Gay pirates: An explanation to the frilly shirts?
On a piece of forgotten queer history.
Art by Eleanor Curran
April 18, 2021
The true stories of gay pirates have been lost in most Hollywood representations. These historical badasses had more of a colourful history than Pirates of the Caribbean made us believe. Somewhere between pillaging villages, burning their own beards, and scurvy, there was love on the high seas. Or at least historians suspect there was, and with hoards of men stuck at sea for years on end, you can understand why. Unfortunately, little documentation of gay relationships survives. However, one common pirate custom does hint towards their bootylicious partner preferences. Pirates had their own form of same-sex marriage called ‘matelotage’; matelots wore matching gold rings, fought side by side, and, when one died, the other got their cut of the booty.