Since ancient times, pirates
have harrased merchant ships on all the oceans of the world. The crime of piracy, defined as armed robbery on the high seas or assaults on land by ships, is against the laws of all nations. Pirates may be tried in all countries. Therefore pirates fly the flag of no nation, except to deceive others. In the past, pirates have defiantly flown their own flag, the skull and crossbones on a black field, which has become the well-known symbol of piracy. The flag was called the Jolly Roger. The great age of
piracy lasted from the 1500's through the 1700's. Pirates have been called a
variety of other names: buccaneers, corsairs, filibusters, freebooters, ladrones,
picaroons, and rovers. Pirates were often deperate, drunken men who dressed in tatters
and wasted food and money as soon as they got either. Notorious pirates included
Calico Jack, Black Bart, Black Beard, and Captain Kidd. But some pirates were considered national heroes and patriots. For example, Sir Henry Morgan became commander of the English forces in Jamaica. The pirate Jean Laffite helped American forces defend New Orleans in the War of 1812. Piracy was an organized business, but the motto of the pirates there was "For God and Liberty."
