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During the War 1812, US and Canadian privateers fought most of the naval battles between the United States and Great Britain. These privateers were comprised of captains who were motivated by the promise of profit to fight for their countries. There was a strong legal framework in both the United States and Great Britain that normalized piracy. Canadian and American ship owners and investors took advantage of it and funded privateering outfits during the war. Needless to say, privateers were incredibly risky investments.

Once I got to know the Atlantic Canadian privateers, I decided to see how American privateering compared. I wondered why so little was written about US privateering and many years later, I can see why. Compared to the 45 New Brunswick and Nova Scotia privateers from the War of 1812 and their few hundred prizes, I have found over 600 American privateers who captured nearly 2,000 prizes, although not even half of them made it to port. The documents are sparse and spread over half a dozen national and state archives collections, numerous historical societies and state and university libraries. It has been a multi-year Easter Egg hunt and even after writing my book, I am still finding out new things. Just last week I found another privateer.

Privateering was a huge risk for the ship’s owners, the men who put up the several thousand dollar bond for the ship’s good behaviour and the crew who put their lives on the line to take the prizes. Because it was often the only alternative to leaving a ship at anchor for the duration of the war, owners and merchants weighed the possibility of no profit against that of a potential fortune and decided whether or not to request a commission. There were, in fact, two options. A ship owner could obtain a letter of marque but prepare his ship for a regular trading voyage. He might add a few more men and guns in case a prize came along, but the crew would be paid wages and the vessel’s main purpose was trade. On the other hand, he could decide to forego any pretense of trade, take on extra guns and men, and go out and cruise against enemy shipping as a privateer. In that case, the crew signed Articles of Agreement in which they agreed to work for shares of any prizes they might take. Once all the court costs, duties and other fees were paid, the profits were shared equally between the owners (who supplied the ship and guns and outfitted it for the cruise) and the officers and crew (who sailed and fought it).

<i>'''How did you become a privateer? Is there a strong legal basis for privateering?'''</i>

Becoming a privateer was easy – becoming a successful privateer was not. The key to privateering was the letter of marque. A ship did not dare leave port without it. Most privateers carried several copies of their commission so that the prize master of a captured ship could prove that the prize was a legitimate capture if it were recaptured by the Royal Navy. As a rule, privateers were exempted from being pressed into the British navy and that was a very valuable protection. Because privateers were privately owned, crews tended to be local men and boys who were known to the ship owner or the captain. Many were related or had sailed together on merchant voyages before the war. Captains or ships with a good reputation as prize takers never had any problem finding a crew. Others might place an ad in a couple of local newspapers announcing a ‘rendez-vous’ for a given date and place, attracting crews with promises of making their fortune. There might even be a fife and drum on site to march the recruits down to the dock where the ship lay waiting. By the end of the war, when the British blockade sealed up port after port and the number of prizes was declining, men were less likely to join a privateer and captains might have to stop at a couple of ports to get a large enough crew.

You don’t need to watch many pirate movies before you realize why privateering needed a strong legal framework. The first known letter of marque dates from the thirteenth century. It provided a solution for a merchant whose goods were stolen by citizens of a country where the victim’s sovereign had no power. One ruler was not likely to declare war on another just because one of his subject’s ships had been taken by pirates flying the other king’s flag. Instead, he could give the victim a letter of marque, allowing him to take only the value of the goods he lost from a subject of the other king’s. That way, the new victim could claim justice from his own sovereign who could either personally pay his subject for the loss or pursue the pirates within his own realm for compensation. It was a practical solution to an international legal problem at a time when there were no state navies to protect ships at sea. After this concept expanded into compensating for losses suffered during wartime, it gradually became applicable only at times of war. Eventually, it became the resort of any nation without a strong naval force.

Privateering also had to develop some controls. For example, if a ship were captured and all the crew killed or marooned, there was only the captor’s word that the ship had been found abandoned and carried in. Thus, it became necessary to bring at least one member of a captured crew back with the ship to testify under oath that the ship had been legally seized. Similarly with the cargo: a ship with a valuable cargo was especially tempting, so it became illegal to open or tamper with the cargo, an offense known as ‘breaking bulk’. Such a thing could mean loss of the prize.

<i>'''While you were working on this project, what surprised you the most?'''</i>

One of the biggest surprises was how dangerous privateering actually was and how little people seemed to take that into account. Probably because of the risk of any seafaring activity, people were willing to accept shipwreck, storms, disease, accidents, lightning strikes, etc. as simply part of the job at sea. When training accidents, combat, capture and imprisonment were added to the equation, young men were still ready to sign on to a privateer for three to six months at sea. Various ships logs describe men being put in irons for drunkenness, petty theft and other misdemeanours, but there do not seem to be any floggings or cruelty by the captains. In fact one is mentioned as getting into brawls with his own men and sorting them out.

Instead of the history of officers, admirals, politicians or great leaders, my book is about privateers, a pretty ordinary segment of maritime society who have a lot more in common with today’s high school or university student than they would think. Like many of today’s jobs, privateering was “part-time”, temporary work until the war was over and men could go back to their regular pursuits. Students should have little trouble imagining themselves as privateers and speculating what prizes they would take and why. Read the book and then watch Errol Flynn or Johnny Depp and compare fact and fiction. Or better yet, get the students to make a privateer movie. Of course, I will expect a percentage.

You are very welcome.

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