1 00:00:01,920 --> 00:00:07,120 Speaker 1: Welcome to Brainstuff production of I Heart Radio. Hey brain Stuff, 2 00:00:07,160 --> 00:00:11,360 Speaker 1: Lauren Vogelbam Here history is most successful and feared pirate 3 00:00:11,400 --> 00:00:15,400 Speaker 1: fleets shared some key attributes. They were well oiled operations 4 00:00:15,400 --> 00:00:19,800 Speaker 1: and enforced strict rules despite the lawlessness of their profession. Crucially, 5 00:00:19,960 --> 00:00:22,120 Speaker 1: a lot of them were helmed by intelligent leaders who 6 00:00:22,160 --> 00:00:26,119 Speaker 1: played politics, exercised diplomacy as needed, and earned the respect 7 00:00:26,120 --> 00:00:31,240 Speaker 1: of their peers. One exceptionally skilled fleet commander terrorized the 8 00:00:31,240 --> 00:00:34,159 Speaker 1: South China Sea in the early nineteenth century. At the 9 00:00:34,200 --> 00:00:36,839 Speaker 1: height of her power, she directed a vast coalition of 10 00:00:36,840 --> 00:00:41,000 Speaker 1: several thousand pirates, the largest pirate crew ever assembled. Then. 11 00:00:41,200 --> 00:00:44,839 Speaker 1: Having made history in spectacular fashion, she retired from piracy 12 00:00:45,040 --> 00:00:48,080 Speaker 1: and lived to a ripe old age. So who was 13 00:00:48,159 --> 00:00:53,120 Speaker 1: this seafaring outlaw. Well. In contemporary English language books and websites, 14 00:00:53,320 --> 00:00:56,440 Speaker 1: she's often called ching Shi, but that wasn't her real name. 15 00:00:57,200 --> 00:01:00,000 Speaker 1: We spoke by email with Diane Murray, a history professor 16 00:01:00,000 --> 00:01:02,400 Speaker 1: her at the University of Notre Dame and authority on 17 00:01:02,520 --> 00:01:06,120 Speaker 1: China's pirate past. She explained that the name ching Chi 18 00:01:06,280 --> 00:01:08,199 Speaker 1: was the invention of an author in the early eighteen 19 00:01:08,240 --> 00:01:12,000 Speaker 1: hundreds who was attempting to translate a Chinese text into English, 20 00:01:12,360 --> 00:01:15,440 Speaker 1: Murray said. The lady pirate in question is most commonly 21 00:01:15,480 --> 00:01:19,400 Speaker 1: referred to in the official Chinese sources simply as Mrs Chang. 22 00:01:20,880 --> 00:01:24,240 Speaker 1: Chang's early life is poorly documented. We do know that 23 00:01:24,280 --> 00:01:26,480 Speaker 1: she worked at a Cantonese brothel before she married a 24 00:01:26,480 --> 00:01:28,720 Speaker 1: man by the name of Change in the year eighteen 25 00:01:28,760 --> 00:01:31,120 Speaker 1: o one or so. She was likely in her twenties 26 00:01:31,160 --> 00:01:35,039 Speaker 1: at the time. Her husband, a notorious pirate, was the 27 00:01:35,080 --> 00:01:38,720 Speaker 1: product of a changing seascape. From seventeen seventy one to 28 00:01:38,800 --> 00:01:42,080 Speaker 1: eighteen o two, Vietnam was embroiled in the Taishan Rebellion, 29 00:01:42,280 --> 00:01:45,840 Speaker 1: a peasant light uprising against the Lay dynasty. Lacking a 30 00:01:45,880 --> 00:01:49,280 Speaker 1: strong naval force, the rebels contracted small time pirates to 31 00:01:49,360 --> 00:01:52,880 Speaker 1: fight and loot on their behalf. In exchange, the plunderers 32 00:01:52,880 --> 00:01:57,800 Speaker 1: received weapons, vessels, and, best of all, safe harbors. Such 33 00:01:57,840 --> 00:02:01,480 Speaker 1: allowances created an environment where organized, large scale piracy could 34 00:02:01,480 --> 00:02:05,280 Speaker 1: flourish even after the rebellion was put down. As of 35 00:02:05,320 --> 00:02:07,560 Speaker 1: eighteen o two, the South China see played host to 36 00:02:07,680 --> 00:02:12,520 Speaker 1: roughly fifty thou pirates. By eighteen o four, the Chang 37 00:02:12,639 --> 00:02:15,880 Speaker 1: husband and wife team had united five numerous fleets into 38 00:02:15,880 --> 00:02:19,320 Speaker 1: one gigantic confederation made up of seventy thousand men and 39 00:02:19,440 --> 00:02:23,320 Speaker 1: four hundred junks, which are large sailing vessels. The coalition 40 00:02:23,360 --> 00:02:26,160 Speaker 1: was broken up into half a dozen semi autonomous squadrons, 41 00:02:26,280 --> 00:02:29,840 Speaker 1: whose leaders were answerable to the Chang's. Each unit bore 42 00:02:29,880 --> 00:02:32,520 Speaker 1: the name of a colored flag. There's a red flag fleet, 43 00:02:32,600 --> 00:02:36,200 Speaker 1: a black flag fleet, and so on. One of the 44 00:02:36,200 --> 00:02:39,600 Speaker 1: sailors in this mighty criminal syndicate was Chang Po, a 45 00:02:39,639 --> 00:02:44,000 Speaker 1: teenager who had been captured by Change. Murray said, after 46 00:02:44,040 --> 00:02:48,480 Speaker 1: recognizing his potential for leadership, Change initiated Chang Po into 47 00:02:48,480 --> 00:02:52,359 Speaker 1: the pirate ranks by means of a homosexual liaison. Soon enough, 48 00:02:52,680 --> 00:02:54,919 Speaker 1: Chang e put the youth in command of his own vessel, 49 00:02:55,160 --> 00:02:58,560 Speaker 1: and even adopted him as his own child. But it 50 00:02:58,639 --> 00:03:02,080 Speaker 1: was Mrs Chang who held the confederation together after change 51 00:03:02,120 --> 00:03:06,000 Speaker 1: abrupt death in November of eighteen o seven. Taking charge 52 00:03:06,000 --> 00:03:08,679 Speaker 1: of the enterprise, she implemented a new code of conduct. 53 00:03:09,280 --> 00:03:11,800 Speaker 1: Under these rules, pirates and her fleets would be executed 54 00:03:11,840 --> 00:03:13,720 Speaker 1: if they stole goods from a communal fund that was 55 00:03:13,760 --> 00:03:16,400 Speaker 1: meant to benefit everyone, or if they raped a captive woman. 56 00:03:17,880 --> 00:03:20,480 Speaker 1: The rules were co authored by Chang Po, who had 57 00:03:20,480 --> 00:03:23,960 Speaker 1: assumed a powerful new role within the outfit. Murray said, 58 00:03:24,400 --> 00:03:26,919 Speaker 1: Mrs Chang realized that she needed a lieutenant to help 59 00:03:26,919 --> 00:03:29,400 Speaker 1: her command the three hundred junks and twenty to forty 60 00:03:29,800 --> 00:03:32,840 Speaker 1: men of what had previously been her husband's red flag fleet. 61 00:03:33,480 --> 00:03:36,560 Speaker 1: Cheang Po took the job, becoming Mrs Cheang's lover and 62 00:03:36,760 --> 00:03:41,160 Speaker 1: later her second spouse. For years, MSUs chengg maintained good 63 00:03:41,200 --> 00:03:43,800 Speaker 1: relationships with the leaders of every fleet in the coalition. 64 00:03:44,320 --> 00:03:47,680 Speaker 1: She ran a tight ship um and oversaw everything for 65 00:03:47,800 --> 00:03:52,240 Speaker 1: monetary transactions to religious ceremonies. On her watch, the pirate 66 00:03:52,240 --> 00:03:55,640 Speaker 1: alliance expanded even further. Of the two hundred and seventy 67 00:03:55,640 --> 00:03:58,680 Speaker 1: government owned ships stationed at Tien Paie, two hundred and 68 00:03:58,720 --> 00:04:02,520 Speaker 1: sixty six fell on or her control. By demanding regular 69 00:04:02,560 --> 00:04:05,840 Speaker 1: patronage from sailing merchants, missus chang sailors profited off of 70 00:04:05,880 --> 00:04:08,920 Speaker 1: Canton's lucrative salt trade. As a matter of fact, the 71 00:04:08,960 --> 00:04:12,200 Speaker 1: Outlaws extracted so much revenue across their domain that missus 72 00:04:12,320 --> 00:04:14,840 Speaker 1: Chang found it necessary to establish a network of land 73 00:04:14,840 --> 00:04:19,760 Speaker 1: based financial offices. Her strategic mind was well suited to warfare. 74 00:04:20,320 --> 00:04:24,160 Speaker 1: Mus Chang's fleets regularly embarrassed to the navies of southern China. 75 00:04:24,360 --> 00:04:28,240 Speaker 1: They grew notries for kidnapping Chinese officials, blockheading rivers, and 76 00:04:28,360 --> 00:04:31,720 Speaker 1: routing just about anyone who opposed their will. But that 77 00:04:31,800 --> 00:04:36,000 Speaker 1: was to change. In eighteen o nine, China's increasingly agitated 78 00:04:36,040 --> 00:04:38,880 Speaker 1: government borrowed well armed vessels from the British East India 79 00:04:38,920 --> 00:04:42,440 Speaker 1: Company and the Portuguese Navy. At the same time, it 80 00:04:42,520 --> 00:04:46,719 Speaker 1: also offered amnesty to pirates who surrendered. Marie explained the 81 00:04:46,800 --> 00:04:49,120 Speaker 1: offer was tempting to the leader of the Black Flag Fleet, 82 00:04:49,360 --> 00:04:52,240 Speaker 1: who then forced a confrontation with the Red Flag Fleet. 83 00:04:52,839 --> 00:04:55,960 Speaker 1: While negotiating with the government, the Black Flag leader turned 84 00:04:56,000 --> 00:04:58,760 Speaker 1: over the captives from that inter squadron battle as a 85 00:04:58,800 --> 00:05:02,560 Speaker 1: gesture of goodwill. Before long, other units were defecting from 86 00:05:02,560 --> 00:05:06,679 Speaker 1: missus Chang's confederation. She could read the writing on the wall. 87 00:05:07,320 --> 00:05:10,240 Speaker 1: Blackbeard and other career pirates who kept plundering until the 88 00:05:10,279 --> 00:05:13,360 Speaker 1: bitter end usually met horrible deaths, whether on the high 89 00:05:13,400 --> 00:05:16,520 Speaker 1: seas or at the gallows. Missus Chang decided to go 90 00:05:16,680 --> 00:05:20,360 Speaker 1: a different route. On April eighth, eighteen ten, after an 91 00:05:20,360 --> 00:05:23,160 Speaker 1: earlier round of peace talks failed, she took a delegation 92 00:05:23,200 --> 00:05:26,160 Speaker 1: of seventeen pirate wives and children to the Governor General's 93 00:05:26,160 --> 00:05:30,080 Speaker 1: office in Canton. Inside Missus Chang Broke heard a favorable 94 00:05:30,120 --> 00:05:33,840 Speaker 1: amnesty deal. Murray said. Cheang Po was allowed to retain 95 00:05:33,880 --> 00:05:36,000 Speaker 1: between twenty to thirty of his vessels for use in 96 00:05:36,040 --> 00:05:38,520 Speaker 1: the salt trade, and received an appointment in the Chinese 97 00:05:38,520 --> 00:05:41,520 Speaker 1: Water Forces. Furthermore, most of the pirates who had served 98 00:05:41,560 --> 00:05:45,400 Speaker 1: under her were granted pardons as well. Cheng Po passed 99 00:05:45,440 --> 00:05:47,880 Speaker 1: away in eighteen twenty two at the age of thirty six. 100 00:05:48,200 --> 00:05:50,560 Speaker 1: He was survived by his wife, who died peacefully in 101 00:05:50,600 --> 00:05:58,480 Speaker 1: eighteen forty four at the age of sixty nine. Today's 102 00:05:58,480 --> 00:06:01,320 Speaker 1: episode was written by barkman Chen and produced by Tyler clayg. 103 00:06:01,760 --> 00:06:03,680 Speaker 1: Brain Stuff is a production of I Heart Radio's How 104 00:06:03,680 --> 00:06:05,760 Speaker 1: Stuff Works. For more in this and lots of other 105 00:06:05,800 --> 00:06:09,200 Speaker 1: adventurous topics, visit our home planet how Stuff Works dot com, 106 00:06:09,240 --> 00:06:11,599 Speaker 1: and for more podcast my heart Radio, visit the I 107 00:06:11,640 --> 00:06:14,320 Speaker 1: heart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen to 108 00:06:14,360 --> 00:06:15,159 Speaker 1: your favorite shows.