A General History of the Pyrates

A General History of the Pyrates is a biography-focused book first published in Britain in 1724 and attributed to Captain Charles Johnson. It brings together accounts of pirates active in that period and presents them as a broad history of piracy rather than as a single continuous narrative. The book is known for shaping the popular image of pirates, and for treating some of its subjects in a larger-than-life way, with descriptions that mix reported fact and literary style.

It will appeal to readers interested in maritime history, early biographical writing, and the way public myths are built around real people. The book suits anyone who wants to see how pirate stories took shape in print and why later readers kept returning to them. Its strength is not in a neat plot, but in the voice, the selection of figures, and the cultural influence it had. If you like historical books that sit between documentation and storytelling, this is a strong match for that kind of reading.