Black Flags, Blue Waters is a general history of pirates, particularly those who interacted with the British colonies in North America. The author, Eric Dolin, seeks to present an accurate history that is nevertheless incredible and fascinating. He largely succeeds, though some of his mythbusting may produce disappointment when it comes to certain tales. This most of all applies to Edward Thatch, better known as Blackbeard. Blackbeard's method of applying fuses to braided facials hair and his Rasputinian duel to the death were thought up in Charles Johnson's General History of Pyrates, a history which like many of its time did not adhere to a scientific method of inquiry and was a mix of truth and fancies. You might also be surprised to learn that the Jolly Roger is only an approximate guess of what a pirate flag looked like. Reports of the time mentioned a black flag or a flag with death motifs such as skulls, but no physical flags or even drawing of them have been preserved (quite surprising).
On the other hand Dolin humanizes most of the pirates. Leaders like Blackbeard were very minimal in their use of violence. They did it enough to intimidate prey without forcing costly sea battles. The crews themselves included many sailors who escaped tyrannical sea captains and wanted a freer way to conduct business, albeit a way which often involved theft and violence. When boarding ships, they would ask the crews how well their captains treated them. If they had been mean and dictatorial, they could expect to be killed, perhaps after some nasty torture.
Black Flags, Blue Waters covers the period from the later 17th Century to 1726, the Golden Age of Piracy. Piracy's growth was fostered by a positive relationship with the North American colonies. At the time Britain burdened its overseas subjects with numerous trade regulations. Products acquired in Asia, for example, first went to Britain. The home island got first pick. The remaining goods then went tot eh American colonies at greater prices. By illegally transporting goods directly to the colonies, pirates circumvented regulations and brought wealth and superior products. Colonial governors and merchants often struck deals with pirates to benefit.
Pirates at this time were also often interchangeably with privateers, independent crews permitted to raid enemy vessels and ports. Queen Anne's War allowed them to target the French and Spanish, bringing more goods to the colonies. Less appreciated by the British government were their forays into the Indian Ocean, where they attacked Mughal vessels. American colonists, however, were fine with this, as they cared little for Muslims on the other side of the word and also got their hands on first-rate goods from the East Indies.
Dolin notes a great shift after Queen Anne's War. Many pirates found it more personally profitable to go after British vessels as well. Suddenly the colonists found their own livelihoods threatened. Pirates also began to virtually control entire islands off the American coast and in the Bahamas, and a few such as Blackbeard commanded entire fleets. Now most colonists were eager to see pirates hunted down and hanged. One notable character that Dolin spends much time on is Cotton Mather. The famed Puritan would talk to the pirates before their executions and get them to publicly condemn their own actions. As Dolin notes, Mather was hardly humble about this.
At the same time pirates grew not only bolder, but more vicious. Blackbeard was actually not all too violent beyond what was necessary to intimidate his targets. There were others, however, who went the extra mile to inflict pain on their victims. Blackbeard's ally Charles Vane had prisoners beaten and tortured in hopes this would reveal more hidden valuables. The worst covered by Dolin, however, is Edward Low, the last notable pirate covered in his book. Edward Low was given to furious outbursts and even worse than Vane when it came to torture. He made it a habit to slash off the ears of captured captains and in once case agreed to a request to pay for wine and brandy...with two pistol shots to the gut and head. Edward Low was never caught and vanished, creating some real mystique.
Black Flags, Blue Waters, like many pirate histories in the last several decades, seeks to dispel many popular myths. At the same time, however, Dolin presents a very fascinating narrative with colorful characters. It was surprising to find that some pirates were actually much nastier than Blackbeard, whose reported villainy was likely fabricated. Dolin also does a good job interweaving the theme of the pirates' relationship with the North American colonies. When they targeted Mughals and Britain's enemies there were welcomed and helped foster economic advancement and independence. But when they started to go after vessels trading to and from the colonies, they became public enemies number one. The colonies now cooperated with the home government against pirates, leading to their downfall in the 1720s.
In the epilogue Dolin notes that while pirate fiction is usually fanciful and at odds with true history, he is totally fine with it because it's so entertaining. It's nice to see an author appreciate harmless movies and literature without lambasting them for historical inaccuracies.
Rating: Highly Recommend
Rating System
Must-Read: Definite read for history in general
Highly Recommend: Definite read within a certain subject
Adequate: Useful if looking for information or an intro on a certain topic
Pass: Not a good history book, useless, or absolutely farcical
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