From the bestselling author of Under the Black Flag comes the definitive biography of the swashbuckling nineteenth-century maritime hero upon whom Jack Aubrey and Horatio Hornblower are based.Nicknamed le loup des mers (“the sea wolf”) by Napoleon, Thomas Cochrane was one of the most daring and successful naval heroes of all time. In this fascinating account of Cochrane's life, historian David Cordingly unearths startling new details about the...

Piracy has always provided a good opportunity for ruthless men to seek their fortunes. For the young man -- very few older men went "on the account" -- piracy offered a means of escape from the monotony of shore-based jobs and brought with it the added spice of treasure, definite danger and excitement, wine and women, and a chance to see the world. But it was a dangerous calling, and few took up active piracy for more than a decade: the careers of...