The famous female pirate Zheng Yi Sao was also known under several other names, including Ching Shih. Not much is known about her early life except that she was of poor and humble origins. Despite that, she ended up commanding a pirate fleet consisting of as many as 70,000 men at its peak. It is known that she was born sometime around 1775 in southern China, possibly in Xinhui, which lies on the coast of the Guangdong province, to a family of fishermen. No-one is really sure of her real name, although it is thought to have been Shi Yang back then. She was later known as Zheng Yi Sao, meaning Ching’s wife, or Ching Shih, meaning Ching’s widow. It is often claimed that she might have started out as a prostitute, later marrying the most powerful pirate leaders, Zheng Yi, in 1801. She had two sons with Zheng Yi: Zheng Yingshi, born in 1803, and Zheng Xiongshi, born in 1807.…
Coins in the American colonies
There was a lack of coins in Britain’s American colonies, one reason being that in the 17th and 18th centuries, it was illegal to export British silver coinage to the colonies, although copper coins could be legally used. Additionally, colonists weren’t allowed to mint their own coins as this was solely a royal prerogative. In place of British silver coins, those from many different nations were used. This wasn’t a problem, because all coins were more or less worth there weight in silver or gold, so it wasn’t important which head of monarch or national emblem was imprinted on it. The foreign coins found in the colonies included German thalers and French écus. The most popular coin was the Spanish milled dollar, or piece of eight, which was legal tender in the US until the 1850s.
Coins in the British Empire
Coins were widespread in the 17th and 18th centuries in a time when no real paper money was in use. The denominations of the coins of the time might seem unusual to us today, but decimalisation of the coinage didn’t occur in the United Kingdom and Ireland until 15th February 1971. Before that date the currency of pounds, shillings, and pence had totally different values. The British pound sterling and the Irish pound were subdivided into 20 shillings, each with a value of 12 old pence, giving a total of 240 pence in a pound. With decimalisation, the pound kept its old value and name, but the shilling was abolished and the pound was divided into 100 new pence. Between 794 and 1200, the silver penny was the only denomination of coin in Western Europe until larger coins were introduced in the mid-13th century.
Pirates Creed
Pirates Creed is a dynamic duo composed of two best friends, known as the Navigator and the Quartermaster. They’re the masterminds behind the band’s unique sound, blending “grog rock” and “Sea Grass” music with a pirate twist. These two musicians have a long history of performing together, having met while playing in another pirate band at the Ohio Renaissance Festival. They decided to join forces and create Pirates Creed.
Thomas Tew
Thomas Tew was one of the most well-known Red Sea pirates active in the 1690s. It is thought he was born in 1649, but it is unsure exactly where. Suggestions include Rhode Island in the American colonies and Northamptonshire in England, although evidence seems to be lacking for the latter. Whether from Rhode Island or not, it is believed Tew had family in Rhode island. He was thought to have been married with two daughters, one of whom was named Amity, living in Newport, Rhode Island. He is best known, along with other infamous pirates such as Henry Avery and William Kidd, for sailing the Pirate Round, a sailing route followed by certain pirates during the late 17th century leading from the western Atlantic, running parallel to the Cape Route around the southern tip of Africa until Madagascar. From there one could reach targets in the Red Sea and India.…