TURNING THE TIDE
A fanciful illustration imagines pirates shouting in defiance at a Royal Navy vessel. Ironically, some former navy men turned to piracy after being discharged
ALAMY X5, GETTY IMAGES X1
DID YOU KNOW ?
HEAVEN OR HELL?
If an executed pirate was buried, they might be interred face down. This was believed to prevent their soul from reaching heaven – a terrifying prospect for those among the pirate fraternity who were superstitious and god-fearing.
Woodes Rogers (right), pictured with his family in 1729, sought to stamp out piracy in the Bahamas
During late 17th and early 18th centuries, the Royal Navy waged war against pirates, doing everything within its control to try and bring criminals to justice. In fact, the English (and, from 1707, British) authorities even went so far as to offer pardons to some of the worst offenders, so keen were they for the heinous practice to end.