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The word "pirate" comes from the Greek peira-tes - robber, robber. Traditionally, pirates were considered those who attacked ships on the high seas and often - on coastal settlements, enriching themselves at the expense of loot.

The first pirates appeared with the advent of navigation and maritime trade. They were the Phoenicians - the best sailors of antiquity (see article "Phoenicia"). It is believed that the Phoenicians were a special kind of community of sea robbers and merchants. However, every merchant who went to sea was, as a rule, a pirate and did not miss the opportunity to profit at the expense of his own colleague. The successful development of the trade of the Phoenicians contributed to the flourishing of piracy.

The wealth of the Phoenician merchants attracted the attention of their poorer neighbors, and Greek pirates took to the sea. Their activities in the Aegean Sea were favored by geographical conditions (a heavily indented coast) and the level of development of navigation - then they sailed along the coast only during the day, and hid in the bays at night. It was then that the pirates lay in wait for their victim: silently, in the darkness, they approached on oars, and each robber became rich. Over time, the pirates gained such strength that they began to create their own small states, with which their neighbors preferred not to fight, but to conclude agreements.

Piracy in the Mediterranean reached its peak during the Roman Republic. The Romans did not have strong maritime traditions and were not able to resist the pirates who attacked not only ships, but also coastal cities, appearing even at the gates of Rome. In the 1st century BC. Rome was subjected to a real naval blockade. This situation forced the Senate (government of Rome) to take serious measures to combat piracy. This business was entrusted to Pompey, who managed to eliminate the main pirate nests in Spain, Africa, Sicily, Sardinia and the Aegean Sea. Then for ten whole years the Mediterranean Sea was relatively calm for navigation. Later, the pirates, however, resumed their robbery activities, but they could no longer gain their former power.

Despite all the antiquity of the origin of pirates, they are nevertheless often perceived as heroes of the Middle Ages. After all, it was at this time that they entered the expanses of the oceans, and the pirate "movement" gained wide scope. But not only those over whom the black banner fluttered and who plowed the waves of the "filibuster" sea were the pirates of the Middle Ages.

"Save us, God, from the fury of the Normans!" - the Europeans prayed, asking the Almighty for protection from pirates from the north - the Vikings (see the article "Vikings"). They appeared unexpectedly, landed on the shore and ravaged the settlement that did not have time to prepare for defense, after which they left, taking away the loot and leaving behind ashes and mountains of the dead. Within their community, the Vikings severely persecuted all robbery and violence. Fraud in the division of booty was considered a serious crime. Death was punishable by betrayal and desertion. The Slavic pirates of the Baltic Sea can also be called northern pirates. They were a real disaster not only for individual ships, but also for coastal cities. The robbery of Slavic pirates led to the decline of the city of Haithaba (in Southern Denmark). With the end of the Viking Age and the gradual disappearance of Slavic pirates in duels with them, the waters of the Baltic Sea did not become safer. It was replaced by no less powerful pirate organizations that successfully continued the "best" traditions of their predecessors.

One of the most powerful was that which arose in the XTV century. an organization of vitaliers (from German Vi-talienbruder - the brotherhood of breadwinners), who called themselves "friends of God and enemies of the world." They settled on the island of Gotland. The Vitaliers accepted into their ranks sailors of merchant ships who were seduced by the opportunity to profit; fugitives pursued by the law; those who considered themselves offended and longed for revenge; just adventurers of all nationalities. The Vitaliers established an iron discipline within their organization. The captains demanded unquestioning obedience, and the death penalty awaited those who disobeyed. The activities of the vitaliers led to the decline not only of trade navigation, but also of fishing, for the pirates did not hesitate to attack the fishermen. The states in the basins of the Baltic and North Seas, only by joining forces, in 1401 were finally able to put an end to the vitaliers. A powerful pirate organization has perished.

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четверг, 6 августа 2020 г.

News RSS update 11.06.2020 (55934)

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четверг, 6 августа 2020 г.

News RSS update 11.06.2020 (55934)

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четверг, 6 августа 2020 г.