Pirates have captivated our imaginations for generations, and the popularity of the recent Pirates of the Caribbean films has planted them even more firmly in our minds. But what were pirates really like? Author Robert Ritchie guides us on a tour of piracy from ancient times through the present, and dispels the false image of pirates created by adventure stories and Hollywood. The truth is, unbelievably, even more intriguing than the fiction. Pirates were usually men (and sometimes women!) who turned to piracy in desperation—to avoid starvation or to save their own lives. They were from countries across the globe, from every social class, and of every race. Their average age was only twenty seven. In this lavishly illustrated book, you will see pirates’ brutal lives and bloody deaths, get a peek at their ships and the lives of their crews, and meet some of history’s most famous and infamous buccaneers. You’ll finally learn the truth about the way they lived and died. Full of color and history and danger, this book is as fun as a Johnny Depp movie—but it’s all true!

安格斯·康斯塔姆（Angus Konstam）

作傢，曆史學傢，前英國皇傢海軍軍官，水下考古學傢，博物館研究員。生於奧剋尼郡，現居愛丁堡。曾任倫敦塔博物館兵器顧問，佛羅裏達州剋伊維斯特、梅勒·費捨爾海軍博物館總顧問。作者為海盜史的研究專傢，寫作曆史類、軍事類和海軍題材作品達50餘部，其中30本由英國魚鷹齣版社（Osprey）齣版，代錶作為《世界海盜全史》《世界海盜地圖集》《黑鬍子傳》《俾斯麥號戰列艦大揭秘》等。

羅傑 • 邁剋爾 • 基恩（Rogar Michael Kean）

記者、電影製片人和資深曆史類圖書編輯，編輯包括《海盜史》和《沉船史》。基恩同時也是一位作傢，寫作《羅馬皇帝和被遺忘的權力:拜占庭基督教堡壘》（The Complete Chronicle of the Emperors of Romeand Forgotten Power: Byzantium—Bulwark of Christianity）。他現居位於英國的勒德羅小鎮。