One misconception is that pirates used large, superior vessels with large numbers of cannon. In actuality, they preferred smaller, faster ships, which could easily catch prey. The single-masted sloop was one of the fastest ships of the time. She had a long bowsprit and could carry a square topsail. Schooners were also popular. A schooner had two masts, and a shallow draft, which allowed the ship to travel in shallower water. A brigantine was the favored ship for combat, because she was versatile and also had more cargo space for captured treasure. She could be square or fore-and-aft rigged, had two masts, and a crew of one hundred men. A good flagship was the three-masted square-rigger. This ship carried a crew of two hundred and twenty cannon. She was also seaworthy and had a large cargo hold.
Pirates preferred smaller, faster, more maneuverable ships because their goal was rarely to outgun their prey. Pirates preferred to draw up alongside a ship and board her, using swords, cutlasses, daggers, and small arms as well as many other weapons to take her crew while doing as little damage to the ship as possible.
Pirates used the swords that were common in the part of the world in which they operated. For example, Caribbean pirates often used the double-edged one-handed sword that was popular in Europe. A cutlass was a short, curved sword that may have been developed from the knives originally used by the buccaneers to butcher meat. Due to the cutlass�s size and shape, it was good for use in tight quarters.
Another weapon used was the axe. It was used to aid in boarding a ship, as well as to cut rigging and open closed hatches. The axe could be a deadly weapon.
A pike was a long spear with a metal head. It could be thrown or held, and was most effective against knives and swords, due to its length.
Knives and daggers were used, not only as weapons, but as tools aboard ship as well. A dagger was a small knife. It was used to cut food, rope and sail, and in sword fights. A dirk was a specific type of dagger.
Many types of firearms were used by pirates. The flintlock pistol was the ideal weapon for pirates, despite numerous drawbacks. If the powder got wet, which was extremely likely on board a wooden ship, the gun would not fire properly. Still, its small size made it extremely popular, and often several were carried since it could only fire one shot at a time. The pistol was fired exactly the same way as was a flintlock rifle.
A musket was one of the first attempts at accurate small arms. It was used as a long-range sniping weapon, much like a bow or crossbow was used, and later served as a model for the rifle. The musketoon was a smaller version of the musket. It was shorter and less accurate, which made it easier to use in situations where accuracy was not important. It was still rather large, so only one was likely to be carried. The blunderbuss was another close range weapon. It could fire one large ball or several balls at once, making it a very deadly close range weapon. A blunderbuss could kill or maim several people at once.
Cannons were not used so much by pirates, because they needed several men to load, fire, and control one gun. When they were used, however, their purpose was not to severely damage the ship, only to disable it. To accomplish this it was loaded with various types of shot. Chain-shot was used to tangle and damage the rigging. To disable the crew, gravel, nails, musket balls, or small cannon balls could be fired in a single shot.
Granados, or powder flasks, were an early form of the hand grenade. They were small iron, glass, or wooden balls filled with gunpowder and fitted with a fuse. The fuse was lit, and the ball was thrown onto the deck of a ship. They were very effective at demoralizing a crew, however they were unreliable and posed a serious danger to the user as well.
Stinkpots were the equivalent of modern day stink bombs. These chemical filled pots were set on fire and thrown at the victims� ship, creating confusion and sickening the crew.
