Sure you have ugly and pretty Pirates like modern Jack Sparrow with eye make up and all but that is not what I wanna write about. It is about the various types you read about.

Buccaneers

A boucan was a kind of barbecue and the people using this lived around 1600 on nowadays Cuba. The Spanish wanted them of the Island but made a big misstake. The bucaneers turned into pirates and consisted of Dutch, French and English adventurers and many escaped African slaves. Bucaneers lived along some rules they made. They also had the blessing of the English and French rulers as it was a cheap way to fight a war against Spain.

Freebooters or pirates

This origins from the Dutch worth for loot which is buit or bute. We call them vrijbuiter which is still a word used for people who live life with there own rules. Vrijbuiters did leave the other crew alive which helped as people would resist more if they knew they would not be left alive. No backing if governments here.

Privateers or corsairs

Well these were acting on behalf of a government all documented in a "letter of marque ". Sir Francis Drake is one of the more famous privateers. And let us not forget Welsh Sir Henry Morgan. (pic) He looks a little like our Welshstacker !

So we pirates can become SIR's !!!!

US Pirateers

One of the most famous of the American privateers, Captain Thomas Boyle sailed Chasseur a ship called a schooner and harrassed the British around 1814. A replica is built and shown below.

So with that said it is time to show you where you could go to have a look at some booty and treasure

Booty

Pirate treasure looted by Samuel Bellamy and recovered from the wreck of the Whydah; exhibit at the
Houston Museum of Natural Science, 2010

Goldrooster