With the ongoing pirate standoff in Somalia, who better to write about the subject than our economics-of-piracy-loving friend Peter Leeson, who has guest-blogged here before.
Can’t Keep a Sea Dog Down: Pirates, Then and Now
By Peter Leeson
A Guest Post
Pirates are back — with a vengeance.
In previous work, I pooh-poohed the modern-pirate phenomenon.
Modern pirates, I argued, are uninteresting from a social, economic, and organizational perspective. There aren’t many of them; their crews are tiny; they spend almost no time together on their ships; and most are the fair-weather sort — fishermen who sometimes steal on the weekends and happen to do so by sea.
Because of this, modern pirates face few of the social challenges their 18th-century predecessors did. Old-school pirate crews formed pirate societies; modern pirate crews don’t. Democracy, “pirate codes,” and the other fascinating features that make 18th-century sea dogs so interesting are therefore absent among their contemporary counterparts.
The basics of this description remain valid. Most modern pirates are nothing more than “sea muggers.” But the rash of Somali piracy making headlines recently suggests some amendments to my original description may be in order. Some Somali sea scoundrels appear to be forging a “new” modern pirate crew; one that more closely resembles the colorful criminals of the 18th-century Caribbean.
What are the similarities? First, the modern pirate population has exploded and is now reasonably large. Recent estimates suggest 1,000 Somali pirates are currently active.
Second, an increasing number of these sea robbers are full-timers and spend more time together at sea.
Third, though still small, their crews appear to be growing — from only a handful of men to several dozen or more. (Interestingly, some Somali pirates have taken to describing themselves as “gentlemen who work in the ocean,” echoing 18th-century pirates who sometimes described themselves as “gentlemen of fortune.”)
These similarities have led to something closer to a modern pirate society, which in turn has led social institutions to emerge in modern pirate crews. For instance, Somali pirate crews have adopted a system for dividing booty similar to that of Blackbeard and his contemporaries. They’ve also adopted a system of social insurance as their predecessors did.
Finally, and perhaps most notably, some crews have created modern pirate codes, complete with written rules regulating how pirates may treat prisoners (their most valuable assets).
Important differences remain between modern pirates and the old-school variety. For example, while 18th-century pirates were at war with all governments, some Somali pirates appear to enjoy state sponsorship, which makes them quasi-privateers. Further, unlike old-school pirates who more or less lived in their own outlaw world, the Somali variety appear to be better integrated with “regular” society.
If piracy remains profitable for a growing number of Somalis, we can expect modern pirates’ burgeoning society to grow and become more polity-like, inching closer yet to that of their forefathers.
For now, however, 18th-century pirates have the stronger claim on our fascination. And rightly so.
Modern pirates don’t even fly flags with skulls and bones.
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At what point do quasi-privateers begin to represent semi-official action requiring retaliation against the home state?
I would have assumed that even in the 18th century, there was a lot of free-lance piracy by individuals who weren’t full-time pirates. Or was there something like Terry Pratchett’s “Thieves Guild” whereby the professional pirates tried to force the small fry out of their business?
What made 18th century pirates any less “sea muggers” than modern day pirates? We should not celebrate criminality for criminality’s sake. If anything, I think that modern-day pirates are more justified in some of their actions when you factor in the greater social inequities that exist nowadays that lead many of them to do what they do.
I’m intrigued. Please elaborate on how Blackbeard divided his booty!
How have ninjas not rectified this problem by now?
I have a real problem with this entire line of examination. First of all the pirates, then and now, are and were simply thieves. Their manner differed somewhat from the mugger who accosts a pedestrian but the essence is the same. It is true that during the golden age some pirates operated with the sanction of their home country; the Spanish, Portugese, English and Dutch were in conflict with one another and this was viewed as another avenue of attack. If Somalia has decided that it is at war with the countries from which these goods and people originate, the Western world will be more than happy to make Somalia cease to exist tomorrow.
The “pirate” problem is a simple one, independent pirates are thieves and should be dealt with as always. Modern privateers simply need to cause a hammer to come down on the supporting country and support will dry up faster than water in a desert.
BSK–I agree. We shouldn’t celebrate criminality for criminality’s sake. We may, however, be able to gain important insights into question about firm organization and self governance by looking at criminal organizations. And, as I argue in my forthcoming book (The Invisible Hook), there may be reasons to celebrate 18th-century pirates’ particular criminality.
Ben–18th-century pirates used a share system that divided booty in the following way: The captain typically received two shares. A few other officers, such as the quartermaster, received a bit less, such as 1.5 shares. Every other free crewmember received a single share. So, between pirate ‘CEO’ and ‘ordinary employee,’ the division was something like 2-to-1. At least one Somali crew seems to have adopted a similar, though somewhat more progressive, division on the order of 2.5-to-1.
RE: your graphic–With names like “Beledweyne”, “Wanleweyn”, and “Ceeldheere,” at first glance I thought this was a map of Suburban Philly! (which has Welsh-named places like Bala Cynwyd and Bryn Mawr)
Carry on with the pirate discussion…