Privateers and pirates are sometimes assumed to be the same, but this is not correct. Pirates were highwaymen of the high seas who operated entirely outside the law. They attacked vessels of all nations indiscriminately during wartime or peace – including British ships – plundering cargos, capturing ships to add to their fleet, pillaging coastal settlements, murdering and raping. Privateers, on the other hand, were legal businesses a bit like a privately owned navy. Each ‘private ship of war’ could only operate against a nation with which Britain was at war, and captured their ships and cargos for profit. It was a dangerous trade, but potentially highly lucrative as well.
Many former privateers are notable persons in history such as Francis Drake, the explorer Martin Frobisher, the founder of Bermuda George Somers and Walter Raleigh. Most privateers operated within the legal boundaries set for them. Yet sometimes the distinction between privateer and pirate could become confused. Sir Henry Morgan, for example, was originally a privateer even though his career was as outrageous and bloodthirsty as any pirate. Yet his actions suited the political objectives of the Government, so he was rewarded with a knighthood and the governorship of Jamaica. Similarly, Peter Easton started out as a privateer but became an infamous Elizabethan pirate; his fleet was so powerful that no nation could overthrow him. As a result he was able to retire in comfort.
Legitimate privateers were useful to Britain’s war effort: they harried the enemy, robbing them of supplies and ships, and generating income for the Crown. Following a conversation with John Belasyse, 1st Baron Belasyse in 1667, Samuel Pepys, who was chief secretary to the Admiralty, wrote in his diaries, “We have done the Spaniard abundance of mischief in the West Indies by our privateers at Jamaica, which they lament mightily.”
Nearly all of the documents required to identify a privateering forebear and follow their career are kept at The National Archives in Kew. However, unfortunately there is no online TNA research guide for this subject.
In order to be recognised as a legitimate privateer, the owners of each ship had to complete a three-stage legal process. They had firstly to provide a financial indemnity statement called a bail or bond; secondly, a declaration that the ship was fully prepared for war; and thirdly they were issued with a letter of marque authorising the ship to attack the enemy. All of these processes were overseen by the Admiralty’s legal arm, so are found in TNA series beginning with the letters ‘HCA’ for High Court of Admiralty; see the description in TNA’s catalogue Discovery.
The bail or bond is of least value to the genealogist. It was a financial guarantee that the captain of the privateer would not exceed his legal authority, and the owners had to indemnify the Admiralty against this happening. These documents are found in series HCA 25. They date from 1549–1820, and are grouped by year. You must visit TNA to see them, because they haven’t been digitised. They name the captain and the ship, but are not indexed by name so you must have an idea of the years to search. However, all of the bonds for privateers acting against the USA in the War of 1812 can be found online at War of 1812 Privateers.
Much more useful are the declarations concerning the privateer’s readiness for war. These are in series HCA 26 (from 1689 onwards) and name the ship’s officers. The captain is usually referred to as the “commander”. Other senior personnel who had to be named were the lieutenant or mate (second in command), gunner (in charge of armaments), boatswain (responsible for ship’s discipline), carpenter, cook and surgeon (or doctor). The owners are named as well. The total number of crew is specified, but individual seamen are not named. The declaration also gives the ship’s tonnage, its armament and often the home port (if not this can often be inferred from the owners’ addresses).
Each volume of declarations at TNA until 1783 has its own index. However, the declarations for 1689–1697, 1744 and 1756–1761 have been transcribed and are available on TNA’s website. You can look for a privateering officer by typing his name or that of his ship into Discovery’s ‘Advanced Search’ web page and restricting results to HCA 26, or search the series directly here.
After providing a financial bond and a declaration, privateers were issued with a letter of marque. The registers for these are in ADM 7/317–332 and 649 at TNA (for 1777–1815). They contain less information – typically ship name, commander, tonnage, armament, crew numbers, and the nation the privateer was allowed to operate against. There are separate letters for each nation where permission was granted. Again you must visit TNA to see most of them. However, entries for privateers acting against France in 1793–1815 and the US colonies in 1777–1783 are indexed by ship and captain’s name on War of 1812 Privateers.
If you can find the name of your relation’s ship, you can explore his career. British privateers cruised mainly in the English Channel and the Atlantic/Caribbean. Old newspapers are useful for identifying whether your ancestor captured any ships, or was himself captured.
The maritime publication Lloyd’s List may also be helpful. This daily summary of shipping news has been published since 1741, and you can see complete editions between 1741 and 1826 at the site Books Boxes & Boats although some issues are missing. They often contain brief details of privateer actions against the enemy, and of ships lost and damaged. An example entry from 9 January 1795: “The Dorset, Capt Edmonds, from Jamaica to London, was taken off Cape Antonio by the Liberty, privateer, and sent for Charleston – the captain killed and two men wounded.” Helpfully, there is a partial index to Lloyd’s List by ship name, captain’s name and date compiled from copies held by Guildhall Library.
Enemy ships that were captured by British privateers were called ‘prizes’, and the legitimacy of the action was evaluated by an Admiralty Prize Court to ensure crews had operated within the law. In successful cases prize ships were handed over to privateer crews and owners, and were said to have been ‘condemned’. Court papers are in series HCA 32 at TNA, arranged by date from 1592 to 1855, and often contain a wealth of detail such as eyewitness accounts. The List and Index Society (listandindexsociety.org.uk) has indexed 1776–1817 by captured vessel’s name (indexes 183, 184 and 194 – TNA has copies).
Once approved by the Prize Court, the captured ship and its cargo was sold and the profits divided up. The owners claimed around half, while the crew shared the rest according to an established formula. Typically the captain took about 12 shares, his lieutenant 6, the boatswain 3, able seamen 1, and ship’s boys half a share. This could be very lucrative, and crews were sometimes not paid a wage because the expectation of income from captured prizes was so high.
Privateers ceased to operate in 1815 after Napoleon’s defeat at Waterloo, and in 1857 were made illegal.
