Pirates: Behind the Legends

©National Geographic
Pirates: Behind the Legends

Synopsis

A swashbuckling adventure; the true and untold story of the history of pirates. From Francis Drake to Blackbeard, who were the real enemies of the sea?

Episodes

Season 1
  • Francis Drake

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    Circumnavigation is the pinnacle of Drake’s career, cementing him in history as the world’s most controversial pirate.

  • Grace O'Malley

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    Grace O’Malley, the Pirate Queen of Ireland. Her rise from wanted pirate to Chieftain is won through a warrior’s sword and a woman’s grit.

  • John Ward

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    The Englishman turned Algerian pirate starts his remarkable ascent from petty pirate to a notorious menace, becoming ruler of the Tunisian empire.

  • Henry Morgan

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    A brilliant strategist, Morgan takes humans, treasure and Spanish colonial towns with no mercy later becoming Lieutenant Governor of Jamaica.

  • William Kidd

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    Captain Kidd, the treasure hunter. When the legitimate prizes of the Red Sea are not to be found, Kidd turns from pirate hunter to pirate.

  • Blackbeard

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    Blackbeard is a terrifying figure with a diverse crew of pirates seeking equality and treasure, aboard the stolen flagship The Queen Anne’s Revenge.

  • Anne Bonny and Mary Read

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    Before they’re captured and face trial, Anne Bonny and Mary Read’s brief careers show them to be more ferocious than the male pirates they sail with.

  • Bartholomew Roberts

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    Bartholomew Roberts, the most successful pirate of the Golden Age, brings West Indies trade to a standstill until hunted down by the English crown.