Ching Shih
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Atlas Obscura - The Chinese Female Pirate Who Commanded 80,000 Outlaws
Website: Atlas Obscura, https://www.atlasobscura.com/articles/the-chinese-female-pirate-who-commanded-80000-outlaws
Author: URVIJA BANERJI
Date: April 6, 2016
Website: Atlas Obscura, https://www.atlasobscura.com/articles/the-chinese-female-pirate-who-commanded-80000-outlaws
Author: URVIJA BANERJI
Date: April 6, 2016
Excerpts from website:
Ching Shih, who lived and pillaged during the Qing Dynasty, has been called the most successful pirate in history. AT THE DAWN OF THE 19th century, a former prostitute from a floating brothel in the city of Canton was wed to Cheng I, a fearsome pirate who operated in the South China Sea in the Qing dynasty.
Though the name under which we now know her, Ching Shih, simply means “Cheng’s widow,” the legacy she left behind far exceeded that of her husband’s. Following his death, she succeeded him and commanded over 1,800 pirate ships, and an estimated 80,000 men. In comparison, the famed Blackbeard commanded four ships and 300 pirates within the same century. As a result, Ching Shih is known as one of the most successful pirates in known history.
Her husband, Cheng I, was the formidable commander of the Red Flag Fleet of pirate ships. He had managed to unite many rival Chinese pirate organizations. He married a 26-year-old Ching Shih in 1801, “who participated fully in her husband’s piracy,” writes Dian H. Murray in Pirates of the South China Coast, 1790-1810.
It is rumored that Ching Shih demanded equal control of the pirate fleet as a condition of her marriage to Cheng I in 1801. “Where business acumen starts to display itself is in the way she became the overall head of the entire confederation,” says Murray. Female pirate leaders were a rare phenomenon, and Murray is only aware of one other woman commander, a Mrs. Hon-cho-lo, who was active in Hong Kong in the first half of the 20th century.
Six years into their marriage, Cheng I died at the age of 42. Not much is known about how he passed away. Some accounts indicate that he was killed at sea by a tsunami, while others insinuate that he was murdered in Vietnam. Regardless of the circumstances, his death left Ching Shih in a precarious position.
Soon, she managed to maneuver herself back into power, and obtained leadership of the Red Flag Fleet.
As a woman in command of a huge pirate fleet, Ching Shih had her work cut out for her. “Pirate vessels often had a few women on board, but it is not clear to what extent they were or were not practicing pirates,” says Murray. Unlike in the West, in South China there was no stigma attached to women being on board a ship, or being bad luck for the ship. Nevertheless, it wouldn’t have been easy for anyone, much less a pirate’s widow, to control so many outlaws.
An East India Company employee named Richard Glasspoole was captured by Ching Shih’s pirates in September 1809, and held until December of that year. In his account of the ordeal, he estimated that there were 80,000 pirates under Ching Shih’s command, and some 1,000 large junks and 800 smaller junks and rowboats.
Ching Shih unified her enormous fleet of pirates using a code of laws. The code was strict, and stated that any pirate giving his own orders or disobeying those of a superior was to be beheaded on the spot. The code was particularly unusual in its laws regarding female captives. There are further accounts of Ching Shih’s code that state that if a pirate took a captive as his wife, he was required to be faithful to her. “Whatever they thought about her, it does seem clear that the pirates respected and obeyed her authority,” says Murray.
The Red Flag Fleet under Ching Shih’s rule went undefeated, despite attempts by Qing dynasty officials, the Portuguese navy, and the East India Company to vanquish it. After three years of notoriety on the high seas, Ching Shih finally retired in 1810 by accepting an offer of amnesty from the Chinese government.
“What precipitated the surrender seems to have been an internecine conflict between the Black and Red Fleets and their leaders, which first led to the surrender of the Black Flag Fleet and then ultimately, to the Red Flag fleet,” says Murray. “I imagine that given mounting pressure from the outside for their suppression and internal loss of cohesion, that she realized the time had come to give up.”
Ching Shih died in 1844, at the ripe old age of 69. The legacy she left behind from the time of her rule has penetrated popular culture. She even inspired a character in the The Pirates of the Caribbean franchise: the powerful Mistress Ching, one of the nine Pirate Lords. While nothing is known about the years she spent following her retirement, one can only hope she spent her last days in peace and anonymity, away from the harrowing life on the seas where she made her name
Ching Shih, who lived and pillaged during the Qing Dynasty, has been called the most successful pirate in history. AT THE DAWN OF THE 19th century, a former prostitute from a floating brothel in the city of Canton was wed to Cheng I, a fearsome pirate who operated in the South China Sea in the Qing dynasty.
Though the name under which we now know her, Ching Shih, simply means “Cheng’s widow,” the legacy she left behind far exceeded that of her husband’s. Following his death, she succeeded him and commanded over 1,800 pirate ships, and an estimated 80,000 men. In comparison, the famed Blackbeard commanded four ships and 300 pirates within the same century. As a result, Ching Shih is known as one of the most successful pirates in known history.
Her husband, Cheng I, was the formidable commander of the Red Flag Fleet of pirate ships. He had managed to unite many rival Chinese pirate organizations. He married a 26-year-old Ching Shih in 1801, “who participated fully in her husband’s piracy,” writes Dian H. Murray in Pirates of the South China Coast, 1790-1810.
It is rumored that Ching Shih demanded equal control of the pirate fleet as a condition of her marriage to Cheng I in 1801. “Where business acumen starts to display itself is in the way she became the overall head of the entire confederation,” says Murray. Female pirate leaders were a rare phenomenon, and Murray is only aware of one other woman commander, a Mrs. Hon-cho-lo, who was active in Hong Kong in the first half of the 20th century.
Six years into their marriage, Cheng I died at the age of 42. Not much is known about how he passed away. Some accounts indicate that he was killed at sea by a tsunami, while others insinuate that he was murdered in Vietnam. Regardless of the circumstances, his death left Ching Shih in a precarious position.
Soon, she managed to maneuver herself back into power, and obtained leadership of the Red Flag Fleet.
As a woman in command of a huge pirate fleet, Ching Shih had her work cut out for her. “Pirate vessels often had a few women on board, but it is not clear to what extent they were or were not practicing pirates,” says Murray. Unlike in the West, in South China there was no stigma attached to women being on board a ship, or being bad luck for the ship. Nevertheless, it wouldn’t have been easy for anyone, much less a pirate’s widow, to control so many outlaws.
An East India Company employee named Richard Glasspoole was captured by Ching Shih’s pirates in September 1809, and held until December of that year. In his account of the ordeal, he estimated that there were 80,000 pirates under Ching Shih’s command, and some 1,000 large junks and 800 smaller junks and rowboats.
Ching Shih unified her enormous fleet of pirates using a code of laws. The code was strict, and stated that any pirate giving his own orders or disobeying those of a superior was to be beheaded on the spot. The code was particularly unusual in its laws regarding female captives. There are further accounts of Ching Shih’s code that state that if a pirate took a captive as his wife, he was required to be faithful to her. “Whatever they thought about her, it does seem clear that the pirates respected and obeyed her authority,” says Murray.
The Red Flag Fleet under Ching Shih’s rule went undefeated, despite attempts by Qing dynasty officials, the Portuguese navy, and the East India Company to vanquish it. After three years of notoriety on the high seas, Ching Shih finally retired in 1810 by accepting an offer of amnesty from the Chinese government.
“What precipitated the surrender seems to have been an internecine conflict between the Black and Red Fleets and their leaders, which first led to the surrender of the Black Flag Fleet and then ultimately, to the Red Flag fleet,” says Murray. “I imagine that given mounting pressure from the outside for their suppression and internal loss of cohesion, that she realized the time had come to give up.”
Ching Shih died in 1844, at the ripe old age of 69. The legacy she left behind from the time of her rule has penetrated popular culture. She even inspired a character in the The Pirates of the Caribbean franchise: the powerful Mistress Ching, one of the nine Pirate Lords. While nothing is known about the years she spent following her retirement, one can only hope she spent her last days in peace and anonymity, away from the harrowing life on the seas where she made her name
Dear Australia
Let's Mark This Moment In History
The last few months have had an extraordinary impact on families, communities and our way of life. There have been highs and lows, moments of joy and learnings for all of us.
Australia Post think it’s important that we mark this moment in our nation’s history. So they’ve created a national letterbox where, from now until 18 August, you can write a letter to share your experience of the COVID-19 pandemic. We’re working with the National Archives of Australia, where eligible Dear Australia letters will be kept for future generations.
This will enable all Australians to record their impressions of this remarkable time.
Australia Post think it’s important that we mark this moment in our nation’s history. So they’ve created a national letterbox where, from now until 18 August, you can write a letter to share your experience of the COVID-19 pandemic. We’re working with the National Archives of Australia, where eligible Dear Australia letters will be kept for future generations.
This will enable all Australians to record their impressions of this remarkable time.
Questions to you may want to consider:
- What was working from home like?
- Did your holidays feel like holidays? Did you see your friends? Did you miss your friends? Were you stuck at home?
- How did you feel when COVID-19 reached the Bega Valley?
- How did you feel when everyone came back to school?
- Do you think we've come through COVID in our local area? What about Australia?
- Has your life changed significantly in the long term because of COVID? Have any of your habits changed?
- What do you know about what is happening in other countries and how they are handling COVID?
Ancient Chinese Women
Write down adjectives that come to mind as you are watching these videos.
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Pick one of the following articles below. Read the information and summarise into key points.
Extension:
Research a prominent female figure in ancient China.
In what ways did they challenge the cultural expectations of the Ancient Chinese people?
Options:
- Ban Zhao
- Fu Hao
- Princess Pingyang
- Xun Guan
- Empress Wu Zetian (Wu Zhou)
In what ways did they challenge the cultural expectations of the Ancient Chinese people?
Options:
- Ban Zhao
- Fu Hao
- Princess Pingyang
- Xun Guan
- Empress Wu Zetian (Wu Zhou)
Answer the following:
What key events occurred in their life?
Why is this person viewed as a historical person?
What key events occurred in their life?
Why is this person viewed as a historical person?