-
Ching Shih
Ching Shih’s early life is shrouded in mystery. Even her name isn’t really her own, as “Ching Shih” translates to “widow of Ching”. She first appears in the historical record in 1801. However, she left her mark on history as one of the most successful pirates. It is theorized Ching Shih was born around 1775 in the Guangdong province of China. One source records her birth name as Shil Xiang Gu. Nothing is known of her childhood, but I imagine it wasn’t one of ease. At the age of 26, she was a prostitute on a floating brothel in Canton. In 1801, she caught the eye of Ching Yi, who…
-
Eustace the Monk- Sorcerer, Monk, Pirate, Admiral and Legend
Born in 1170 near Boulogne, France, Eustace was the younger son of Baudoin Busket, a lord of the county of Boulogne. His upbringing was typical until he traveled to Toledo, Spain as a youth where he is rumored to have studied black magic. According to the contemporary work, Histoire des Ducs de Normandie, “No one would believe the marvels he accomplished, nor those which happened to him many times.” Returning home to France, Eustace gave up his magic and joined a Benedictine monastery at St. Samer Abbey near Calais. However, history was not done with this young man yet. According to a romance biography written about Eustace in 1225 by…
-
Sadie the Goat- Queen of the Waterfront
New York in the 19th century was a tough place to be, especially if you were poor. Make that double if you were a woman. This was the world Sadie Farrell was born into. She was a petty thief who rose to prominence in the 1860s in New York’s Fourth Ward near the East River. Sadie was petite, but mean and tough as nails. She prowled the docks with a male partner in case she needed extra muscle. She got her nickname of “the Goat” because she would head butt her victims in the stomach before taking their valuables. This was a bold move as a head butt done incorrectly…
-
LIONESS OF BRITTANY
What is it with French women named Jeanne? Unlike Madamoiselle d’Arc, however, Jeanne de Clisson was born into privilege and only took to kicking butt and taking names after the French king Phillip VI “wrongfully” executed her husband. But I’m getting ahead of myself. For those of you who don’t like all the dates and details, there is a clever little summary below I invite you to skip to. For the rest of you: Jeanne was born in the Gâtine Vendéenne in the year 1300 CE to nobleman Maurice IV of Belleville-Montaigu and Létice de Parthenay of Parthenay. She was married at the age of twelve and during the span…
-
Anne Bonny and Mary Read – Pirate Queens of the Caribbean
We hear a lot about pirates like Blackbeard, William Kidd, even the fictional Captain Jack Sparrow. Would you believe two of the most famous pirates are women by the names Anne Bonny and Mary Read. Most of what is known of Bonny and Read’s life comes from the volume A General History of the Robberies and Murders of the Most Notorious Pyrates, written by a Capt. Charles Johnson and considered highly speculative. According to the volume both were born around the year 1700. They were both renowned for their ruthlessness and would go on to challenge sailors’ belief that a woman’s presence on a ship was bad luck. Bonny’s birth…
