Did you know that you have a constitutional right to become a government-sanctioned pirate? I present for your consideration Article I, Section 8: Clause 11, War Powers – To declare War, grant Letters of Marque and Reprisal, and make Rules concerning Captures on Land and Water. This means that, with Congress’s permission, private citizens can weaponize all manner of watercraft, put  out to sea, capture enemy vessels, and keep the booty. Rather than fly the Jolly Roger, you’d proudly fly the Star-and-Stripes. And even more, rather than taking on the name “pirate”  although that has a certain cache to it, you might go by the title “privateer.” But I must admit that “Pirate Jack” sounds a fair bit more daunting than “Privateer Jack.”

Historically, privateering was a necessity. For those interested in the details (from naval architecture, to financing, to command appointments), Ian Toll’s Six Frigates well describes the challenges the colonies and nascent United States faced with trying to form a Nacy. Thus, at the start of the Revolutionary War, the Continental Navy was no match for the Royal Navy in terms of number, experience, tonnage or weaponry.  We relied on privateers.

Privateers, revolutionary pirates if you will, captured between 600 and 2,000 thousand British vessels. 600 hundred is well documented by historians. The larger account is based on oral histories (and no doubt a bit of the time honored tradition of “sea stories.”).  The privateering efforts confiscated vast amounts of food, uniforms, weapons, and barrels of libations. It became an industry born of necessity. Patriotic private citizens were formally permitted to harass British shipping while risking their lives and resources for financial gain.

This was not an invention of the Founding Fathers. European governments regularly issued documents known as Letters of Marque and Reprisal to legitimize privately outfitted men-of-war. In a tradition dating back to the Middle Ages, under highly regulated conditions, these documents authorized private parties to attack enemy vessels. Without the documentation, these same activities were considered acts of piracy and subject to prosecution. If a privateer captured an enemy ship (known as a prize), an admiralty prize court had to approve the seizure. Then, the proceeds from the sale of the prize and its cargo were shared among the owners and crew of the privateer according to a pre-arranged contract. Owners of privateers had to post monetary bonds to ensure their proper conduct under the regulations, and Letters of Marquis were issued on a per-voyage basis. Although the documentation is incomplete, about 1,700 Letters of Marque, issued on a per-voyage basis, were granted during the American Revolution. Nearly 800 vessels were commissioned as privateers and are credited with capturing or destroying about 600 British ships.

One notable privateer was Jonathan Haraden of Gloucester, Massachusetts, an officer in the Massachusetts State Navy. In July 1776 he served as First Lieutenant of the sloop-of-war Tyrannicide, eventually becoming her commanding officer. In 1778, Haraden began his career as a privateer, commanding the General Pickering, sloop of fourteen guns. On October 13, 1779, he engaged three British privateers off New Jersey simultaneously and captured them all. Two destroyers of the United States Navy have been named USS Haraden in honor of his exploits.

If the life of a privateer seems of interest, know that it is your constitutional right to apply to Congress for your Letter of Marquis.

​​Abordage du Kent | The Taking of the Kent | by Ambroise Louis Garneray | Musée d’Histoire de Saint-Malo | PD-US