When it comes to famous pirates, many people tend to look to classic figures like Blackbeard, Bluebeard, or Captain Kidd. To celebrate International Talk Like a Pirate Day, which is today, September 19th, let’s shine the spotlight on a pirate who deserves a day of her own!
Ching Shih is one of the fiercest commanders of the sea. Ching was born in the Guangdong province of China in 1775 under the name Shil Xiang Gu. Before her pirating days, she worked in a floating city in Canton as a prostitute. In 1801, Ching met Zheng Yi, another infamous Chinese pirate, while working at the brothel. When Zheng asked Ching to marry him, she agreed, but as long as she could have power alongside him and have half of their plunder. After they were wed, Zheng and Ching worked together to command the Red Flag Fleet.
The Red Flag Fleet went on to steal from more than 1,700 ships. When Zheng died in 1807, Ching fought to retain her power. Under her leadership, Ching Shih set a strict and brutal set of guidelines for her crew. For example, the punishment for stealing from the pirate treasure was decapitation. Despite the harsh set of rules, she also expressed compassion for female captives. The rape of female captives was strictly forbidden and punishable by death, and if members of her fleet chose to marry a female captive, they were bound to a code of faithfulness and chivalry towards these wives.
Under Ching Shih, the Red Flag Fleet became one of the most powerful fleets in history. The Chinese Navy would repeatedly try to take her down with either their own forces, or call in warships from the Dutch and British to no avail. When Admiral Kwo Lang was captured by Ching’s crew, he chose to commit suicide rather than endure the brutality of her crew. Eventually after signing an amnesty deal with the Chinese government in 1810, Ching Shih retired to land and ran a casino until passing away at sixty-nine. She left behind a legacy even Captain Jack Sparrow would be scared of.