The Pirate of Portland
Pirate Captain Bob Rum
Raven Studio of Portland presents the latest in Pirate stuff for all your adventures!
Piracy is of ancient origin. The Phoenicians often combined piracy with more legitimate seafaring enterprise. From the 9th century to the 11th century the Vikings terrorized western European coasts and waters. In the 17th century the English Channel swarmed with Algerian pirates operating out of northern Africa; Algiers continued to be a piratical stronghold until well into the 19th century (see Barbary Coast). The buccaneers were pirates who, during the 16th and 17th centuries, preyed mainly on Spanish commerce with the Spanish American colonies. Piracy decreased with the development of the steam engine and the growth of the British and American navies in the late 18th century and early 19th century.
When men come to like a sea-life, they are not fit to live on land.
Samuel Johnson (1709–84), English author, lexicographer. Quoted in: James Boswell, Life of Samuel Johnson, 18 March 1776 (1791).
