An historical study of piracy in the ancient Greek and Roman world.

Now available in paperback, Omerod's classic Piracy in the Ancient World brings the treachery of the ancient high seas alive. Drawing on the works of Homer and Thucydides and the historical records that have survived from ancient Greece and Rome, Ormerod reconstructs the dangers of coastal living and seafaring and the attempts to protect against the threat of invasion from the seas. Seaborne brigands were greatly feared in the ancient world. Pirates not only preyed on merchant ships and fishing craft in the Mediterranean but also wreaked havoc on coastal townstaking men, women, and children to ransom or sell as slaves; raiding treasures; and exacting tribute from fearful town leaders. Responding to the threat of piracy, the Greeks established their primary cities inland for protection and even in their North African and Sicilian outposts they left coastal land uncultivated. Mariners feared pirate ships around every promontory and sought protection from the navies of such states as Rhodes and Crete. The Romans were beset in the time of their early Republic by "Tyrreanean" pirates based in the south of Italy and during the last years of the Empire by the Cilician pirates of Asia Minor. When one great pirate, Sextus Pompeiius, was finally suppressed, rather than being punished he was charged with ridding the seas of his former followers. His attempts failed. Now available in paperback, Ormerod's classic Piracy in the Ancient World brings the treachery of the ancient high seas alive. Drawing on the works of Homer and Thucydides and the historical records that have survived from ancient Greece and Rome, Ormerod reconstructs the dangers of coastal living and seafaring and the attempts to protect against the threat of invasion from the seas. He describes the general nature of early piracy, ancient navigation, and the pirate's routines and tactics.

Much imitated but never surpassed, this chronicle ranges from ancient to modern times to explore the rise of piracy. A dramatic narrative and colorful characters complement its impeccable scholarship. 21 black-and-white illustrations.

Angus Konstam setssail through the brutal history of piracy, separating myth from legend and fact from fiction. Pirates takes us into the depths of the pirate’s dark world, examining the many colorful characters from Cretans and Vikings to French corsairs and the British rogues of the golden age of piracy, such as Blackbeard and Captain Kidd and even two women pirates, Mary Read and Ann Bonny, who became pregnant to avoid execution. A blood-soaked, riveting account, itprovides a complete history of the fearsome threat on the high seas from the marauders in the pages of antiquity to the Somali pirates in the headlines of today.

Piracy, Pillage, and Plunder in Antiquity explores appropriation in its broadest terns in the ancient world, from brigands, mercenaries and state-sponsored piracy, to literary appropriation and the modern plundering of antiquities. The chronological extent of the studies in this volume, written by an international group of experts, ranges from about 2000 BCE to the 20th century. The geographical spectrum in similarly diverse, encompassing Africa, the Mediterranean, and Mesopotamia, allowing readers to track this phenomenon in various different manifestations. Predatory behaviour is a phenomenon seen in all walks of life. While violence may often be concomitant it is worth observing that predation can be extremely nuanced in its application, and it is precisely this gradation and its focus that occupies the essential issue in this volume. Piracy, Pillage, and Plunder in Antiquity will be of great interest to those studying a range of topics in antiquity, including literature and art, cities and their foundations, crime, warfare, and geography.

Highly illustrated with colour images and specially commissioned maps throughout, this is a unique exploration of the pirate world. Often romanticised in print and on the silver screen, real-life pirates were a brutal menace that plagued the high seas. In this book, Angus Konstam separates myth from reality, tracing the history of piracy through the centuries, from the pirates who plagued the Ancient Egyptians to the Viking raids and on to the era of privateers. He discusses the so-called 'Golden Age of Piracy' and colourful characters such as Blackbeard and Captain Kidd, before examining the West's initial encounters with Eastern pirates off the Chinese coast and the phenomenon of the modern pirate.

“Thoroughly engrossing . . . a spirited, suspenseful, economically told tale whose significance is manifest and whose pace never flags.” —The Wall Street Journal From The New York Times–bestselling author of The Ghost Map and Extra Life, the story of a pirate who changed the world Henry Every was the seventeenth century’s most notorious pirate. The press published wildly popular—and wildly inaccurate—reports of his nefarious adventures. The British government offered enormous bounties for his capture, alive or (preferably) dead. But Steven Johnson argues that Every’s most lasting legacy was his inadvertent triggering of a major shift in the global economy. Enemy of All Mankind focuses on one key event—the attack on an Indian treasure ship by Every and his crew—and its surprising repercussions across time and space. It’s the gripping tale of one of the most lucrative crimes in history, the first international manhunt, and the trial of the seventeenth century. Johnson uses the extraordinary story of Henry Every and his crimes to explore the emergence of the East India Company, the British Empire, and the modern global marketplace: a densely interconnected planet ruled by nations and corporations. How did this unlikely pirate and his notorious crime end up playing a key role in the birth of multinational capitalism? In the same mode as Johnson’s classic nonfiction historical thriller The Ghost Map, Enemy of All Mankind deftly traces the path from a single struck match to a global conflagration.

Subjects and sovereigns -- The claims of religion -- The age of piracy -- The Ottoman Mediterranean -- The pursuit of justice -- At the Tribunale -- The turn toward Rome.

A wonderful chronicle of thievery murder and torture on the high seas all in a beautiful oversized book