David Cordingly
Author of Under the Black Flag: The Romance and the Reality of Life Among the Pirates
About the Author
David Cordingly was for twelve years on the staff of the National Maritime Museum in Greenwich, England, where he was curator of paintings and then head of exhibitions. He is a graduate of Oxford. He lives with his wife and family in Sussex, England.
Series
Works by David Cordingly
Associated Works
The Complete Book of Maritime Design: A Compendium of Naval Art and Painting (1998) — Introduction — 19 copies
Tagged
Common Knowledge
- Birthdate
- 1938-12-05
- Gender
- male
- Nationality
- UK
- Country (for map)
- England, UK
- Places of residence
- Brighton, Sussex, England, UK
- Education
- University of Oxford
University of Sussex - Occupations
- Keeper of Pictures, National Maritime Museum, London, UK
Head of Exhibitions, National Maritime Museum, London, UK
maritime historian - Organizations
- National Maritime Museum, London, UK
Members
Reviews
Lists
Awards
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Associated Authors
Statistics
- Works
- 15
- Also by
- 1
- Members
- 4,066
- Popularity
- #6,192
- Rating
- 3.8
- Reviews
- 59
- ISBNs
- 74
- Languages
- 3
- Favorited
- 2
I'm conflicted though. It offered lots of new information, but the premise of "the romance" of piracy wasn't there. Where did the idea of the jolly pirate come from? Sir Henry Morgan insisted that he was the son of a gentleman, creating his own romantic past, but Cordingly doesn't expand on this point. Anne Bonny and Mary Read definitely gained their romantic status but one that is distinctively theirs, not a reflection on pirates as a whole. Though props to Cordingly for including French pirates in this one! He acknowledges that it was actually French corsairs like Jean Fleury, Francois le Clerc, and Francis L'Ollonais, "who led the attacks on Spanish treasure ships." The French made an appearance several times which was refreshing. He also mentions other seafaring women, mainly Mary Ann Talbot, Hannah Snell, and Cheng Shih! However, I struggled to find the connection between them all besides a history of general piracy. I'm afraid the reader must draw their own conclusions. Still, I took a lot of notes! He's definitely the expert!… (more)