Born to be hanged : the epic story of the gentlemen pirates who raided the South Seas, rescued a princess, and stole a fortune

Summary: "The year is 1680, in the heart of the Golden Age of Piracy, and more than three hundred daring, hardened pirates - a potent mix of low-life scallywags and a rare breed of gentlemen buccaneers - gather on a remote Caribbean island. The plan: to wreak havoc on the Pacific coastline, raiding cities, mines, and merchant ships. The booty: the bright gleam of Spanish gold and the chance to become legends. So begins one of the greatest piratical adventures of the era - a story not given its full due until now. Inspired by the intrepid forays of pirate turned Jamaican governor Captain Henry Morgan - yes, that Captain Morgan - the company crosses Panama on foot, slashing its way through the Darien Isthmus, one of the thickest jungles on the planet, and liberating a native princess along the way. After reaching the South Sea, the buccaneers, primarily Englishmen, plunder the Spanish Main in a series of historic assaults, often prevailing against staggering odd and superior firepower. A collective shudder racks the western coastline of South America as the English pirates, waging a kind of proxy war against the Spaniards, gleefully undertake a brief reign over Pacific waters, marauding up and down the continent."--publisher.