DASTARDLY PIRATES Imagine sailing on the high seas with valuable cargo of gold and silver Suddenly you see another ship on the horizon Through your telescope you can see the flag on top of its mast Pirates Ever since people began transporting cargo on the seas pirates have sailed too They would try to steal the valuable cargo 4
5 Pirates would steal anything from precious metals and jewels to food clothes and weapons They were fierce and bloodthirsty often taking sailors prisoner or killing them Pirates Today Pirates are still around today and are very dangerous Modern pirates may look different from traditional pirates but they still steal anything from animals to weapons They sometimes even take people hostage so that they can demand a ransom from them
PIRATE SHIPS Every pirate has a pirate ship to sail across the oceans looking for treasure Before engines were invented ships had sails and were powered by the wind When there was no wind pirates had to row the ship using long oars Pirate ships like this one were small and fast Cargo ships were heavy and slow Mast Sail 6
7 Pirate ships could sail quickly up to cargo ships to attack them Both ships had cannons and there were fierce battles whenever the two met IT’S AMAZING We know lots about pirates from shipwrecks that have been found Divers below have even found some pirate ships with stolen treasure still aboard
