a heavily-armed pirate ship, lying in wait off Ascension Island in the mid-Atlantic to pick-off stragglers from passing convoys. Morning Star was easily overhauled by the pirate and stopped with cannon fire. Her captain and officers were executed and the attackers fled to Spain with cargo stolen from the stricken ship. Later de Soto buried the treasure and travelled to British-ruled Gibraltar with forged identity documents to sell the spoils. The authorities, however, discovered his identity and he was arrested. Despite the absence of eye-witness evidence that he was the pirate captain, he was convicted of piracy before a British judge and jury and hanged at Gibraltar in early 1830. It is clear that proof of de Soto’s guilt in court was lacking, but astonishingly, when renovations were being carried out at de Soto’s former home village in Galicia, Spain, in 1926, much of the treasures he had plundered from Morning Star were found buried in the grounds there. Almost 100 years later, British justice administered in London and Gibraltar was vindicated …

Hitching rides on a motley assortment of freighters, dhows, yachts, and fishing smacks, Kevin Rushby sailed up the east coast of Africa in search of the lost pirate settlements that, in the sixteenth century, were established on the islands and atolls in the Indian Ocean. He turned east to the islands of Comoros and Madagascar, his ultimate objective being to locate the descendants of the infamous sixteenth-century pirates-such as Captain Misson, the legendary French pirate who may have been dreamed up by Daniel Defoe; English sailor-turned-buccaneer Thomas White; and Rhode Islander Thomas Tew-who carved kingdoms for themselves in the remote jungles of northeast Madagascar. As he traveled, Rushby met up with the crackpot dreamers, tough settlers, fighters and failures who live on the coasts and islands now-where forgotten Portuguese forts lie covered in jungle, where some have tried to shoot their way to paradise, and where the ocean can destroy lives and dreams as quickly as men and women create them.

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • NAMED ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR BY CHICAGO TRIBUNE • A thrilling adventure of danger and deep-sea diving, historic mystery and suspense, by the author of Shadow Divers Finding and identifying a pirate ship is the hardest thing to do under the sea. But two men—John Chatterton and John Mattera—are willing to risk everything to find the Golden Fleece, the ship of the infamous pirate Joseph Bannister. At large during the Golden Age of Piracy in the seventeenth century, Bannister should have been immortalized in the lore of the sea—his exploits more notorious than Blackbeard’s, more daring than Kidd’s. But his story, and his ship, have been lost to time. If Chatterton and Mattera succeed, they will make history—it will be just the second time ever that a pirate ship has been discovered and positively identified. Soon, however, they realize that cutting-edge technology and a willingness to lose everything aren’t enough to track down Bannister’s ship. They must travel the globe in search of historic documents and accounts of the great pirate’s exploits, face down dangerous rivals, battle the tides of nations and governments and experts. But it’s only when they learn to think and act like pirates—like Bannister—that they become able to go where no pirate hunters have gone before. Fast-paced and filled with suspense, fascinating characters, history, and adventure, Pirate Hunters is an unputdownable story that goes deep to discover truths and souls long believed lost. Praise for Pirate Hunters “You won’t want to put [it] down.”—Los Angeles Times “An exceptional adventure . . . Highly recommended to readers who delight in adventure, suspense, and the thrill of discovering history at their fingertips.”—Library Journal (starred review) “A terrific read . . . The book gallops along at a blistering pace, shifting us deftly between the seventeenth century and the present day.”—Diver “Nonfiction with the trademarks of a novel: the plots and subplots, the tension and suspense . . . [Kurson has] found gold.”—The Dallas Morning News “Rollicking . . . a fascinating [story] about the world of pirates, piracy, and priceless treasures.”—The Boston Globe “[Kurson’s] narration is just as engrossing as the subject.”—The Christian Science Monitor “A wild ride [and an] extraordinary adventure . . . Kurson’s own enthusiasm, combined with his copious research and an eye for detail, makes for one of the most mind-blowing pirate stories of recent memory, one that even the staunchest landlubber will have a hard time putting down.”—Publishers Weekly (starred review) “The two contemporary pirate-ship seekers of Mr. Kurson’s narrative are as daring, intrepid, tough and talented as Blood and Sparrow—and Bannister. . . . As depicted by the author, they are real-life Hemingway heroes.”—The Wall Street Journal “[Kurson] takes his knowledge of the underwater world and applies it to the ‘Golden Age of Piracy’ . . . thrillingly detailing the highs and lows of chasing not just gold and silver but also history.”—Booklist “A great thriller full of tough guys and long odds . . . and: It’s all true.”—Lee Child

In April 1713 the War of the Spanish Succession came to an end. During the conflict hundreds of privateers – licenced pirates – preyed on enemy shipping throughout the Caribbean. These privateers now found themselves out of a job, and many turned to piracy. One of theme was Edward Teach – more popularly known as “Blackbeard”. He joined the pirates in New Providence (now Nassau) in the Bahamas, and by early 1717 he had become a pirate captain. From then on he caused havoc off the North American seaboard, in the West Indies and off Honduras, before appearing off Charleston, South Carolina in May 1718. He blockaded this major port for a week, an act that made Blackbeard the most notorious pirate of his day.

The author describes his voyage in search of lost pirate settlements that once dotted the atolls and islands of the Indian Ocean and his efforts to locate descendants of infamous sixteenth-century pirates.

For thousands of years pirates, privateers, and seafaring raiders have terrorized the ocean voyager and coastal inhabitant, plundering ship and shore with impunity. From the victim's point of view, these attackers were not the rebellious, romantic rulers of Neptune's realm, but savage beasts to be eradicated, and those who went to sea to stop them were heroes. Engaging and meticulously detailed, Pirate Hunting chronicles the fight against these plunderers from ancient times to the present and illustrates the array of tactics and strategies that individuals and governments have employed to secure the seas. Benerson Little lends further dimension to this unending battle by including the history of piracy and privateering, ranging from the Mycenaean rovers to the modern pirates of Somalia. He also introduces associated naval warfare; maritime commerce and transportation; the development of speed under oar, sail, and steam; and the evolution of weaponry. More than just a vivid account of the war that seafarers and pirates have waged, Pirate Hunting is invaluable reading in a world where acts of piracy are once more a significant threat to maritime commerce and voyagers. It will appeal to readers interested in the history of piracy, anti-piracy operations, and maritime, naval, and military history worldwide.

England, 1811 Diana Worthing is the wife of an English naval hero, daughter of a naval hero—she’s had quite enough of heroes, thank you. So when James Ardmore, Southern gentleman pirate hunter and thorn in the side of the British navy, abducts her from a tedious house party and spirits her off to his ship, she lets him know what she thinks of heroes. James interrogates her about the tiny island of Haven her father owns, where Diana and her father and deaf daughter retreat to escape the world. Diana resists, knowing that Captain Ardmore is an enemy of the English. But when Ardmore pins her to the wall of his cabin and asks her to sail away with him, sparks fly, and the temptation is great. But though Diana is an unhappily married woman, she has a daughter who needs her, and she refuses. James knows the island of Haven holds the secret to the pirate he’s been hunting for years. He can’t bend the beautiful Lady Worthing to his will, though James is intrigued by this woman of unquenchable fire. He lets her go, learning nothing. But he’s pleased to find himself stranded on Haven the following year, Diana Worthing now a widow, and the sparks between them just as hot.

Captain Dare and his newly hired mates set out in search of treasure, swimming through a lagoon, swinging through a jungle, and navigating other obstacles before finding the treasure, when a mouse frightens the Captain into retreat.

On 2 August 1708 Captain Woodes Rogers set sail from Bristol with two ships, the Duke and Duchess, on an epic voyage of circumnavigation that was to make him famous. His mission was to attack, plunder and pillage Spanish ships wherever he could. And, as Graham Thomas shows in this tense and exciting narrative, after a series of pursuits and sea battles he returned laden with booty and with a reputation as one of the most audacious and shrewd fighting captains of the age. He was then appointed governor of the Bahamas by George I with the task of suppressing the pirates who roamed this corner of the Caribbean and preyed on its shipping. He was equally successful as a privateer and pirate-hunter in an age when brutality and ruthlessness were the law of the sea.