Pirates and Buccaneers: Seaborne Terrorism in the Early Modern World

(4 Credits)

The emergence of Spain as a political and economic superpower in the early sixteenth century bred waves of French, English, and Dutch contraband slave traders, seaborne raiders, freebooters, and privateers eager to thwart her attempt at hegemony and expropriate her wealth. The response of the early modern world to piracy is embedded in the “Law of Nations” and the “Law of the Sea,” progenitors of modern international law.