"An important addition to the literature on piracy. The wide-ranging selection of documents makes it possible to compare and contrast piracy across the globe, and over time. Readers will gain a real sense of the scope of early modern sea raiders from these sources (several of which are translated into English for the first time here) and surely enjoy a few good yarns. The ancillary materials (short introductions to the documents, reading questions, chronology, maps, images, and glossary) will also facilitate classroom use of this anthology." -- Sean T Perrone, Saint Anselm College

"A really exciting volume. The wide range of archival material collected here from around the world will allow readers to explore the early modern world, and real-life experience of piracy, first hand. But the book also serves as an effective introduction to such broader topics as working with, and learning from, sources; how researchers use archives; how historians can make dramatically different arguments about the same document; and how historians construct a narrative based on available evidence." -- Mark G Hanna, University of California, San Diego

"[A] tremendous boon. Piracy in the Early Modern Era provides a much needed authoritative selection of texts, thematically and chronologically divided into eight well-chosen sections that effectively showcase the material's interest, as well as its global range and significance. The editors . . . have framed the anthology with a 'general introduction' that provides an authoritative overview of the history of piracy and ways of approaching it, from ancient to modern, as well as the debates about terminology and meaning concerning the terms corsair , pirate , privateer and buccaneer. Taken together, the judicious selection of primary materials and informative contextual and ancillary resources in Piracy in the Early Modern Era makes it an excellent addition to the current literature available on piracy. "This valuable book has much to recommend it as, with its succinct introductions and broad-ranging and varied global sources, it challenges the dominance of English early modern maritime history, allowing readers to understand piracy in global contexts." —Claire Jowitt, University of East Anglia, in The Mariner's Mirror: The International Quarterly Journal of The Society for Nautical Research

Selected by CHOICE Magazine as an Outstanding Academic Title for 2020: "Defining piracy in the early modern period is frustrating; investigating the lives of early modern pirates is even more maddening. Their humble and diverse social origins, itinerant existences, and illicit activities conspire to obscure them, and what contemporaries thought about them, from our present view. This impressive collection helps shed light on these shadowy historical figures. As piracy was a contested crime in the early modern period, editors Lane (Tulane Univ.) and Bialuschewski (Trent Univ., Canada) note that to "get closer to the truth about piracy, one must examine as many sources as possible" (p. xv). Accordingly, they have scoured the globe for primary sources and truly provide a kaleidoscopic perspective on early modern piracy. In addition to a general introduction, chronology, select bibliography, and glossary, there are eight sections of documents, each concerned with a different period or place in the history of early modern piracy. Most appreciated are the heretofore unknown or untranslated non-English archival sources; their deft juxtaposition with previously published commentaries offers "rare insight into the actions" of early modern pirates (p. xxvii). This is, in sum, an exceptional resource for investigating early modern piracy. Highly recommended ." —M. Reardon, West Texas A&M University, in CHOICE