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{{short description|Code of conduct for governing pirates}}
[[File:Pg 154 - So the Treasure was Divided.jpg|thumb|300px|Treasure being divided among pirates in an illustration by [[Howard Pyle]].]]
'''Pirate articles''', or '''articles of agreement'''{{efn|The term "Pirate Code" was not used during this period and is a modern invention.}} were a [[code of conduct]] for governing ships of [[pirate]]s, notably between the [[17th century|17th]] and [[18th century|18th centuries]], during the so-called "[[Golden Age of Piracy]]". The typical pirate crew was an unorthodox mixture of former [[sailor]]s, [[Convict|escaped convicts]], disillusioned men, and possibly escapee or former [[Slavery|slaves]], among others, looking for wealth at any cost; once aboard a seafaring vessel, the group would draw-up their own ship- and crew-specific code (or ''articles''), which listed and described the crew's policies surrounding pirate behavior (such as drunkenness, fighting, and interaction with women) and the associated disciplinary action, should a code be violated. Failing to honor the Articles could get a pirate [[marooning|marooned]], whipped, beaten, or even executed (such as one article described, for merely allowing a woman aboard their ship). Primarily, these articles were designed to keep order aboard the ship, avoid dissension or [[Mutiny|mutinies]], and ensure the crews' loyalty, all of which was crucial to the group's mutual survival.
==History==
[[File:Pyle pirate marooned.jpg|thumb|300px|A painting depicting a [[Marooning|marooned]] pirate, according to [[Howard Pyle]].]]
[[Buccaneer]]s operated under a [[ship's articles]] that, among other things, governed conduct of the crew. These "articles of agreement" became authority independent of any nation, and were variously called the ''Chasse-Partie'',
Each crew member was asked to sign or make his mark on the articles, then swear an [[oath]] of allegiance or honour. The oath was sometimes taken on a [[Bible]], but John Phillips' men, lacking a Bible, swore on an axe.<ref>Johnson, Charles (1724), ''A General History of the Pyrates'', p. 398 {{OCLC|561824965}}.</ref> Legend suggests that other pirates swore on crossed [[pistol]]s, [[sword]]s, on a [[human skull]], or astride a [[Naval artillery in the Age of Sail|cannon]]. This act formally inducted the signer into the pirate crew, generally entitling him to [[vote]] for officers and on other "affairs of moment", to bear arms, and to his share of the plunder. The articles having been signed, they were then posted in a prominent place, often the door to the captain's cabin.<ref>Little, Benerson (2005), ''The Sea Rover's Practice: Pirate Tactics and Techniques'', Potomac Books, Inc., {{ISBN|1-57488-910-9}}, p. 34.</ref>
After a piratical cruise began, new recruits from captured ships would sometimes sign the articles, in some cases voluntarily, in other cases under threat of torture or death. Valuable sea [[artisan]]s, such as [[carpenter]]s and [[navigation|navigators]], were especially likely to be forced to sign articles under duress, and would rarely be released regardless of their decision to sign or not. In some cases, even willing recruits would ask the pirates to pretend to force them to sign, so that they could plead they were forced should they ever be captured by the law.<ref>''Sometimes seamen who volunteered to join the pirates asked the quartermaster to go through the motions of forcing them in the presence of their officers. The quartermaster was happy to oblige and do a blustery piratical turn for them, with much waving of cutlasses and mouthing of oaths.'' Botting, Douglas ''The Pirates'', Time-Life Books Inc., p. 51.
Pirate articles are closely related to, and were derived from, ship's articles of the time, especially those of [[privateering|privateers]], which similarly provided for discipline and regulated distribution of [[Looting|booty]] (though usually far less equally than with pirate articles).<ref>See the Articles of the privateer ship ''Mars'', at http://pirates.hegewisch.net/articles_new.html#privateer</ref> Merchant articles and privateering articles can be traced back to Europe in the [[Middle Ages]] when there was a system of "joint hands" agreements between merchants, owners, and seamen to share profits.<ref name = "Hayes">Hayes, Peter (2008), "Pirates, Privateers and the Contract Theories of Hobbes and Locke", ''History of Political Thought'' '''24''', 3: 461-84.</ref>
==Examples==
Several 17th and 18th century pirates such as Bartholomew Roberts, John Philips, Edward Low and George Lowther were known to have written articles for piratical rules onboard ships. Lowe’s articles were published in ''The Boston News-Letter'' on August 1, 1723, and also ''The Tryals of Thirty-Six Persons for Piracy, Twenty-Eight of them upon Full Evidence were Found Guilty and the Rest Acquitted'', which was also printed in 1723.<ref name=":1">{{cite book |last1=Simon |first1=Rebecca |title=The Pirates' Code Laws and Life Aboard Ship |date=2023 |publisher=Reaktion Books |___location=London UK |isbn=9781789147414 |page=9 }}</ref> Nine complete or nearly complete sets of piratical articles have survived, chiefly from [[Charles Johnson (pirate biographer)|Charles Johnson]]'s ''[[A General History of the Pyrates]]'', first published in 1724, and from records kept by [[Admiralty Court]] proceedings at the trials of pirates.<ref name="Fox Dissertation">{{cite book|last1=Fox|first1=E. T.|title='Piratical Schemes and Contracts': Pirate Articles and their Society, 1660-1730|date=2013|publisher=University of Exeter|___location=Exeter|url=https://ore.exeter.ac.uk/repository/bitstream/handle/10871/14872/FoxE.pdf|access-date=15 June 2017}}</ref> A partial code from [[Henry Morgan]] is preserved in [[Alexandre Exquemelin]]'s 1678 book ''The Buccaneers of America''. Many other pirates are known to have had articles; the late-17th century Articles of [[George Cusack]] and [[Nicholas Clough]] have also survived intact. Part of the reason that few pirate articles have survived is that pirates on the verge of capture or surrender often burned their articles or threw them overboard to prevent the papers being used against them at trial.<ref name="Fox Dissertation" />[[File:"Signing the Articles" from the 1936 Pac-Kups "Jolly Roger Pirates" trading card set.png|thumb|right|"Signing the Articles" from the 1936 Pac-Kups "Jolly Roger Pirates" trading card set]]
===Articles of Bartholomew Roberts===
[[Bartholomew Roberts]]' Articles were similar (but not identical) to those of his former Captain,
[[Howell Davis]]. In turn, Roberts' Articles influenced those of pirates such as {{
}}
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===Articles of John Phillips===
Captain [[John Phillips (pirate)|John Phillips]], captain of the ''Revenge'', also set a code for his men in 1724:
'''I.''' Every Man Shall obey civil Command; the [[Captain (nautical)|Captain]] shall have one full Share and a half of all Prizes; the [[Master (naval)|Master]], [[Carpenter]], [[Boatswain]] and [[Gunner (rank)|Gunner]] shall have one Share and quarter.▼
{{blockquote|
▲
VIII. If any Man shall lose a Joint in time of an Engagement, shall have 400 Pieces of Eight; if a Limb, 800.
'''IX.''' If at any time you meet with a prudent Woman, that Man that offers to meddle with her, without her Consent, shall suffer present Death.▼
▲
}}
===Articles of Edward Low and George Lowther===
The articles listed below are attributed by the ''[[Boston News-Letter]]'' to Captain [[Edward Low]]. The first eight of these articles are essentially identical to those attributed to pirate captain [[George Lowther (pirate)|George Lowther]] by Charles Johnson. Since Lowther and Low are known to have sailed together from about [[New Year's Day|New Year's]] to May 28, 1722, it is probable that both reports are correct and that Low and Lowther shared the same articles, with Low's two extra articles being an ''ordinance'', or amendment, adopted after the two crews separated.
'''I.''' The Captain is to have two full Shares; the Quartermaster is to have one Share and one Half; The Doctor, Mate, Gunner and Boatswain, one Share and one Quarter.▼
{{blockquote|
'''II.''' He that shall be found guilty of taking up any Unlawful Weapon on Board the Privateer or any other prize by us taken, so as to Strike or Abuse one another in any regard, shall suffer what Punishment the Captain and the Majority of the Company shall see fit.▼
▲
VI. He that shall have the Misfortune to lose a Limb in time of Engagement, shall have the Sum of Six hundred pieces of Eight, and remain aboard as long as he shall think fit.
'''VII.''' Good Quarters to be given when Craved.▼
▲
'''X.''' No snapping of Guns in the Hold.▼
}}
===Articles of John Gow===
A set of articles written in [[John Gow]]'s own hand was found aboard his ship, the ''Revenge'' (née ''George''), in 1729.<ref>[http://www.exclassics.com/newgate/ng182.htm The Newgate Calendar - JOHN GOW] Accessed 16 December 2009.</ref> Article IV's reference to no going ashore "till the ship is off the ground" suggests that the ''Revenge'' was already grounded when the articles were written, only days before Gow and his men were captured. The code states as follows:
'''I.''' That every man shall obey his commander in all respects, as if the ship was his own, and as if he received monthly wages.▼
{{blockquote|
▲
V. That every man shall keep his watch night and day; and at the hour of eight in the evening every one shall retire from gaming and drinking, in order to attend his respective station.
'''VI.''' Every person who shall offend against any of these articles shall be punished with death, or in such other manner as the ship's company shall think proper.▼
▲
}}
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Exquemelin writes that the buccaneers "agree on certain articles, which are put in writing, by way of bond or obligation, which every one is bound to observe, and all of them, or the chief, set their hands to it." Although Exquemelin does not number the articles, the following approximately reflects his description of the buccaneers' laws:
'''I.''' The fund of all payments under the articles is the stock of what is gotten by the expedition, following the same law as other pirates, that is, [[No prey, no pay]].▼
{{blockquote|
▲
III. A standard compensation is provided for maimed and mutilated buccaneers. "Thus they order for the loss of a right arm six hundred pieces of eight, or six slaves; for the loss of a left arm five hundred pieces of eight, or five slaves; for a right leg five hundred pieces of eight, or five slaves; for the left leg four hundred pieces of eight, or four slaves; for an eye one hundred pieces of eight, or one slave; for a finger of the hand the same reward as for the eye.
'''IV.''' Shares of booty are provided as follows: "the Captain, or chief Commander, is allotted five or six portions to what the ordinary seamen have ; the Master's Mate only two ; and Officers proportionate to their employment. After whom they draw equal parts from the highest even to the lowest mariner, the boys not being omitted. For even these draw half a share, by reason that, when they happen to take a better vessel than their own, it is the duty of the boys to set fire to the ship or boat wherein they are, and then retire to the prize which they have taken."▼
▲
'''V.''' "In the prizes they take, it is severely prohibited to every one to usurp anything, in particular to themselves. ... Yea, they make a solemn oath to each other not to abscond, or conceal the least thing they find amongst the prey. If afterwards any one is found unfaithful, who has contravened the said oath, immediately he is separated and turned out of the society."▼
▲
}}
== Establishment of pirate codes ==
The pirate articles were not codes of chivalry, they were established to keep things running smoothly and peacefully onboard the ship. The first and most important step after a pirate crew formed was to draft the code under which it would sail. The codes were considered to be legally binding, and there were swift and severe consequences for those that broke them. There was, however, no official hierarchy, and every vote carried equal weight in establishing these codes. The captain’s authority was not absolute, though the articles might have been influenced by his leadership style and the crew’s goals and experiences. The captain’s primary duties included navigation and deciding when to engage in naval warfare, but the quartermaster was responsible for overseeing daily operations, including interpreting the Articles.<ref name=":1" />
Pirates established articles of conduct which were more democratic than those of naval or merchant marines, though the punishments for violating them were brutal. A common form of punishment was being marooned. Execution by hanging was another common practice. Pirate Articles also stated that goods taken from another ship during a raid were to be fairly distributed among the crew. Some Pirate articles dictated that no women were permitted aboard ships, and violating this code could be punishable by death.
== Richard Braithwaite and hydrarchy ==
Scholars Peter Linebaugh and Marcus Rediker examine and discuss hydrarchy, which was a term devised by writer Richard Braithwaite to describe two significant changes which were the formalization of maritime law or “maritime state from above,”<ref name=":0">{{Cite book |last=Linebaugh |first=Peter |title=The many-headed hydra: sailors, slaves, commoners, and the hidden history of the revolutionary Atlantic |last2=Rediker |first2=Marcus |date=2000 |publisher=Beacon Press |isbn=978-0-8070-5006-4 |___location=Boston}}</ref> and the establishment of mariners’ codes or “self-organization of sailors from below”<ref name=":0" /> during the 17th century. Braithwaite noted that these sailors did not possess “much civility; the sea hath taught him other rhetoric…”<ref name=":0" /> referring to them as tough, crude and stupid but acknowledging their significance and contributions within the hydrarchy. Life was always complex onboard ship and during this time, the emergence of resistance and revolution at sea challenged the rise of capitalism and imperialism.
==Notes==
{{notelist}}
==See also==
*[[John Taylor (pirate)|Richard Taylor]], another Golden Age pirate whose Articles were recorded by witnesses▼
*[[Parley]], part of the code according to the ''[[Pirates of the Caribbean (film series)]]''.▼
*[[Distribution of justice]]
▲*[[Ching_Shih#Code_of_laws|Ching Shih]]
*[[Governance in 18th-century piracy]]
▲*[[Parley]], part of the code according to the ''[[Pirates of the Caribbean (film series)]]''.
*[[Piracy in the Caribbean]]
*[[Pirates in popular culture]]
▲*[[John Taylor (pirate)|Richard Taylor]], another Golden Age pirate whose Articles were recorded by witnesses
==References==
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Pirate Code}}
[[Category:Codes of conduct]]
[[Category:Pirate customs and traditions]]
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