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Product Description
A facsimile edition of a classic source for the history of piracy, as used by Robert Louis Stevenson in the writing of Treasure Island. Captain Charles Johnson's General History of Pirates was one of the best-selling books of 1724, when it was first published. It provides a sweeping account of what has come to be called the Golden Age of Piracy. It went through four editions in two years, and without doubt owed a substantial part of its success to a dramatic writing style that vividly captures the realities of pirates' savage existence. The book contains documentary evidence of events during the lives of its subjects. In the 270 years since its original publication, Johnson's work has come to be regarded as the classic study of one of the most popular subjects in maritime history.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
27 of 28 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
If you are at all interested in the age of piracy, this book is a must for you. It is just about contemporary - 1724 - with all the big names in piracy - Black Bart, Blackbeard, Stede Bonnet, amongst many others and also includes the two famous women pirates Anne Bonny and Mary Read - and there is a really authentic ring about the text. It is occasionally a bit tedious, but at the same time, the details that Capt Johnson - whoever he was - goes into give you a real feel for the period and the characters. I think it is excellent.
6 of 6 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
There is'nt alot to say about this book other than it is and incredible piece of history as it is an almost direct copy; word for word, of Cpt Johnsons original book published in the early 18th century.
The reading is heavy going until you get used to the language that was in common use back then, as although is is not far removed from modern English, the sentence structure is very different and the gramma is odd until you get your head around it. After you learn to speak Georgian English it is a very involving book indeed, wonderfuly written and brings adventure on the high seas to life in a way that no other historically based factual book can, for the simple reason that this book was written in the golden age of Piracy, seemingly from a first hand point of view too.
A very fine addition to any budding historians' book shelf who has an interest in maritime history, and an even greater addition to anyone looking to study the TRUE accounts of genuine pirates from the time, and sometimes how unexpected and eye opening they are.
Supurb read.
The reading is heavy going until you get used to the language that was in common use back then, as although is is not far removed from modern English, the sentence structure is very different and the gramma is odd until you get your head around it. After you learn to speak Georgian English it is a very involving book indeed, wonderfuly written and brings adventure on the high seas to life in a way that no other historically based factual book can, for the simple reason that this book was written in the golden age of Piracy, seemingly from a first hand point of view too.
A very fine addition to any budding historians' book shelf who has an interest in maritime history, and an even greater addition to anyone looking to study the TRUE accounts of genuine pirates from the time, and sometimes how unexpected and eye opening they are.
Supurb read.
15 of 16 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase
If you are a fan of Defoe and want to read about pirates in their heyday then this is the book you need. It was published under the name of Captain Charles Johnson, presumably to protect its author from the retaliation of ones such as Captain Avery - then in England - whose case the book deals with first. Avery had had a play written about or by him called The Successful Pirate, and a book called The King of Pirates, and this A General History of the Pyrates is a scathing attack against their pretentions. Because of his history as a pirate Avery would not have been able to visit the naval records office to check up on his adversary, hence the security and reason perhaps for the name. Subsequent research in the naval records have shown that no such fish as Captain Charles Johnson had existed. His name is fictional.
A possible explanation for why this book was published under that name is that at the time there was a hack playwright named Charles Johnson who is suspected of having written Avery's play and possibly also his book The King of The Pirates. If so, the name Captain Charles Johnson here would have been to mock this author and subvert any such pretence.
The American Defoe scholar John Robert Moore identified A General History of the Pyrates as being Defoe's and it seems to be in his style and it certainly adds to his tally of great works.
In 1988 a couple of so-called scholars dismissed Moore's attribution on the grounds that the style was not the same as in The Pirate Gow or The King Of Pirates, both of which have been attributed to Defoe. However neither of these books are alike in style (The Pirate Gow is at least good journalism) and certainly the King of Pirates doesn't resemble Defoe's style or his character either, while this one does. Moore was a fan and an expert and he has to be right.
A possible explanation for why this book was published under that name is that at the time there was a hack playwright named Charles Johnson who is suspected of having written Avery's play and possibly also his book The King of The Pirates. If so, the name Captain Charles Johnson here would have been to mock this author and subvert any such pretence.
The American Defoe scholar John Robert Moore identified A General History of the Pyrates as being Defoe's and it seems to be in his style and it certainly adds to his tally of great works.
In 1988 a couple of so-called scholars dismissed Moore's attribution on the grounds that the style was not the same as in The Pirate Gow or The King Of Pirates, both of which have been attributed to Defoe. However neither of these books are alike in style (The Pirate Gow is at least good journalism) and certainly the King of Pirates doesn't resemble Defoe's style or his character either, while this one does. Moore was a fan and an expert and he has to be right.
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