The shipping these pirates preyed upon was subject to the vagaries of the marketplace and of the political situation in Europe, but they tended to follow long-established trade routes. The leading ports of the Western Mediterranean – Valencia, Barcelona, Marseilles, Genoa, Naples, Palermo, Messina and Syracuse – all relied on coastal trade linking them together, and were also the termini of longer sea routes running between Sicily or Italy and Spain, passing to the south of Sardinia. To the east, Venice dominated trade in the Central Mediterranean, and much of this passed through waters within the Ottoman sphere of influence – the Aegean Sea, or along the southern coast of Asia Minor to the Levant.
The 17th century saw the growth of trade between northern Europe and the Mediterranean, and by the middle of the century the Levantine trade was almost wholly dominated by the Dutch and English. By that time (the end of our period) privateering was complicated by the signing of individual treaties with the Barbary states that involved the payment of ‘protection money’. Venetian merchants claimed that these arrangements favoured the Dutch and the English: by such means the northerners’ ships became immune to pirate attacks, which was cited as one of the reasons for the decline in Venetian trade during the century.
Battle tactics
The Barbary pirate captain was essentially a slave-hunter – to him, taking a ship at sea was less about material plunder than the capture of the crew. Similarly, they could achieve the same ends by raiding the coast of a Christian country. As already noted, such attacks were usually carried out by no more than a handful of vessels, their combined crews being counted in the low hundreds rather than the thousands. It was only when summoned to join an Ottoman fleet for a specific campaign that larger numbers of Barbary vessels were grouped into fleets manned by thousands of fighting men. The captives taken then would be far more numerous than the usual score or so of seamen and villagers; this level of force allowed the attackers to raid larger ports, or to range further inland to attack unsuspecting towns several miles from the sea. By the 16th century a string of small lookout towers already dotted the Christian coasts of the Western Mediterranean, where many of them can still be seen today. These might give the locals some warning of a raid, and thus a chance to flee inland.
Occasionally, pirates – particularly the ‘Sallee Rovers’ from Morocco’s Atlantic coast – would sweep as far north as the British Isles or, on one notable occasion, the coast of Iceland, but most raids were confined to the Mediterranean coasts of Spain, France and Italy. During larger raids it was common to seize a town as a defensible forward base, from which to launch expeditions inland. While Christian accounts complain about the looting of churches (including their bronze bells, presumably for Barbary gun-foundries), most smaller raids involved a stealthy nocturnal attack, the throwing of a cordon around a village, and then a systematic search for potential slaves. As the 16th century wore on some coastlines actually became depopulated as villagers and farmers moved inland for safety. Larger villages and towns were fortified, and a mutual defence system was created so that troops could respond quickly to help the locals resist raiders. In the 17th century some pirates even complained about the lack of human prey; one expedition encountered no potential captives apart from two youths swimming off a beach and a small boat manned by a pair of fishermen.
This scarcity of victims was less of a problem at sea, as the waters of the Western and Central Mediterranean remained busy throughout the period, and the business of hunting for prizes was reasonably straightforward. First, the privateers had to spot a potential victim; this could be done either by a lookout stationed at the masthead, or else from the high ground of an island lair. (In 1504, when Oruç Reis attacked the Papal flagship, he had posted lookouts on high ground on the island of Elba.) The privateers then shot out from behind the cover of a headland and caught the passing ship unawares. These ‘ambush sites’ were particularly useful in places where shipping had to pass through a bottleneck, such as the waters between Corsica and Sardinia, the Strait of Messina, or the passage between Sicily and Cape Bon. When the Spanish writer Miguel de Cervantes was captured by Barbary pirates in 1575 he noted that his captors beached their prizes in a secluded bay on the coast of the French Camargue, presumably a favoured hiding-place because its marshes made for difficult access from inland.
A Barbary pirate galiot (left) and galley (right) take on a well-armed Spanish merchant ship, in this early 17th-century painting by an unknown Spanish artist. In reality the pirates would do their utmost to avoid the broadside guns of their adversary as they closed with it.
It was said that once Barbary pirates sighted a prize it was already doomed to capture, which reflected the edge in speed that they usually enjoyed over a lumbering merchant ship. Barbary sailing vessels were noted for carrying more sail than other ships of their size, while galleys and galiots were careened between cruises – about once every two months–to keep their lower hulls free of weed and barnacles. When this was done the pirates also coated the lower hull with wax to make it slide through the water more easily. Typically, a galley could make up to 8 knots under sail (9½mph/14kph). While a good rowing speed was about half that, practised and highly motivated oarsmen could propel a galley at up to 12 knots (14mph / 22kph) for short bursts, until the rowers grew too tired to keep up the pace. Here the pirates had an edge over other galleys, because if slaves were used captains were able to select them from among prime seamen, used to hard conditions and to rowing.
The mid 17th century might have brought the golden age of the Barbary pirates to an end, but they continued to prey on shipping intermittently for more than another 150 years. This early 19th-century watercolour shows a privateering frigate, with only the flag of Algiers to distinguish it from a contemporary European warship.
To lure their prey within range Barbary corsairs would often dress as Christian seamen, keeping their distinctive janissaries hidden and flying false colours. This long-established pirate trick could be surprisingly effective. In 1665, Le Sieur de Chastelet des Boyes described his capture by a vessel powered by both sail and oar, its flags ‘covered with crescents, suns and stars’. It fled when a group of six new vessels appeared, flying Dutch flags. The French ship headed towards these craft: ‘But alas, as soon as we were within musket shot the Dutch flags disappeared, and the masts and the poops were simultaneously shaded by flags of taffeta of all colours, enriched and embroidered with stars, crescents, suns, crossed swords and other devices and writings unknown.’
He added that the Barbary flagship was well armed, and opened fire on his vessel. For most privateers the aim was to persuade the victim to surrender without putting up a fight, so as they closed in they would usually fire guns as a warning. If this did not bring about an immediate surrender the pirate ship would close fast, her decks lined with men making as much noise as possible – yelling abuse, firing muskets, banging drums, blowing trumpets, and beating the side of their ship with the flat of their swords. (In De Chastelet’s case he heard them shouting ‘Brébé, mena pero!’ – ‘Surrender, dogs!’) If the pirate vessel were a galley or galiot then it would run its raised prow close alongside the merchantman’s hull and fire swivel guns across its decks before the pirates boarded. If available, janissaries would lead the attack, armed either with their muskets or wielding sword and shield. Few European crews were willing to stand up to them in a fight, and most boarding actions ended quickly with the defenders throwing down their weapons.
There were exceptions, however. English and Dutch seamen were more likely to resist than the crews of Mediterranean vessels, and the northern European ships in those waters tended to be larger and better armed than many others. It was believed that a spirited defence using the ship’s broadside guns would usually persuade most Barbary pirates to go off in search of easier prey. Sometimes, however, these larger roundships were becalmed, or overwhelmed by sheer weight of numbers. If surrender was inevitable some crews were known to take to the boats after setting fire to th
eir ship, or laying a fuse to the magazine, to deny their attackers the prize.
Once a prize was captured, the pirates – again, led by the janissaries – would search the vessel for plunder, as well as the passengers and crew. Obviously wealthy passengers or officers were particularly sought after, as they could be ransomed for large sums. Servants or seamen were less lucrative, and would inevitably find themselves taken to the slave-markets when the pirates returned to port. If capture seemed inevitable the victims would often swallow their money, the rich would exchange clothes with their servants (perhaps a foolish move), and men would hide their valuables where they could. The pirates were wise to these tricks, and examined their captives closely; the hands and the teeth were the best indications of rank and status, while beating or the administration of a salt-water emetic would usually result in the retrieval of hidden or swallowed money. There are very few accounts of women prisoners being mistreated by Barbary pirates. The janissaries were under strict orders to protect female captives, and the sailors followed their lead. However, like the male prisoners, they were now destined to be sold as slaves in the marketplaces of Salé, Algiers, Tunis or Tripoli.
Christian captives being landed on the harbour front of a Barbary port, presumably Algiers, in one of a series of 17th-century engravings depicting the plight of Christian slaves. While much of the scene may be fanciful, it highlights the very real importance of slaves to the Barbary economy right up to the 19th century.
If the prize was a galley, Muslim slaves would immediately be freed, while Christian captives – the former crew – would be chained at the oars in their place. Once the pirates had gathered enough captives or taken enough prizes they returned to port. Their arrival was usually a triumphant affair, with flags flying, guns fired in celebration, and onlookers flocking to the shore to see the latest crop of Christian slaves being unloaded. For all the attempts of the Christian powers to put the pirates out of business, this scene would be repeated on the Barbary Coast not only throughout our period, but also as late as the early 19th century.
FURTHER READING
Bradford, Ernle, The Sultan’s Admiral (London; Hodder & Stoughton, 1968)
Crowley, Robert, Empires of the Sea: The Final Battle for the Mediterranean 1521–1580 (Faber & Faber Ltd; London, 2008)
Dearden, Seton, A Nest of Corsairs: The Fighting Karamanlis of the Barbary Coast (John Murray; London, 1976)
Earle, Peter, Corsairs of Malta and Barbary (Sidgwick & Jackson Ltd; London, 1970)
Falconer, William, Falconer’s Marine Dictionary (David & Charles; Newton Abbot, 1970. Reprint of original first published in 1769)
Gardiner, Robert (ed), Cogs, Caravels and Galleons: The Sailing Ship 1000–1650 (Conway Maritime Press; London, 1994)
Gardiner, Robert (ed), The Age of the Galley: Mediterranean Oared Vessels since Pre-Classical Times (Conway Maritime Press; London, 1995)
Guilmartin Jr., John F., Gunpowder and Galleys: Changing Technology and Mediterranean Warfare at Sea in the Sixteenth Century (Cambridge University Press; Cambridge, 1980)
Guilmartin Jr., John F., Galleons and Galleys (Cassell; London, 2002)
Heers, Jacques, The Barbary Corsairs: Warfare in the Mediterranean, 1480–1580 (Greenhill Books; London, 2003). First published as Les Barbaresques: La course et la guerre en Mediterranée, XIV–XVI siècle (Editions Perrin; Paris, 2001)
Jamieson, Alan G., Lords of the Sea: A History of the Barbary Corsairs (Reaktion Books Ltd; London, 2012)
Kempf, Peter (ed), The Oxford Companion of Ships and the Sea (Oxford University Press; Oxford, 1976)
Konstam, Angus, Renaissance War Galley 1470–1590, New Vanguard 62 (Osprey Publishing; Oxford, 2002)
Landström, Björn, The Ship: An Illustrated History (Interpublishing AB; Stockholm, 1961)
Lloyd, Christopher, English Corsairs on the Barbary Coast (Collins; London, 1981)
Malcolm, Noel, Agents of Empire: Knights, Corsairs, Jesuits and Spies in the Sixteenth Century Mediterranean World (Allen Lane; London, 2015)
Marquardt, Karl Heinz, Eighteenth-Century Rigs & Rigging (Conway Maritime Press; London, 1992)
Platt, Richard, ‘Corsairs of the Mediterranean’ in Cordingly, David (ed) Pirates (Turner Publishing Ltd; Atlanta, GA, 1996)
Rogers, William L., Naval Warfare under Oars, 4th to 16th Centuries: A Study of Tactics, Strategy and Ship Design (Naval Institute Press; Annapolis, MD, 1967)
Tenenti, Alberto, Piracy and the Decline of Venice, 1580–1615 (Longmans, Green & Co Ltd; London, 1967)
Tinniswood, Adrian, Pirates of Barbary: Corsairs, Conquests and Captivity in the 17th-Century Mediterranean (Jonathan Cape; London, 2010)
Author
Angus Konstam hails from the Orkney Islands, and is the author of over 80 books, 60 of which are published by Osprey. This acclaimed and widely published author has written several books on piracy, including The History of Pirates, and Blackbeard: America’s Most Notorious Pirate. A former naval officer and museum professional, he worked as the Curator of Weapons at the Tower of London and as the Chief Curator of the Mel Fisher Maritime Museum in Key West, Florida. He now works as a full-time author and historian, and lives in Edinburgh, Scotland.
Illustrator
Gerry Embleton has been a leading illustrator and researcher of historical costume since the 1970s, and has illustrated and written Osprey titles on a wide range of subjects for more than 40 years. He is an internationally respected authority on 15th and 18th century costumes in particular. He lives in Switzerland, where since 1988 he has also become well known for designing and creating life-size historical figures for museums.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
The author wishes to record his gratitude to Dr David Nicolle and to Gerry Embleton for their generous assistance with illustration research. Similarly, his thanks go to galley warfare ‘practitioner’ Thomas Foss, who helped rekindle his enthusiasm for this subject and period.
ARTIST’S NOTE
Readers may care to note that the original paintings from which the colour plates in this book were prepared are available for private sale. All reproduction copyright whatsoever is retained by the Publishers. All enquiries should be addressed to:
www.gerryembleton.com
The Publishers regret that they can enter into no correspondence upon this matter
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The Barbary Pirates 15th-17th Centuries Page 8