Pirates, Maps and Treasure • Pirates are robbers who travel by water. They attack other ships as well as coastal towns and villages. • The idea of pirates that most people have today largely comes from stories such as Robert Louis Stevenson’s Treasure Island. • Most pirates were just ordinary people who turned to crime in order to make ends meet. • Pirate ships often had very strict rules but also tried to be fair. Captains were chosen by the crew and treasure was shared out equally. • Gold, silver and jewels were obvious targets for pirates, but medicines, food and equipment for ships were also highly prized. • Pirates have existed for thousands of years; even Roman emperor Julius Caesar was said to have been captured by pirates in his youth. • The ‘Golden Age of Piracy’ was from around 1650 to 1720. Pirates at this time included Blackbeard, Henry Morgan and Calico Jack. • Did pirates really keep parrots and say ‘arr’? See the answers to these questions from the Royal Museums Greenwich. • Older readers may enjoy Pirates! by Celia Rees, an exciting tale of two young women who take to the high seas, available on Borrowbox. • What did a map look like for 15th century pirates in the Mediterranean? Take a look at the Mercator Atlas of Europe to find out. • Mary Read and Anne Bonny were just two of the many women to live a life of piracy. Learn about other female pirates here. Infamous Pirates • Possibly the best known pirate, Blackbeard’s real name was Edward Teach, and he was born in Bristol in around 1680. • It is documented that he would put lit matches under his hat to make himself look wild and terrifying. • In 1718 he held the port of Charles Town, in South Carolina to ransom. He captured ships and sailors until his demands for medicine were met. • Sir Francis Drake was an Elizabethan admiral and was celebrated for sailing all around the world and exploring the Americas. • He is considered to be hero in England, but the Spanish saw him as a pirate. • Drake was sponsored by Queen Elizabeth to attack Spanish ships bringing treasure back from South America. • When her husband died in 1807, Madame Cheng took over his pirate business and made it even bigger. • At her height, she had control of around 1,700 ships and 70,000 men. She attacked ships in the South China sea and demanded protection money from coastal towns. • She negotiated a pardon from the Chinese government in 1810 and became a smuggler in later life. Infamous Pirates • Yes, a monk and a pirate! Eustace was born in around 1170 to the Lord of Boulogne and became a monk in an abbey at Calais. • He attacked trading ships in the English Channel. For a while he was paid by the English King John to attack French ships. • In 1212, when an old enemy became allies with King John, Eustace switched sides and worked for King Phillip of France instead. • Brothers Aruj and Hizir from North Africa’s Barbary Coast robbed ships in the Mediterranean sea in the early 16th century. • Aruj was put in charge of the Barbary Coast in 1516, a role taken over by Hizir when he died two years later. • After attacking a number of Christian ships, the pope created a ‘Holy League’ fleet to fight back against Hizir. • A well known buccaneer from the Golden Age of Piracy, Henry Morgan plundered towns in the Caribbean. • Henry Morgan was once reported to have locked the people of Puerto Príncipe, Cuba, in a church so that he could rob the town in peace. • He was arrested in 1672, but just eight years later was appointed as the governor of Jamaica. He even helped pass anti-piracy laws and arrest other pirates. Treasure Chest 1. Use the glue to stick the Treasure Chest template to the card and carefully cut it out. 2. Fold along all the lines so that the card is on the outside of the box and the template is on the inside. 3. Use the tabs on the edges of your template to stick the chest together with tape. 4. You can now decorate your treasure chest with anything you like. You can add straps to the lid or a key hole at the front. 5. Fill your treasure trunk with your precious things, or make a secret treasure map to hide inside it! Fold Fold Fold Fold Fold Fold Fold Fold G C T Q G Z U S H I P O T R E A S U R E F Z L E V E H F I G C P A D N P S T Y M E M E W G C O A E T A R I P E B K H E R N D Y V D Y N I O E L R U M L V L N J X O S L O D A N K Y Q M L H T A T C P H I D S C C E E G C W F F K J Y L G N A E C O CHEST OCEAN GALLEON PARROT GOLD PIRATE HOOK SHIP MAP TREASURE Treasure Map .