What Have Pirates Done For Me Lately? -Workman's Comp

This feature of the blog is a weekly entry on how pirates employed concepts that seem very modern in their lives that may surprise and amaze with their progressiveness.

Workman's Comp

In the Caribbean during the Golden Age of Piracy (1680s-1720s) ran their ships in many cases as joint stock companies. The crewmen all got an even stake of plunder and the Captain got to keep the ship; though the Captain was elected by a majority of the crew. It was common for Captains to change several times during a voyage, even during a single month. The articles of the ship were therefore very important, they were the code of laws that the members of the crew agreed to abide by. Each ship therefore becomes a floating corporation in modern terms and accordingly, those members of the crew who are injured for the greater good were compensated for their injuries. Each injury given a specific monitary value.

For Henry Morgan:

A standard compensation is provided for maimed and mutilated buccaneers. "Thus they order for the loss of a right arm six hundred pieces of eight, or six slaves ; for the loss of a left arm five hundred pieces of eight, or five slaves ; for a right leg five hundred pieces of eight, or five slaves ; for the left leg four hundred pieces of eight, or four slaves ; for an eye one hundred pieces of eight, or one slave ; for a finger of the hand the same reward as for the eye."

For Edward Low and George Lowther:

A standard compensation is provided for maimed and mutilated buccaneers. "Thus they order for the loss of a right arm six hundred pieces of eight, or six slaves ; for the loss of a left arm five hundred pieces of eight, or five slaves ; for a right leg five hundred pieces of eight, or five slaves ; for the left leg four hundred pieces of eight, or four slaves ; for an eye one hundred pieces of eight, or one slave ; for a finger of the hand the same reward as for the eye.

For Bartholomew Roberts:

No man to talk of breaking up their way of living, till each had shared one thousand pounds. If in order to this, any man should lose a limb, or become a cripple in their service, he was to have eight hundred dollars, out of the public stock, and for lesser hurts, proportionately.


These obviously varied from ship to ship and were likely amended fairly often. Pirate Codes have influenced European and American Democracy and Corporate Charters all over the World.

What Have Pirates Done For Me Lately is Updated every Friday.