The History of Piracy in the Indian Ocean

The Indian Ocean, which stretches from the eastern part of Africa up to Southeast Asia, has for centuries been one of the most prosperous centers of sea trade. Throughout history, it has been a most important sea route for traders and empires due to its geographical location as a connector between the Middle East, South Asia, and East Asia. But the same characteristic that helped it to become a commercial highway was the same that attracted pirates who looked forward to bringing the business highway to a halt and cash in on the spoils.

Ancient Beginnings of Piracy:

It is important to note that piracy has not been a modern menace, especially in the Indian Ocean. It can be dated back to the early centuries, especially when sea-borne trade entered the scene. Ancient civilizations that have documented the existence of piracy include the Egyptians, Mesopotamians, and Indians, who reported cases of pirates attacking merchants’ ships carrying products such as spices, textiles, and metals, amongst others.

Some of the earliest reports of piracy in the Indian Ocean are associated with the so-called Sea People – a rather enigmatic collective name for one of the ancient Near East’s fleets of sea raiders active in the Mediterranean and, intermittently, in the Red Sea, as well as parts of the western Indian Ocean. It was during the 2nd millennium BC that piracy threatened sea vessels plying between the Persian Gulf and the shorelines of India.

Medieval Piracy and Emergence of Trade Circuit:

This trade web grew into prominence in the Medieval period, with the Indian Ocean zone acting as the central stage for several merchandise exchanges between Islamic countries, East Africa, India, and South East Asia. A number of trading cities on the East African coast emerge in this era as powerful states such as Kilwa, Malindi, and Mogadishu, the empires of India, and the kingdoms of southeast Asia. Therefore, there emerged a specific trade net that was dominated by the Arab and Indian merchants.

However, piracy was a major problem for these emerging trade routes, which started from the Indian Ocean. It was easy for pirates to operate in such a confusing political environment, and with many nations, it was hard to police the seas and implement laws. There was a famous pirate during this period called the Zanj pirates based on the coast of eastern Africa who normally attacked the Arab, Persian, and Indian vessels. Likewise, the Malabar Coast of India and, particularly the 13th and 14th-century was territorial to notorious piracy known as the Mappila. These pirates would launch an attack on ships in the Arabian Sea and caused interferences to the spice trading which was very important to both the Indian and Arab economies.

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The Portuguese and the Golden Age of Piracy:

After the discovery of the Indian Ocean by the Portuguese in the later part of the 15th century, a new aspect of piracy emerged. The Portuguese, under the leadership of Vasco de Gama and others, aimed at controlling the production of spice and the important sea-decided paths. For this, they constructed fortifications put down naval strength in the waters around the region. But they also enraged the local rulers and the pirates, who, in turn, attempted to strike back.

During this time, piracy continued to thrive in the Malabar Coast, and local rulers and merchants hired pirates to fight the Portuguese. From the region of Kerala, the Marakkar family was prosperous as pirates who fought against the Portuguese and were involved in Naval battles.
It was also evident in the Red Sea and the waters near the Arabian Peninsula. The island of Socotra and the Straight of Hormuz were other regions of piracy, which was undertaken by local tribes and other rebels against ships loaded with spices, silks, or precious metals. It is sometimes called ‘The Age of Baksheesh or the Golden Age of Piracy’ in the Indian Ocean, for it was paralleled by a similar increase in piracy in the Caribbean and Atlantic seas.

Piracy in the Arabian Sea and East Africa:

Piracy in the Indian Ocean, however, increased in the 17th and 18th centuries, especially along the Arabian Sea and the East African coast. Omani pirates were prominent especially targeting the ships plying the Gulf of Aden using fast boats known as dhows. Some of these pirates would develop into strong merchant and naval forces in the future while for many decades, these pirates were a menace to trade between the Persian Gulf, India, and East Africa.

On the other hand, the island of Madagascar was found to be occupied by European pirates, who had begun to establish their authority in this part of the world. Many pirates of that region, including Henry Every and William Kidd, had always sought refuge in Madagascar and embarked on attacking ships that belonged to the Mughals and the Europeans, which were full of treasures. Though these pirates were located so far from their European roots, they could not resist the urge to proceed to the Indian Ocean and capitalise on its riches.

Piracy in the 19th century:

Such changes were already on the way in the 19th century when piracy appeared to slow down in the Indian Ocean. The Europeans, especially the British and Dutch, began to aggressively monitor the waters and impose more control on the passages. The British, in particular, conducted military operations against the pirates in the Persian Gulf, the Arabian Sea, and other regions, including Ras al-Khaimah.
The coming of new naval innovations like steamships and long-range cannons also put more constraints on pirates and their operations. Also, the control of pirates began to worsen because of the rise of better-governed coastal states in the African, Indian, and the southeast Asian regions.

Modern Piracy:

Even so, piracy’s latter-day renaissance is evident, especially in the Indian Ocean in the late twentieth and early twenty-first centuries, especially off the coast of Somalia. After Somali politics failed in the 1990s, pirates started seizing ships with the intention of demanding ransoms for the release of the captured ships, particularly those passing through the Gulf of Aden, a strategic corridor through which roughly one-fifth of world trade by tonnage respectively passes.

This modern-day piracy is far from the tales of Captain Hook, where men are seen searching for fortunes of gold doubloons instead of sheer hunger for the dollar. New measures, together with those implemented by naval forces and diplomatic work globally, have marginalized cases of attacks recently, but piracy is still a factor, especially in some parts of the Indian Ocean.

In conclusion, It is as such telling that piracy’s lengthy history in the Indian ocean is a testament to the region and its strategic position as a global hub. Incorporating new chapters and updated research, this fully revised and updated edition examines the continual influence of piracy on such topics as trade, diplomacy, and naval warfar Today, while people keep striving to fight the ‘new’ piracy, the stories of maritime outlaws of the South China Sea remain reminders of the complexity of controlling the global seas.