Captain William Kidd's Treasure

East coast of Scotland, around 1645, so we don't know, it could've been 1650, it's just, like, could've been 1640, 1639, we don't really know because, you know, not everybody kept good records back then, and he was just a regular kid, you know? So he wasn't, like, a king or anything.

So approximately 1645.

When he became of age, which back then it could've been, like, 12, guys, you know, he became a seaman, and gradually worked his way up to a well-respected captain.

So he was in a prime position to become a privateer.

Do either of you know what a privateer is?

No.

Mm-mm.

So this was a very sought after title, because this was how men, of course, not women, 'cause, you know, back then 1600s women were pretty much relegated to the kitchen and raising kids.

They didn't go out to sea, most of them.

But this is how men who were not born wealthy could get rich.

A privateer is either a ship or a person, either one could be granted this title.

Unlike a pirate, they had permission via a legal document to attack enemy ships.

It's actually just a pirate, but privateers were legal versus pirates being illegal.

Obviously the legality dependent on the viewpoint of the country, and you'll, we'll get into that later, like, there's a prime example of that.

But in 1695, the English pirate Captain Avery or Every, it's spelled both ways, teamed up with five other pirates, the Indian Emperor's, to capture the Indian Emperor's treasure ship.

They stole...

It's really hard to talk seriously with you right now, Heather.

Like [laughs]-

I'm a serious pirate.

[laughs]

You're talking about pirates, so I thought I better-

Yeah.

No-

Yeah

... forgive the effect.