The Pirate Queen
At the very beginning of the 1800s, a Chinese woman went from being employed as a prostitute in the floating brothels close to Canton to becoming the leader of the biggest pirate confederacy in modern history. Despite ending up as one of the most successful pirates ever, little is known about her. Back in episode 24 of History on Fire, I covered her story in as much detail as I could find. In this video, I offer a much quicker introduction diving into the mystery of her life.