Meet the Most Notorious Women in Pirate History

[@kevinrwhooley9439]

Fun fact: Grace O'Malley was her English name. Her real Irish name was Gráinne Ní Mháille (pronounced kind of like Gron-ye nee wall-ye)

[@Hydrogen101]

Dang if we’re hearing about brutal and fearsome pirates from the victor’s perspective that they’re willing to tell, I imagine their actual deeds were even greater

[@erinmcdonald7781]

Truth! We need more stories about these fascinating women!

[@IrishTexan09]

Deeds? They robbed and murdered people.

[@metalsomemother3021]

So...I hope that not only are you going to do this "overview " of female pirates, but I hope that you give each one of them their own episode just as you may do with the male pirates. The story of Grace O'Malley meeting Queen Elizabeth is good, and her interaction with the Lord of Houth castle is a good tale. Ann Bonnie was quite a colorful figure and her alleged parting words to Calico Jack are telling. Zhen Yi is AMAZING. She IS the pirate to end all pirates and deserves a LONG episode. Your have your work cut out for you. I look forward to it

[@a_e_hilton]

That a single male pirate gets one episode and "female pirates" in general get one episode in itself perpetuates the marginalisation of women in history. Good point!

[@vincentx2850]

One tiny nitpiick: it's Zheng Yi Sao, Zheng Yi is her husband

[@metalsomemother3021]

@@vincentx2850 thank you

[@treblanco101]

Ooooor... you could create that content instead of demanding someone else do it especially given they do A LOT of other content.

[@JMLCK78]

@@treblanco101 Don't be that person

[@lerneanlion]

Anyone else think Sayyida al-Hurra deserved her own movie? Well, I do because I wanted to see a movie about her so bad! The same also applied for Zheng Yi Sao as well

[@minka866]

Product one then

[@mlsnafamilyaccount875]

The first time I heard of her, at the Pirate museum in Key West, I thought this exact thing! She fascinates me! My mind can go into such story spinning mode around her.

[@ericreativecuts]

All these women deserve their own movies

[@Lohengrin1850]

Loved this episode! I'd love to hear more about each of these women.

[@YouWinILose]

PBS is killing it with all these amazing channels!

[@Just_One_Tree]

I’d love an in-depth video about Zheng Yi Sao! Or any of the pirates mentioned in this video

[@MWhaleK]

It's not so much that Blackbeard was a man so much as that he was a European pirate that operated in the Caribbean, Zheng Yi Sao was Chinese who operated off the coast of China. Also, Grace O'Malley or rather Gráinne Ní Mháille is one of my favorite Pirates.

[@Strytller]

I'd love to just see that list of women pirates you found. Wish you would have included that at the end. Could you maybe post that in the comments?

[@sarahwatts7152]

Yes! I know about three of the people they talked about in the video, but having a larger list to look into would be awesome

[@OcarinaSapphr-]

I thought about writing a novel about Teuta when I was younger- because I was a bit of a history buff. It was going to be part of a series called 'We Were There'- but, life got in the way...

[@theshrew2804]

Please don’t stop with the pirates! I love this channel

[@HN-kr1nf]

"a pirate's life for she" :D

[@9whilenine]

Fascinating episode! I hadn’t heard of any of these women and would love to know more!

[@golwenlothlindel]

Shi Yang (Madame Zheng), isn't obscure in China! And I'm sure that applies to a few other of these women. You have an international audience! It might be better next time to say "why are there so many movies and shows about X" rather than "why don't we talk about X". If you say the latter thing, a good portion of your audience will be confused: because everyone *they* know talks about X. Also, "Teuta" means "the queen". Now, maybe that actually was her name, but it's also likely that it wasn't. Would have been good to mention that.

[@Firegen1]

A very good statement and true. To many these aren't obscure

[@prettypic444]

I find it interesting how so many stories female martial accomplishments are almost always put emphasis on their relationships to men- Widows seeking revenge for their husband’s death, mothers defending their sons, etc. Its like their actions are only acceptable if they’re motivated by a male and not their own safety, power, or ideology.

[@Amy_the_Lizard]

That's a good point! I can only think of a few off the top of my head, and some of them are a bit on the semi-mythical side like Boudica, who fought the Roman Empire because they mistreated her daughters and tried to cheat them out of their inheritance. (Still a revenge-focused maternal motive, just not on behalf of a man.) A less mythologized example I can think of is Khutulun, who is mostly remembered for her wrestling exploits, but also participated in some of her father's military campaign and seems to have done both mostly because she was good at it and enjoyed it (and the wrestling thing also helped her avoid getting marriage while also winning a bunch of horses.) There was also a Welsh princess named Gwenllian ferch Gruffydd who participated in battles against the Normans and English in the 1100s, after they drove her family out of their land and took it over. There's also Shi Yang from the video, who admittedly is known exclusively by her husband's name, but wasn't trying to avenge him or anything, just carrying on the business so to speak. I also remember a decent number of Norman noble women participating in the first crusade, and I would assume their motives for doing so where probably similar to those of their male counterparts, but I haven't done enough research to be sure.

[@williandalsoto806]

Loving this series!

[@annemariestarfyre7550]

I’m a woman sailor and I named my sailboat ⛵️ Bonny Read⛵️

[@pluspiping]

In response to comments about how it's "less remarkable" to inherit a large enterprise (from a dead husband, for example), consider that running said enterprise is far from an easy task, and most nepotism successions and family handoffs go remarkably poorly. It's interesting reading!

[@MariaMartinez-researcher]

4:35. There is likely a serious mistake regarding Sayyida Al Hurra and the Spanish Inquisition. In a short video like this one, and in a KZbin comment it's not possible to detail all the elements, but, the Inquisition dealt only with Christians who were heretics, or former Jewish and Muslims suspect of having falsely converted. Also, this lady's family left Spain in 1492 (when Granada fell), and the royal decree forcing Muslims to convert or leave is from 1502. At any rate, it was not that the Inquisition forced her to leave *just because* she was a Muslim; there were also political and security reasons involved. Librarian here, worked decades in historical bibliographic research. Start with something simple: the Wikipedia articles about this lady and about Spanish Inquisition. You'll see the dates don't match and the reasons are complicated. Follow the bibliography.

[@ObsessiveGinger]

Amazing video!!! Thank you!!

[@junebrilly5302]

Loved this, I just wish it was much, much longer!

[@AVisionInFur]

I wonder if the “dead husband” pattern was a result of inheritance practices of the time because widowhood (from a marriage to someone of means) often provided the greatest level of autonomy a woman could attain during that era.

[@rhyestripes6059]

cant believe thats who wang zi is based off on one piece, im hyped to see how oda portrays her

[@Nangel2]

A very good episode! I look forward to more.

[@ollieroo3334]

I love this series so much!

[@lovelydreamingtime9563]

Funnily enough, I learned about Zheng Yi Sao by coming across some early 2000s Nickelodeon magazine that I found in the house when I was around 12/13. Things surely would’ve been different if I threw out that mag.

[@jaimyjerchig5240]

Great section! I am wishing for longer segments!

[@susannehuber3996]

Love this episode ❤

[@entropybentwhistle]

What a great episode. It’s a shame that most of the history taught in North America and Europe is so western-centric and almost always from and about male perspectives. For instance, I would have gladly traded in the Louis and Clark lessons (which is basically white settlers taking credit for “discovering” what a native woman showed them that her people already knew of for thousands of years) in exchange for more chapters about the Mongol khans and the extent of their conquests and the roles of women during that time. It’s probably natural, though, that very few would have known of the female pirates in history if not for a certain successful Disney franchise and Elizabeth Swan. Most grade school lessons simply referred to the entire history of piracy as a footnote about criminals attacking “legitimate” shipping of European colonial powers and the USA, with maybe a mention of Blackbeard and the guy on the rum bottle. It is interesting that a our curiosity is wanting to focus and know so much about what were ultimately murderers, rapists, thieves and slavers. We probably also owe a lot to Robert Louis Stevenson for turning an ocean-going crime world into a setting of rosy-tinted romanticized adventure, which Disney could greatly expand upon.

[@BrothersChambersShow]

Murders, rapist, and thieves, are you talking about the English, Chinese, Portuguese and Spanish governments or are you talking about the pirates? At that time it wasn't about marching and fighting for equal rights, it was about basic survival, waking up and living threw the day. They did what they could to survive and have some sort of freedom for what they all knew was already going to be a very short life.

[@ShengWee]

Such a good series and Joel is an excellent host!

[@oopsy444]

Extra credits history also did an amazing video series on Zheng! Honestly the more info we get on her the better!!

[@vincentx2850]

Although I am not sure about its credibility, as women's name are often not recorded in history and were often assigned a random name as an afterthought, I think we do know Zheng Yi Sao's name - Shi Yang. Maybe we should start calling her by her real name...?

[@brutalusgaming8809]

Interesting. Do you have a source I could look at to confirm?

[@Nicety08]

I really enjoyed this video, I would it could be longer so we hear the details of these women

[@EricSanchez]

Zheng Yi Sao needs a movie or series!

[@Thewolverine0865]

I would love to hear about African folklore and all the interesting creatures, especially the rare ones like mermaid like beings.

[@wirtification]

As a New Englander, Pirates have a large history here, we've all heard and seen evidence in our upbringing here from history books to the names used on streets, etc... But I had never heard of Rachel Wall!!! And I was born and raised in NE and grew up on Cape Cod, one of the Pirate stops of the new world lol. Never heard of her in the history of Boston, wow.

[@jothierry4590]

Great information!!!

[@Hydrogen101]

Wait! Are their any records of their children? That’s really bad ass

[@calladricosplays]

Madame Ching retired to run a casino and had a son. She later passed surrounded by her grandchildren

[@sunsmile271]

I learned about Zheng Yi Sao from the Jacky Faber series

[@mecahhannah]

Awesome thanks 😊

[@Kobolds_in_a_trenchcoat]

I think Zheng Yi Sao can largely be explained less with sexism and more with eurocentrism. I mean it's not much better but I could scarcely name one east asian pirate period despite piracy having a history there.

[@OldCavtrooper22]

Several years ago, I read the book titled “The Only Life that Mattered” by James L. Nelson. The author claims to have reliable information about the lives of Mary Read and Ann Bonnie. While I am not sure about that claim, he does write a very good story about these amazing women. I am shocked that the story has not made it to the silver screen. I for one would pay to see it.

[@ambrosia-venusbelladonna835]

More on Female Pirates please!

[@sabrinasummers4814]

wow so cool, thanks for this!

[@albertkugel3483]

God this is so awesome

[@meander112]

Engagement for the engagement god!

[@saskiascott8181]

To be fair "Mrs Zheng" is kind of a badass way to be known. It's like how move bosses are always just known by their surnames

[@karlmark9967]

After I became a fan of Pirates of the Carribean I immediately did a research and found out about Zheng, boss of a woman.

[@jackdorsey4850]

nice job keep up the good work ok

[@steel5315]

See she didn't expect the Spanish Inquisition. No one ever expects the Spanisb Inquisition.

[@deemorris311]

Awesome !

[@lynbrown4054]

Thats was interesting!

[@gregroberson220]

More pirates, arrgh!

[@Vinsanity503]

I’m reading online from credible sources and even videos on here stating nearly all pirates were gay? Is this true?

[@joytalklive1525]

How can I host a segment?

[@UtahSustainGardening]

This was actually frustrating! There is so much focus on the only the woman, that the cultural, national, and regional biases were skipped over. 90% of all popularly known pirates were active in the Caribbean, while those in Asia and elsewhere are not known. To sight an unknown Asian female pirate as being unknown because she is female is a problem when you clearly avoid mentioning most other notable pirates in her region and time.

[@darthbee18]

Madame Zheng is the ultimate Pirate Queen! 😎💀🌊✨ akshdkdjhfkf I like Rachel Wall's piracy scheme 😂😂, shame she got caught 🙈. Also not only there were more women pirates not known to us today, they were likelier to meet their ends in a tragic way as well 😔.

[@kriskalmer8832]

I love seeing things about women pirates. My favorite is Anne Bonney!!!

[@megamanx466]

Referring to women being bad luck on a ship, I always assumed it was because a woman could create a love triangle or even multiple aboard which would obviously divide the crew against itself. It's a trope often depicted in science fiction space dramas. 🤔😅

[@nyarparablepsis872]

Wonderful episode! Looking forward to more pirates, particularly those of a female or otherwise non-male persuasion! If anyone would like to read a pirate story with strong female characters I can recommend the third book in the Gentleman Bastards series.

[@pinkcloudsnightlightbell]

2:11-2:14 🌚 Many thoughts, head full ... !!

[@colinleat8309]

Fascinating! I really never even considered the idea of Women Pirates. There's Hollywood for you eh?

[@cloudydamiasofea115]

Joel cooked with this video

[@1989Azrael]

I learnt about Zheng Yi Sao from the Jolly Roger's "The Bloody Rose of China" ☠

[@Kathryn-mp8mr]

Jeanne de Clisson, the Lioness of Brittany...did I miss her name in here?

[@zacharyhansen9103]

Quick nitpick, it was the Roman Republic not the Roman Empire.

[@hisbigal]

I wrote a paper about Ann Bonny and Mary Reade when I was in grad school. My thesis was that gender, even in the 18th century was problematic and an unstable construct, which perplexed even famous writers such as Daniel Defoe. An interesting side note: Sir Henry Sidney, who was appointed lord deputy of Ireland, wrote in his memoirs written in 1583, one year before his death, about his dealings with Graínne NiMhaoilai, calling her “a notorious woman.”

[@1hazelx]

Our Flag Means Death brought me to this video 😂 ♥️ 🙏🏽

[@abar612]

I did the survey. It's wrll written and 34 Qs, some want typed answers so have a minute set aside to complete it. Love to give feedback!

[@jeffreygao3956]

Zheng Yi Sao also most certainly killed more people than Blackbeard ever did.

[@stephenwallace3771]

You guys and Washington week!

[@terrymcguniess7582]

wow these ladies make blackbeard look like a cute puppy....

[@kellylynne709]

It's incredibly rare to find history videos about pirate women that actually describe them without misogyny. Other videos describe them as having a "temper" and also sexualize them. I just watched a video before this one about Anne bonny and the dude described her as having a "fiery temper for hospitalizing a young man that tried to rape her" (fiery because of her red hair -_-) and injuring a man out of self defense is not having a temper. Anyway, thank you for actually describing these badass women as the respected brutal pirates they were

[@jn651]

DIG IT

[@rhonnichan]

I need her to be a character in One Piece

[@matthewmorrisdon5491]

As the pirates that Americans think about were Calvinist, women were largely not taken to prevent moralistic decay. (There were Muslim pirates that enslaved Europeans but that is not PC.) This did mean any Catholic women were open game for the crew.

[@Euphoryaaa]

There should be a pirate version of “The Harder they fall”, just sayin’ 🤷🏾‍♂️

[@Ulthar_Cat]

Ok. Good video. Why not detach further from the usual historical misogyny and make a video for each woman pirate that we do know instead of cramming them all in one token video? 💜

[@sabbie_stat]

I know that the main reason we don't remember female pirates is because of sexism. But also, now that I have learned about them, their names don't stick in your head as much as their male counter parts. They need cool nick names too like what about Annie 'reaper' reed ...? I'm not trying to retroactively change history but idk it would help

[@Blokewood3]

"the main reason we don't remember female pirates is because of sexism." This is a common misconception. There is not some male historian's conspiracy to keep women pirates out of history books. If anything, it's the other way around. Take Bonny and Read for example: Among pirates, they are practically household names. The historical record shows that they sailed with John Rackham's crew for two months before being caught, at which point they "pleaded their bellies" and recieved a stay of execution. Mary Read died of a fever some months later while Anne Bonny disappeared from the historical record. That's about it. Charles Johnson's General History of Pirates had a chapter dedicated to each of them, and since almost none of the information in it is supported by other sources, it's quite possible that the author made it up or exaggerated local legends to fill it out. With so little information to talk about, why go to such lengths to stick them in the book? Because women pirates were extremely rare, so writing about two female pirates made the book stand out. Even in 1724, the old adage "sex sells" held true. The main reason why other pirates like Cheng I Sao aren't as well known is because they were from other time periods, while a lot of pirate historians focuses on the "Golden Age of piracy" in particular. In pirate fiction, female pirates are massively overrepresented compared to history, which is fine since it's just fiction, but when talking about history, it's unlikely there was more than one female pirate for every thousand male pirates.

[@EMNstar]

Captain (Joe) Cook?

[@alethearia]

This video didn't get suggested to me, even though all your stuff gets suggested to me. Seems sus.

[@Thezairerouge]

🔥🔥🔥

[@Blokewood3]

When it comes to pirate history, women aren't really being "reduced." There were some amazing women pirates, certainly, but they were very rare. A ratio of 1 woman pirate for every 1000 men is being generous, so is it really surprising that there are fewer stories to tell? The real bias here is that when talking about piracy, historians typically focus on the "golden age of piracy," and of the women mentioned in this video, only two of them were active during that period: Anne Bonny and Mary Read. What's amazing about them is that they were women pirates. And that's about it. They weren't captains, and their pirate career was short, lasting just two months. Although Captain Charles Johnson's book gives interesting anecdotes about them, those particular stories can't be substantiated with other sources, so we don't have a way to know what's true and what was being exaggerated. It is however, very likely that they were being exaggerated to help sell the book. "Sex sells" was true even in 1724. Captain Rackham also benefited from that book. No one would even remember him today if it weren't for the fact that he had two women on his crew.

[@tommykaung5882]

I thought Francis Drake was a woman. Thanks, Fate Franchise. At least you put Anne Bonny and Mary Read.

[@otralee]

Engagement

[@joineejones4935]

Aquatufana

[@Earthy-Artist]

Need on on each female pirate.

[@Vinsanity503]

Please talk about the Gay pirates people are mentioning. I’m reading online that state nearly all pirates were gay and all married one another . Being a straight man I need to know.

[@pluspiping]

Yes! Pirate marriage!!

[@hectorvergara3394]

Maybe some of the pirates we know about aren’t actual men and we disguised

[@bigdro5227]

PC pastor preaches to you about pirates cringe

[@DrToxick]

They can barely drive a car or change a lightbulb; you trust them to steer a ship or read a map lmao

[@skeetersaurus6249]

I'm sensing a serious commonality of all these stories...namely, a noticeable absence of 'how' being explained. Every single female pirate mentioned had ZERO ships, until they MARRIED into their HUSBAND'S fleet. Zheng e Shau, for example, was a 'sex worker', but didn't buy a SINGLE VESSEL until she MARRIED and DEMANDED half of her husband's fleet. Now, she had money, independence...why did she have to DEMAND ships, when she could have purchased (or stolen) one of her own? Sounds a WHOLE LOT like 'using feminine wiles' at work! Truth be told, the way in which 'female pirates' came by their fleets is worse than the way many of the male pirates did...starting out life at sea as a sailor or merchant mariner, working up, buying a ship, falling into some 'privateering' and then being made a villain by a government edict. Meanwhile, NO PIRATE should be made 'heroic'...they were murderers and thieves, mutineers and despots...male OR female! Some of the WORST were those who started out as 'Privateers' for the East India Trading Company! So...if you can't tell the 'whole story' truthfully, and the new generation has ZERO 'critical thinking' skills...maybe you just shouldn't tell 'history', when it is more 'revisionist fable' than anything...

[@INSANESUICIDE]

Eh, overrated, isn't this the one that retired as a brothel madame and just inherited her fleet from her husband? Jeanne de Clisson is far more interesting