Rebecca Simon, PhD
Why We Love Pirates: The Hunt for Captain Kidd and How He Changed Piracy Forever
Pirates scholar, Rebecca Simon, PhD, explains how the global manhunt for Captain Kidd turned pirates into the romantic antiheroes we love today.
Crime and punishment. During his life and after his death, Captain William Kidd’s name was well known in England and the American colonies. He was infamous for the crime for which he was hanged, piracy. Rebecca Simon dives into the details of the two-year manhunt for Captain Kidd. Captain Kidd was hanged in 1701, followed by a massive British-led hunt for all pirates during a period known as the Golden Age of Piracy. Ironically, public executions only increased the popularity of pirates. And, because the American colonies relied on pirates for smuggled goods such as spices, wines, and silks; pirates tended to be protected from capture.
All things pirates. The more pirates were hunted and executed, the more people became supportive of the “Robin Hoods of the Sea”―both because they saw the British’s treatment of them as an injustice and because they treasured the goods pirates brought to them. These historical events were pivotal in creating the portrayal of pirates as we know them today. They grew into romantic antiheroes―which ultimately led to characters like the mischievous but lovable Captain Jack Sparrow.
[Recorded March 02, 2023]
Rebecca Simon, PhD, FRHistS, is a historian of early modern piracy in the Atlantic World. She received her PhD from King’s College London in 2017 and is a professor of History at Santa Monica College and a Fellow of the Royal Historical Society. Rebecca is the author of three books about piracy, including Why We Love Pirates: The Hunt for Captain Kidd and How He Changed Piracy Forever. She has appeared on numerous podcasts, such as You’re Dead To Me and History Hit with Dan Snow, and documentaries such as Beyond Oak Island and The UnXplained.
