10 Fun Facts About Pirates by Normandie Alleman (@normandiea)

normandiealleman_tourbuttonWhen I was conducting research for the Pirates of the Jolie Rouge trilogy I learned a lot about pirates. Some of what I learned surprised me. Here are ten of the more interesting tidbits I picked up.

  1. Most pirate ships didn’t have a physician or surgeon on board unless one was captured and “convinced” to serve on the ship. Often these medical doctors were not forced to sign the ship’s articles. That way if they were ever captured the doctor could maintain that he was innocent of engaging in piracy.
  2. A pirate captain was elected and could always be “unelected” by his men. A pirate ship was more of a democracy than a dictatorship.
  3. The quartermaster received more of the booty than the rest of the crew and the same amount as the captain. He was more powerful than the first mate.
  4. Pirates didn’t eat very well, with meat jerky and hardtack making up the majority of their diet. This is why they often suffered from scurvy.
  5. Fresh water was a luxury, which was why they were actually encouraged to drink rum and other alcoholic beverages. These remained sanitary longer than the casks of fresh water.
  6. Women were not usually allowed to sail on pirate ships, as they were considered too much of a distraction.
  7. An eye-patch could be a disadvantage in a swordfight because it affects peripheral vision and depth perception.
  8. Pirates succumbed to numerous mosquito-born illnesses as well as venereal diseases from their visits to prostitutes.
  9. There is a difference between being a pirate and a privateer. A privateer worked for the English government and was legally sanctioned to “commandeer” goods from Spanish ships. Pirates, on the other hand, engaged in illegal activity.
  10. While it was a real pirate town in the Bahamas, Port Royal was destroyed by an earthquake in 1692 and is no longer inhabited.

 

Bound by the BuccaneerHere’s an excerpt from my latest erotic historical novella Bound by the Buccaneer

“You did what?” A white fury had overtaken Frederica, and was now in a full-blown rage. “You agreed I would do what?” Her voice grew more shrill by the minute.

Gaston had taken her back to their cabin aboard the Ocean’s Knave and told her about his agreement with Pugwash, Chatham, and Appling. He seemed upset about the bargain too, his brow had a new crease and he looked weary. He sat on the bed as Frederica paced around the room trying to absorb the news.

“If you won’t agree to this, Freddie, we will not receive their protection. We will be sailing the Caribbean marked men, the prime target for every pirate ship on the water. Our crew is mighty, but one day we will find ourselves out-manned, out-gunned, or both.

We headed down this path because you don’t have the stomach for killing innocents, but there are consequences to every action. And the consequences for what we’ve done is that we’re the most hunted, most wanted pirates in the Caribbean.”

“Good deeds must be punished? Is that what you’re saying?” she asked defiantly.

“Frederica, you are not a child. Do not behave as one. Pirates, as a rule, do not share your scruples. Perhaps I should never have gone along with your idea to raid other pirate ships, but I did and there’s no sense in rehashing events from the past. What’s done is done.

“The answer is simple. We need protection, a larger force. There is strength in numbers and these three Captains are willing to join us with their ships and their crews. That would make us 400 strong, Frederica! Imagine that…The only snag is if they think me a dandy who dances to a woman’s tune they will have no desire to be associated with the Ocean’s Knave.” He shook his head. “And no pirate worth his salt would blame them”

Knowing he spoke the truth did little to quell her concerns. Her stomach tightened. “I still don’t understand why they must bed me,” she complained. Gaston was treating her as if she were a possession to be shared without a hint of concern for how his actions would affect her, and it hurt.

Running out of patience he sighed. “My dear, if I offer you as a gift they will view you more as my property than as my shrew, thereby proving their concerns are unfounded.”

Rolling her eyes she repeated his words with a sneer. “Your property?”

“Yes, my property,” he said in a no-nonsense tone.

“But…” she tried to find words. The idea of three men, strangers to her, taking her body as they wished frightened her. However, along with the fear, she felt a little glimmer of excitement and possibly curiosity. Gaston was the only man she’d ever been intimate with, and now she wondered what it would be like to be taken by another man.

 

Bound by the Buccaneer

Two years have passed since Frederica joined Gaston aboard the Ocean’s Knave, and with every passing hour they have fallen more deeply in love. By day she is the ship’s physician, but at night she serves her captain in his bed, offering her body for him to punish and pleasure until she begs for more. But after a successful run of raiding other pirate ships, the couple have a target on their backs.

Their only hope is to form an alliance with a trio of like-minded captains, but in order to guarantee the cooperation of these unyielding, battle-hardened men, Gaston is forced to offer them a night with Frederica. Reluctantly, she agrees to be shared with the men, but afterwards Gaston finds it difficult to forgive himself for bartering Frederica’s charms. As jealousy and desperation threaten to consume him, will Gaston lose his beloved Frederica or can he weather the storm and find a way to bind her to him forever?

Publisher’s Note: Bound by the Buccaneer is the second book of the Pirates of the Jolie Rouge trilogy, which began with Rescued by the Buccaneer. It is an adventure and erotic romance novel that includes spankings, sexual scenes including a foursome, anal play, elements of BDSM, and more.

You can pick up your copy of Bound by the Buccaneer today:

Amazon: http://tinyurl.com/kcgqmgq
Amazon UK: http://tinyurl.com/oe2or3c
Barnes & Noble: http://tinyurl.com/pf4sa6z
ARe: http://tinyurl.com/ml2ra5j
Kobo: http://tinyurl.com/ljhyhp6
Goodreads: http://tinyurl.com/nclg55o

Since the Pirate of the Jolie Rouge Trilogy is best read in order, here’s more about the first book:

Rescued by the BuccaneerRescued by the Buccaneer

When Frederica Beauchamp boards a ship for the Americas, she dreams of a life filled with adventure, but she gets more than she bargained for when her passenger ship is attacked by pirates.  The heartless men kidnap her and force her to serve their captain—a fate that might be worse than death, since though he does not have his way with her, the captain delights in baring her, shaming her, and thrashing her bare bottom as punishment for every imagined disobedience.

After the pirates bring aboard an injured man found floating in the sea, Frederica tends to his wounds and learns that he is Gaston Galette, a survivor of a shipwrecked vessel. Gaston seeks her help to overthrow the vile captain, but when their plan goes awry he is forced to use all of his wiles to save them. As the naïve girl and the seasoned sailor navigate one perilous situation after another, he informs Frederica that the only way they can survive is if he is in command, and that if she thinks things can be otherwise, she will be taken over his knee for a bare bottom spanking.

As he watches the proud, willful Frederica bow to his authority, however, Gaston worries that her growing hold on his heart will be his downfall. He knows he cannot take a woman with him when he returns to his ship and crew, but when Frederica accepts his lustful dominance completely, submitting to him with grace and beauty no other woman could match, Gaston realizes that he may never be able to let her go.

Publisher’s Note: Rescued by the Buccaneer is the first book of the Pirates of the Jolie Rouge trilogy. It is an adventure and erotic romance novel that includes spankings, sexual scenes including elements of BDSM and humiliation, and more.

You can find Rescued by the Buccaneer here:

Amazon: http://amzn.to/MIQL4h
Amazon UK: http://amzn.to/1dXBCU5
Barnes & Noble: http://bit.ly/OWS1Tu
ARe: http://bit.ly/1hG7am4
Kobo: bit.ly/1hLLsfS

 

AllemanLogoSmallAbout the Author

A former psychologist, Normandie has always been fascinated by human behavior. She loves writing quirky characters that are all too human. Fiber arts, baking, and Pinterest are a few of her favorite pastimes. She lives on a farm with a passel of kids, an adorable husband, and a pet pig who’s crazy for Red Bull.

Find her here:
Twitter at @NormandieA  https://twitter.com/NormandieA
Pinterest at http://pinterest.com/NormandieA
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/NormandieAlleman
Amazon Author Page: http://www.amazon.com/Normandie-Alleman/e/B00BNUDVFW
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/6893037.Normandie_Alleman
Her website: www.normandiealleman.com

 

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6 thoughts on “10 Fun Facts About Pirates by Normandie Alleman (@normandiea)

  1. Excellent pirate facts, Normandie! Thanks.

    I have no idea why I haven’t read your Buccaneer books, yet. I love a pirate. Must go and rectify that right now…

    By the way – with the pirate eyepatch thing, I remember hearing somewhere that the reason pirates wore eye patches was in order to allow their eyes to adjust between bright light and darkness. If you go from the brigth light on top on the deck down to the half-light of the hold, your eyes would take ages to adjust. So if you wear an eyepatch on one eye and when you need to get somewhere dark you switch the eyepatch to the other eye and the eye which has been in darkness adjusts much better. (Working in dark conditions presumably being handy when your job description involves fighting and looting.) I have no idea if this is bollocks or not.

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