RAPINE SELF-AGGRANDIZEMENT

Although pirate ships are traditionally portrayed as flying one of the numerous variations of the skull and crossbones ensign, many did not. Some buccaneer vessels sported a plain red flag, some had a plain black flag, and some had red or black flags with fanciful designs. The red flag was known as the Joli Rouge ("pretty red"), and this may have been corrupted into the "Jolly Roger" in English. A few captains used flags of other non-traditional colors.

The black flag did not inspire as much terror as the red flag. The black flag signified that the pirates would accept a surrender and spare the lives of the crew of the target ship. The red flag meant that the attackers would give no quarter and that it would be a fight to the death. You might think that a pirate captain flying a red flag would realize that he is just making his job more difficult, as his prey will be markedly more uncooperative. 

Equally confusing is the question of why a pirate would fly a banner advertising his profession in the first place. A corsair who has no trouble stealing and murdering would probably not be troubled by the moral implications of approaching his (or, in some cases, her) prey under a false flag of an appropriate friendly nation or even under no flag at all. 

The single answer to the foregoing mysteries is simply "psychological warfare." Pirates did usually fly "innocent" false flags or no flags until they got within cannon range of their victims and would then strike the decoy flag and raise the black buccaneer banner. The members of a crew of a targeted ship would know that, under the laws of the sea, they could resist with force the boarding by an attacking vessel flying national colors yet still have their lives spared if they eventually surrendered. On the other hand, they also knew and feared that fighting against an attack by a pirate ship flying a black flag would provoke their enemy into raising the red Joli Rouge--an event which could lead to a very bad albeit short day. Depending on the whim of the pirate captain, ship crews who instantly capitulated to the black flag and handled their victimhood in a businesslike and professional matter did not usually suffer physical harm and were sometimes even allowed to retain a portion of their cargo.

For a few examples of the flags employed by historical pirates, click here.