Pirate Queen EXTRAVAGANZA
Do you like badass lady pirates, both legendary and historical? Then check out my blog series!
Read about the Viking princess, Alfhild, who " began to reject all men and firmly resolved … to surpass male courage in the practice of piracy.” https://amandakespohl.wordpress.com/2018/03/11/alfhild-the-pirate-princess/
Or perhaps you’re interested in the tale of Grace O’Malley, the longest reigning pirate queen of all time. A contemporary of Queen Elizabeth I, legend has it that she gave birth on one of her ships and led her men into battle on the very next day. :O https://amandakespohl.wordpress.com/2018/04/09/grace-omalley-part-1/
I’d also highly recommend reading about Jeanne de Belleville, the Lioness of Brittany, who terrorized French ships and the French coast after her husband was unjustly executed. https://amandakespohl.wordpress.com/2018/04/12/jeanne-de-belleville-the-lioness-of-brittany/
Oh, and hey, how about reading about Queen Artemisia of Halicarnassus, an adviser to King Xerxes of Persia and a badass pirate who survived the first naval battle in recorded history through sheer ruthlessness and good fortune? https://amandakespohl.wordpress.com/2018/04/05/queen-artemisia/
There’s also Sayyida al-Hurra, whose name is actually a title which translates to “ noble lady who is free and independent; the woman sovereign who bows to no superior authority.” And if that mic drop of a name isn’t enough to convince you that she was amazing, read about how she ruled a city in northern Africa in her own right in the 16th century, controlled piracy in the western Mediterranean in cahoots with the infamous Captain Barbarossa, and basically told the Sultan of Morocco that if he wanted to marry her so badly, he’d have to get off his duff and come to HER. https://amandakespohl.wordpress.com/2018/04/26/sayyida-al-hurra/
Also, did you know that the most successful pirate of all time was a Chinese woman known as Ching I Sao? She led the largest pirate fleet, and was so massively successful and fierce that she managed to negotiate a cushy retirement deal for herself and all her men even after all her plundering! https://amandakespohl.wordpress.com/2018/05/01/ching-i-sao/
Just in case you thought I was done, nope. BOOM! Here’s a thread about Queen Teuta of Illyria, also known as “The Terror of the Adriatic.” She not only legalized piracy in Illyria to open up some cash flow back to her city-state, she led expeditions and terrorized rival city-states until she made the mistaken of stepping to the Roman Empire. https://amandakespohl.wordpress.com/2018/05/03/queen-teuta-of-illyria-the-terror-of-the-adriatic/
Oh, and don’t forget Jacquotte Delahaye, or “Back from the Dead Red.” She may just be the stuff of legend, but she still has that lady pirate swag! https://amandakespohl.wordpress.com/2018/05/02/jacquotte-delahaye-or-back-from-the-dead-red/. Ditto for Pretty Peg, the fiercest wifey on the seven seas: https://amandakespohl.wordpress.com/2018/05/04/pretty-peg/.
