What's the difference between a pirate,a buccaneer, and a privateer?

Question

Whats the difference?

Answer 1

A pirate plunders ships for personal gain or generally commits crimes on the sea. Usually this meant someone who was in the English channel or Indo China or Pacific.

A buccaneer is a pirate but usually from the Carribbean and pacific islands. The boucan was a way of cooking food on bamboo or wooden grills and because they cooked this way having learned it from the natives they became boucan-eers. It's the root word of BBQ.

A privateer was any private ship (even including pirate ships) who were given a kind of a pardon to allow them to attack foreign fleets without fear of prosecution. In other words even a pirate could become a privateer by attacking only enemy ships - they got to keep the loot and not fear any punishment. This is a kind of mercenary.

Answer 2

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RE:
What's the difference between a pirate,a buccaneer, and a privateer?
Whats the difference?

Answer 3

A pirate was one who commited a robbery at sea or searched for the treasure at any cost. Sir Francis Drake and Blackbeard are two of the more famous pirates.

A buccaneer was a pirate who attacked who attacked the Spanish and French in the 18th century and they were native Carribean pirates. The word buccaneer refferred to one who smoked meat which is what they did to eat. One of the most infamous buccaneers was Daniel Montbars.

A privateer was a private warship to stop foreign attacks. However, states later used it even if other countries weren't attacking which seemed to encourage piracy.

This is really a fascinating topic... you should read up on it.

Hope I helped! :)

Answer 4

Apirate and buccaneer are the same thing. Buccaneer comes from the French word BOUCAN, meaning wood. The pirates cooked their food on wood grills. A privateer is one paid by a country to attack other nation's ships.

Answer 5

the answers concerning buccaneer coming from boocan are right on.........

a privateer is a private warship and crew given a specific written commission by a nation....called a Letter of Marque......to attack other carefully specified ships of an enemy of that nation.....it was not a broad "go out and capture everything" license.....and without being able to produce that piece of paper, private citizens attacking ships were liable to be treated as pirates and hung; with it they were POWs......

Answer 6

What Is A Buccaneer

Answer 7

It depends who is describing them. Many pirates were supported by a government. People of that nationality would call them privateers. People of a different nationality call them pirates.