And now more fun facts about pirates.   

If you were a pirate, and you broke a rule, the most common punishment was to be marooned or beached on the nearest island. So they would drop you off on the nearest island with just a flagon of water, and a pistol. So it was up to you to either survive or die. Now since most of the islands in the Caribbean were small islands of sand, most men died. 

If you were a notorious pirate captain and they caught you, they really wanted to make an example out of you. They would embalm you in tar; hang you in irons by the waters edge until you deteriorated into nothing. 

Pirates often wore very colorful and mismatched clothing. That is because they acquired their wardrobe from the ships that they would plunder. So for instance, if they plundered a merchant ship, and they liked the merchants clothing, then the next day they would be wearing the merchant’s clothes. However, they did take pride in their appearance and they would never ever wear the clothing that belonged to a British sailor. It’s the stripped clothing that they refer to as … 

In the movies, you might see the captain directing the men, but that’s not how it was. The captain led the men into battle. The person who actually directed the men and told them what to driving the ship was the pilot. 

When you think of pirates, you might also think of buried treasure. Well the fact is that most pirates never buried their treasure. Once they got it, they spent it as fast as they could. 

Mutinies were a little more democratic than you might think.  If the crew wasn’t happy with the captain, they would simply vote him out and vote in a new captain to take his place. 

Walking the plank was also an invention of Hollywood. Pirates actually had a more creative way of punishment. It was called heel hauling. What they did was they would attach a rope to one side of the boat and they would attach you to the other side of the rope. Then they would drag you under the boat and so you would hit all of the barnacles and the rest of the debris that gets caught on the bottom of the boat and it would rip open your skin. And if they did it slow enough, you would drown. 

When we think of pirates, we typically think about men. Well what about the women? Interestingly enough, one of the most powerful pirates in history to go down was a woman. Once a prostitute, lady Gin Shi of China became a pirate and in the early 1800’s she commanded a fleet of over 100 ships. 

Many slaves became pirates; in fact, there’s evidence of a pirate ship completely made up of slaves. 

You may be surprised to find out that you were a buccaneer yourself. Do you barbeque? Buccaneer comes from the word beau can, which means preparing me in a way similar to barbeque. Pirates would go to islands and kill wild boar and cattle and cook meat over an open flame. They would use that meet to barter with ships that were seeking provision. So if you barbeque at home, you minus well call yourself a buccaneer.   

You’ve probably heard the term “Davey Jones’s locker.” Well Davey Jones wasn’t a pirate. Davey Jones is another name for the devil. So if you got sent to Davey Jones’s locker, you got sent to hell. 

Slave ships were very large and highly manned. That’s why pirates usually wouldn’t attack them. However, when they would attack them, they would take the slaves from the ship and sell them at the next port. 

Pirates pierced their ears. Not to look suave, but they believed that piercing their ears with precious metals, such as gold and silver, would improve their eyesight. Now pirates weren’t the only ones who believed this. Other sailors believed this as well. 

Pirate captains kept their ships very full of crewmembers. They had about twice as many crewmembers as a colonial ship, or another ship that they would attack. That only worked to their advantage. Not only in the plundering, but also with their work. Work was evenly distributed throughout the crewmembers. So it was done faster and less strain than other colonial ships. So a birth on a pirated ship was often referred to as easy money for little work. 

So here’s a question for you. Do I look better with my glasses on or off? 

In a future video, we’re going to be doing interesting facts about pigs. Now I actually have a pet potbelly pig. His name is Piggins so you’re going to be able to meet him. 

And in another video, interesting facts about glasses. 

Thanks again for watching. If you have any questions please leave a comment and rate my video. See you next time!