Pirate Pack (4 eBooks - PDFs)

Pirate Pack (4 eBooks - PDFs)

Alfred S. Bradford & Pamela M. Bradford - Flying the Black Flag: A Brief History of Piracy (2007)

"Many peoples throughout history have fought pirates," writes Alfred Bradford in Flying the Black Flag. "Some have lost and some have won. We should learn from their experience." From Odysseus--the original pirate of literature and lore--through Blackbeard and the feared pirates of the Spanish Main, his book reveals the strategies and methods pirates used to cheat, lie, kill, and rob their way into the historical record, wreaking terror in their bloody wakes.

The story begins with a discussion of Piracy and the Suppression of Piracy in the Ancient World. It details, for example, how the Illyrians used pirate vessels to try to wrest control of the Adriatic Coast from the mighty Romans, as well as how the intrepid Vikings went from pirate raids to the conquest of parts of Western Europe.

Moving into the 17th century and to the New World, Bradford depicts the golden age of the pirates. Here are the Spanish Buccaneers and the fabled Caribbean stronghold of Tortuga. Here are Henry Morgan, Captain Kidd, and their fearsome counterparts. But piracy was hardly just a Western phenomenon. "The Barbary Pirates" looks East to examine the struggle between Christian and Muslim in the Mediterranean, while "To the Shores of Tripoli" details the American conflict with the Barbary Pirates. It reveals the lessons of a war conducted across a great distance against a nebulous enemy, a war in which victory was achieved only by going after the pirates' sponsor. On the South China Coast, we meet the first Dragon Lady, leader of Chinese pirates.

As intriguing as these tales of the past are in and of themselves, the stories and their swashbuckling villains hold lessons for us even today. In "Conclusions and Reflections," Bradford gathers all of the chords together, discussing the conditions under which piracy arises, the conditions under which pirates organize and become more powerful, and the methods used to suppress piracy. Finally, he examines similarities between pirates and terrorists--and whether the lessons learned from the wars against pirates of the past might also apply to modern day terrorists.

"At the center of the book's jacket illustration, a bearded, bloodthirsty pirate captain brandishes a cutlass with which he is about to split an embattled naval officer's skull. Desperate men shooting, slashing, stabbing, and throttling one another surround the captain and the officer. The dead and dying litter the deck. Prospective readers might assume that this scene, when considered with the black flag that is part of the title, indicates the book is about piracy from the early 1600s to about 1725. If so, they would be dead wrong!... There is a good deal of material on Greek and Roman piracy that will probably be new to all but the most dedicated piracy buffs.

ALFRED S. BRADFORD is the John Saxon Professor of Ancient History at the University of Oklahoma. He earned his Ph.D. in Classical Languages and Literature from the University of Chicago. He served with the 1/27th Infantry in Vietnam. He has been a research assistant and a member at the Institute for Advanced Study, Princeton.

Publisher: Praeger (2007)
ISBN: 0275977811

Janice E. Thomson - Mercenaries, Pirates, & Sovereigns (1993)

The contemporary organization of global violence is neither timeless nor natural, argues Janice Thomson. It is distinctively modern. In this book she examines how the present arrangement of the world into violence-monopolizing sovereign states evolved over the six preceding centuries. Tracing the activities of mercenaries, pirates, mercantile companies, and sovereigns from the Mediterranean to the Northwest Territories, the author addresses compelling questions: Why do we have centralized bureaucracies-- states--which claim a monopoly on violence? Why is this monopoly based on territorial boundaries? Why is coercion not an international market commodity? Thomson maintains that the contemporary monopolization of violence by sovereign states results from the collective practices of rulers, all seeking power and wealth for their states and themselves, and all competing to exploit extraterritorial nonstate violence to achieve those ends. She examines the unintended consequences of such acts, and shows how individual states eventually fell victim to nonstate violence. As rulers became increasingly aware of the problems created by nonstate coercive tactics abroad, they worked together to curtail this violence, only to find it intertwined with nonstate violence on the national state level. Exploring the blurred boundaries between the domestic and international, the economic and political, and the state and nonstate realms of authority, this book addresses practical and theoretical issues underlying the reconciliation of violence with political legitimacy.

Publisher: Princeton University Press (1994)
ISBN: 0691086583

Stephen Turnbull & Richard Hook - (Warrior) Pirate of the Far East: 811-1639 (2007)

For many centuries, international relations between Medieval Japan, Korea and China were carried out by means of the 'inseparable trinity' of war, trade and piracy. Much has been written about the first two means of interaction. The third element, which combined the other two in a violent blend of free enterprise, is the subject of this original and exciting book. It is written by Stephen Turnbull, who has visited all three countries in search of the elusive pirates of the Far East.

Stephen Turnbull is recognized as one of the world's foremost military historians of the medieval and early modern periods. He first rose to prominence as a result of his 1977 book, The Samurai: A Military History. Since then he has achieved equal fame in writing about European military subjects and has published over 50 books. He always tries to concentrate on the less familiar areas of military history, in particular such topics as Korea, Eastern Europe, the Baltic states and the Teutonic Knights. The author lives in Leeds, UK.

Publisher: Osprey Publishing (2007)
ISBN: 1846031745

Angus Konstam & Tony Bryan - (New Vanguard) Pirate Ship: 1660-1730 (2003)

The deeds and personalities of famous pirates have received significant attention in recent years: however, no detailed depiction of their vessels has ever been produced. This title redresses the imbalance, conducting a detailed exploration of the wide variety of pirate vessels that sailed the high seas during the 'golden age' of piracy (1690–1730), from gun-bristling warships to smaller craft such as sloops, brigantines and early schooners. It incorporates the latest archaeological evidence to produce a fascinating account of these vessels, detailing their origins, development and tactical engagement. Packed with contemporary illustrations and superbly detailed colour artwork, the ships of the 'golden age' are brought vividly to life.

Angus Konstam, from the Orkney Islands, is the author of over 15 books, many of which are published by Osprey. Formerly the Curator of Weapons at the Royal Armouries, the Tower of London, he also served as the Chief Curator of the Mel Fisher Maritime Museum in Key West, Florida. Currently based in London, he combines a freelance museum consultancy business with a career as a historian and writer.

Publisher: Osprey Publishing (2003)
ISBN: 1841764973

Related Downloads:

Angus Konstam - Privateers and Pirates: 1730-1830 (2001) - http://tracker.concen.org/torrents-details.php?id=14571

Angus Konstam - Scourge of the Seas: Buccaneers, Pirates and Privateers (2007) - http://tracker.concen.org/torrents-details.php?id=10097