1
00:00:00,000 --> 00:00:01,365
When most people think of pirates,

2
00:00:01,365 --> 00:00:02,906
they imagine hulking, fearsome men

3
00:00:02,906 --> 00:00:05,754
with names like Blackbeard or Long John Silver.

4
00:00:05,754 --> 00:00:07,276
Although the vast majority of pirates

5
00:00:07,276 --> 00:00:08,617
throughout history have been male,

6
00:00:08,617 --> 00:00:10,485
One of the most famous and feared pirates

7
00:00:10,485 --> 00:00:11,264
who ever lived was

8
00:00:11,264 --> 00:00:12,294
Ching Shih --

9
00:00:12,294 --> 00:00:14,515
a young Cantonese woman who became the ruler

10
00:00:14,515 --> 00:00:17,024
of one the largest pirate fleets in history,

11
00:00:17,024 --> 00:00:18,415
and the mastermind behind

12
00:00:18,415 --> 00:00:20,574
a floating criminal empire so powerful,

13
00:00:20,574 --> 00:00:23,224
that even the Chinese military couldn't stop it.

14
00:00:23,224 --> 00:00:24,915
We don't know much about her early life,

15
00:00:24,915 --> 00:00:26,236
except that at one point,

16
00:00:26,236 --> 00:00:28,045
she worked at a brothel in Canton.

17
00:00:28,045 --> 00:00:30,558
In 1801, Ching Shih married a pirate commander

18
00:00:30,558 --> 00:00:31,575
named Ching I,

19
00:00:31,575 --> 00:00:32,816
and soon ruled by his side

20
00:00:32,816 --> 00:00:34,307
as he expanded his empire,

21
00:00:34,307 --> 00:00:36,996
unifying countless small, scattered crews of pirates

22
00:00:36,996 --> 00:00:38,242
into an organized

23
00:00:38,242 --> 00:00:40,476
and increasingly powerful coalition.

24
00:00:40,736 --> 00:00:43,255
When her husband died suddenly in 1807,

25
00:00:43,255 --> 00:00:45,726
Ching Shih knew exactly what to do.

26
00:00:45,726 --> 00:00:48,125
She stepped in to claim the leadership for herself,

27
00:00:48,125 --> 00:00:49,695
taking control of somewhere between

28
00:00:49,695 --> 00:00:52,354
40,000 and 60,000 pirates.

29
00:00:52,354 --> 00:00:54,944
Their acceptance of a woman as their commander

30
00:00:54,944 --> 00:00:56,937
remains a remarkable testament to both

31
00:00:56,937 --> 00:00:58,755
her political skill and the respect

32
00:00:58,755 --> 00:01:00,876
she must have earned from the crew.

33
00:01:00,876 --> 00:01:02,345
She soon appointed her adopted son,

34
00:01:02,345 --> 00:01:03,335
Ching Pao,

35
00:01:03,335 --> 00:01:05,225
as the commander of her most powerful fleet

36
00:01:05,225 --> 00:01:06,667
and eventually married him.

37
00:01:06,667 --> 00:01:07,815
It was a little creepy,

38
00:01:07,815 --> 00:01:09,996
but the two became a formidable team

39
00:01:09,996 --> 00:01:11,336
whose raids were feared through

40
00:01:11,336 --> 00:01:13,046
the South China Sea.

41
00:01:13,046 --> 00:01:14,784
We don't know exactly what Ching looked like,

42
00:01:14,784 --> 00:01:16,075
although some historians have assumed

43
00:01:16,075 --> 00:01:17,676
she caught the eye of her pirate husband

44
00:01:17,676 --> 00:01:18,954
through good looks rather than `

45
00:01:18,954 --> 00:01:20,776
her considerable intelligence.

46
00:01:20,776 --> 00:01:22,708
While there are many flamboyant but dubious

47
00:01:22,708 --> 00:01:24,645
accounts invented by Western writers of a

48
00:01:24,645 --> 00:01:25,955
gorgeous goddess,

49
00:01:25,955 --> 00:01:28,275
wielding swords and wearing glittering battle gear

50
00:01:28,275 --> 00:01:29,976
covered in golden dragons,

51
00:01:29,976 --> 00:01:32,186
more reliable texts describe Ching Shih

52
00:01:32,186 --> 00:01:34,215
as a good military strategist,

53
00:01:34,215 --> 00:01:35,646
a strict disciplinarian,

54
00:01:35,646 --> 00:01:37,443
and an excellent businesswoman.

55
00:01:37,443 --> 00:01:39,506
Although she rejected many traditional ideas

56
00:01:39,506 --> 00:01:41,316
about what women could and couldn't do,

57
00:01:41,316 --> 00:01:43,686
other rules were extremely important:

58
00:01:43,686 --> 00:01:44,867
namely, those enforced on her ships.

59
00:01:45,467 --> 00:01:47,577
With the help of a code of conduct

60
00:01:47,577 --> 00:01:48,946
drawn up by Ching Pao,

61
00:01:48,946 --> 00:01:51,520
she helped establish clear rules for the behavior,

62
00:01:51,520 --> 00:01:53,874
finances, and power structure of the fleet --

63
00:01:53,874 --> 00:01:56,056
As well as the draconian punishment that awaited

64
00:01:56,056 --> 00:01:59,521
anyone who dared to disobey or cheat her.

65
00:01:59,521 --> 00:02:01,578
Her rule was unquestionably harsh:

66
00:02:01,578 --> 00:02:03,355
not only for the victims of her raids,

67
00:02:03,355 --> 00:02:05,137
but for anyone in the fleet who dared

68
00:02:05,137 --> 00:02:06,877
to step out of line.

69
00:02:06,877 --> 00:02:08,708
All plunder had to be registered,

70
00:02:08,708 --> 00:02:11,057
with 80% of the loot paid into a general fund.

71
00:02:11,057 --> 00:02:12,348
Somewhat ironically,

72
00:02:12,348 --> 00:02:13,247
stealing from the fund

73
00:02:13,247 --> 00:02:15,378
was one of the worst crimes a pirate could commit,

74
00:02:15,378 --> 00:02:17,591
and the punishment was death.

75
00:02:17,591 --> 00:02:18,917
As one observer noted,

76
00:02:18,917 --> 00:02:20,847
Ching Shih's strict and often lethal reaction

77
00:02:20,847 --> 00:02:23,616
to misbehavior kept the crew very honest.

78
00:02:23,616 --> 00:02:25,092
And the pirates under her command

79
00:02:25,092 --> 00:02:27,629
took great care to behave themselves well.

80
00:02:27,629 --> 00:02:29,718
Through careful and ruthless management,

81
00:02:29,718 --> 00:02:31,677
Ching Shih made the bloody and chaotic work

82
00:02:31,677 --> 00:02:34,407
of piracy into a highly organized business.

83
00:02:34,407 --> 00:02:36,177
And business was good --

84
00:02:36,177 --> 00:02:38,348
making her a very wealthy woman.

85
00:02:38,348 --> 00:02:38,956
And, of course,

86
00:02:38,956 --> 00:02:40,168
like so many male leaders,

87
00:02:40,168 --> 00:02:41,037
conquerors, and generals

88
00:02:41,037 --> 00:02:42,107
throughout history,

89
00:02:42,107 --> 00:02:43,107
her prosperity and success

90
00:02:43,107 --> 00:02:45,867
came at the cost of innocent lives.

91
00:02:45,867 --> 00:02:47,938
Her remarkable story is a reminder that,

92
00:02:47,938 --> 00:02:50,038
regardless of the limitations placed on them,

93
00:02:50,038 --> 00:02:52,467
women can be anything that men can be:

94
00:02:52,467 --> 00:02:53,789
brilliant and brutal,

95
00:02:53,789 --> 00:02:55,098
courageous and cruel,

96
00:02:55,098 --> 00:02:57,607
powerful and dreadful.

97
00:02:57,607 --> 00:02:59,146
The Chinese government devoted

98
00:02:59,146 --> 00:03:01,368
considerable effort to crushing the pirates,

99
00:03:01,368 --> 00:03:02,510
but, thanks in large part to

100
00:03:02,510 --> 00:03:04,200
Ching Shih's strategic skill,

101
00:03:04,200 --> 00:03:06,149
her fleets became so powerful

102
00:03:06,149 --> 00:03:07,617
that the government eventually stopped

103
00:03:07,617 --> 00:03:09,088
trying to destroy them,

104
00:03:09,088 --> 00:03:11,838
and started trying to negotiate with them instead.

105
00:03:11,838 --> 00:03:13,759
Ching Shih knew that piracy was not

106
00:03:13,759 --> 00:03:15,818
a wise long term career --

107
00:03:15,818 --> 00:03:16,858
especially when the most common

108
00:03:16,858 --> 00:03:19,058
retirement plan was death.

109
00:03:19,058 --> 00:03:20,391
So, in 1810,

110
00:03:20,391 --> 00:03:21,624
she stepped off a boat,

111
00:03:21,624 --> 00:03:23,178
surrounded by the wives and children

112
00:03:23,178 --> 00:03:24,368
of her pirates

113
00:03:24,368 --> 00:03:26,148
and walked completely unarmed into the office

114
00:03:26,148 --> 00:03:27,148
of the local Governor General

115
00:03:27,148 --> 00:03:29,119
to discuss amnesty.

116
00:03:29,739 --> 00:03:32,098
With a fearsome floating army at her back,

117
00:03:32,098 --> 00:03:34,670
Ching Shih negotiated a very good deal.

118
00:03:34,670 --> 00:03:36,529
Not only was she and any other pirates

119
00:03:36,529 --> 00:03:38,175
who surrendered completely pardoned

120
00:03:38,175 --> 00:03:40,789
by the government for their many, many crimes;

121
00:03:40,789 --> 00:03:42,999
they got to keep their all ill-gotten plunder

122
00:03:42,999 --> 00:03:44,878
and even received jobs from the government

123
00:03:44,878 --> 00:03:46,320
if they wanted.

124
00:03:46,320 --> 00:03:47,728
Her husband was appointed a lieutenant

125
00:03:47,728 --> 00:03:48,950
in the Chinese navy,

126
00:03:48,950 --> 00:03:50,429
where he commanded a private fleet --

127
00:03:50,429 --> 00:03:52,729
made up of former pirates, of course.

128
00:03:52,729 --> 00:03:54,859
Thanks to her exceptional cunning and bravery,

129
00:03:54,859 --> 00:03:56,539
Ching Shih ended her life of piracy,

130
00:03:56,539 --> 00:03:57,950
not as a criminal behind bars,

131
00:03:57,950 --> 00:03:59,879
or the casualty of a raid gone wrong;

132
00:03:59,879 --> 00:04:01,701
but rather, by gathering her riches,

133
00:04:01,701 --> 00:04:04,823
and retiring in comfort as a law-abiding citizen.

134
00:04:04,823 --> 00:04:07,022
Well, mostly law-abiding.

135
00:04:07,022 --> 00:04:08,049
She spent her later years running

136
00:04:08,049 --> 00:04:10,359
a gambling establishment back in Canton,

137
00:04:10,359 --> 00:04:12,229
where she reportedly led a peaceful life,

138
00:04:12,229 --> 00:04:13,960
or at least, as peaceful as she could manage

139
00:04:13,960 --> 00:04:16,969
while presiding over a notorious gambling den.

140
00:04:16,969 --> 00:04:18,750
When she finally died in 1844,

141
00:04:18,750 --> 00:04:19,840
at 60 years old,

142
00:04:19,840 --> 00:04:20,960
she had transformed herself

143
00:04:20,960 --> 00:04:22,900
from a relatively powerless young woman

144
00:04:22,900 --> 00:04:25,540
into both the most powerful female pirate in history

145
00:04:25,540 --> 00:04:27,869
and into something almost as rare:

146
00:04:27,869 --> 00:04:30,059
a pirate who died from old age.