A Nation of Pirates: English Piracy in Its Heyday.

UK,slim 8vo HB+dw/dj,1st edn.VG/VG+.No owner inscrptn and no price-clip to dw/dj - absence of publisher's price - usually indicative of an export copy,which usually precedes the domestic first trade edns issue and distribution.Bright, crisp,clean,glossy laminated,black+red illustrated front panel of dw/dj with white lettering; with negligible shelf-wear and creasing to edges and corners - no major nicks or tears present.A small closed tear at head of spine/ backstrip of dw/dj and to foot of same,a small grease stain internally.Due to presence of 12mo-size book on each side of the book when previously shelved,extremities above that size - i.e. the top edges are inevitably faded/sunned, as is the spine/backstrip.Top edges lightly toned and dust-soiled causing some minimal foxing/spotting,fore-edges slightly brighter but also sporadically foxed/spotted; contents bright,tight,clean,solid and sound - pristine - no dog-ear reading creases to any pages' corner tips,appears unread - apart from my own collation.Publisher's bright, crisp,generally clean (a couple of grease spots to each board excepted),sharp-cornered,original plain red cloth boards with bright,crisp,blocked gilt letters to spine/ backstrip and immaculate plain white endpapers.UK,slim 8vo HB+dw/dj,1st edn,5-166pp [paginated] includes contents list/table,an intro,7 chapters,8pp of contemporary,historical b/w illustration reproductions in 4 blocks of 2pp apiece,between pp33/5, pp50/3,pp84/7 and pp102/05 respectively,references,a select bibliography and an index; plus [unpaginated] half-title+title pages and 2pp blanks at the rear. Most people have heard of the Elizabethan privateers or the buccaneers of the Spanish Main,but between these two well-trodden periods the reader who seeks to discover more about piracy is sailing in unchartered waters.And yet the story of English maritime lawlessness under the Early Stuarts is one of the most exciting in the whole history of piracy.When England and Spain made peace in 1603, English seamen who had become inured to a life of lawlessness and easy gain were unable or unwilling to adjust to peacetime conditions.The reign of Queen Elizabeth's successor,James I,witnessed a startling escalation of piratical activity - one estimate was that numbers of pirates increased as much as tenfold.Exiled from England,many of these rovers established themselves in remote bases,particularly in Southern Ireland and on the Barbary Coast.Yet home-based support was never lacking and piracy continued to flourish around the British coast fro some time.It was from the beginning of the 17thC that the English (this 'accursed race' as the Venetian ambassador at Constantinople called them) began to gain a reputation among foreigners for being a nation that was entirely given over to piracy.Drawing mainly on original material and on contemporary accounts the author sets out to trace the development of piracy during this exciting period and to resurrect names such as Peter Easton, John Ward and Henry Mainwaring,which deserve to rank alongside those of Morgan,Kidd and Woodes Rogers in the annals of piracy. Please contact seller @ rpaxtonden@blueyonder.co.uk ,for correct shipping/P+p quotes - particularly ALL overseas buyers - BEFORE ordering through the order page! N.B. ALL buyers please note,stocks' actual shipping/P+p costs are adjusted and any difference is refunded,after order's receipt and before the order's despatch,especially if the item(s) are offered either P+p included/FREE. **N.B. US/Canada customers please be aware: Standard AIRMAIL postage from UK to these destinations can now cost more than the price of the book! If speed is not of the essence, then Economy rate is recommended - at approx. anything from a 1/3rd to 1/2 of the standard US AIR quote/rate - sometimes arriving sooner than the 42 days - but not always. **