Pirates: A New History from Vikings to Somali Raidersa
Peter Lehr2023

Pirates have been capturing ships and raiding shores for centuries, from the marauding Wacko of early modern Japan to the pirates terrorizing the Gulf of Guinea today. Piracy has always posed a threat to the state, even though some privateers such as Sir Francis Drake received official sanction. In this definite account, Peter Lehr asks what drives people to piracy, and examines pirates'deadly methods, offering a timely history of a much-romanticised phenomenon.