13 Now-You-Know Facts About Pirates They Didn’t Teach At School

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13 Now-You-Know Facts About Pirates They Didn’t Teach At School

We all love pirates. It's not that surprising really. Absolute mad lads, who love the sea, parrots, hook hands, grog and loot galore. There's just something about the fantasy of breaking away from society, living on the run and frequenting tropical ports of call in between daring raids for treasure.

The thing is though, there's probably a lot of facts about pirates you never knew. For example, did you know modern workers comp reforms can largely be traced back to practices on pirate ships, where crews had formal systems for compensating injuries? We couldn't believe the true story behind the jollyroger.

The name Blackbeard probably makes you think of a scourge of the seas who enjoyed a long reign of terror. The reality is … not quite that. 

So if you're hankerin' for more fascinating pirate facts, gird your loins, hoist the mizzen, swab the poop decks and get scrolling!

Here’s the full story, plus 12 others:

The most successful pirate in recorded history was a Chinese prostitute. Cheng I Sao was active in the early 19th century, and at her most powerful commanded 000 sailors and a fleet of over 500 ships. NOW YOU KNOW CRACKED.COM

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The fearsome Blackbeard was only active for a grand total of two years. He's first mentioned as a pirate in 1716 (he was a privateer from 1701 to 1713), and they caught and killed him in 1718 - and that was that. NOW YOU KNOW CRACKED.COM

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