WHY DID PEOPLE BECOME PIRATES?
A pirate’s life might seem like a lot of fun. Sailing all day, stealing treasure, and fighting battles seems like a blast, right?
Believe it or not, most people during the Qing Dynasty did not want to become pirates, but were forced to for a variety of reasons. In fact, being a pirate was the lowest possible position in Chinese society and working on the ocean at all was looked down upon as a lowly career.
So why did people become pirates? Because they had to. Here are a few reasons why.
THEY NEEDED MONEY.
Many fishermen were only pirates part of the time. When they didn’t catch enough fish to feed their families, they would resort to piracy for a little while to help make ends meet. Fishermen were usually very poor and had a hard time making ends meet. Since they already knew about boats, navigating the seas, and sailing, it was easy for fishermen and their whole families to fall into careers as pirates.
THEY WERE CAPTURED BY OTHER PIRATES.
Pirate ships would often overtake smaller fishing vessels, forcing the fishermen aboard — and their wives and children, too — to join their pirate fleet.
THEY YEARNED FOR ADVENTURE.
Sometimes farmers and laborers grew bored with their everyday life and wanted adventure on the high seas.
THEY NEEDED TRANSPORTATION.
Sailors might work on a pirate boat temporarily just to get from one port to the next. It was a way for them to make extra money while also getting them where they needed to go.