JAZ Improv: Pirate Series : Release the Kraken!

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Around the turn of the 19th century, the Qing dynasty (China's last dynasty before becoming a Republic) was learning hard lessons about their isolation and lack of modernization. This once-noble dynasty found itself thwarted on all sides by enemies using more modern ships, equipment, and strategies.

Ching Shih's pirate career began when she married Zheng Yi, who was a privateer fighting for the Vietnamese Tây Sơn dynasty in the Tây Sơn wars against Qing China and later Nguyễn Ánh. Under Tây Sơn patronage, he fought in his cousin Zheng Qi's fleet. After the Vietnamese achieved victory, Yi set out with his clever and resourceful wife to amass a full naval army and begin to terrorize many regions of the South China Sea. Eventually this force united many others and became a full-scale Pirate Confederation with distinct "armies" named by color - Red, Yellow, Green, etc. These floating armies assisted each other when necessary to push back forces of the Dutch, English, French, Portugese and the Qing Dynasty, for many years.

When Zheng Yi died in Vietnam in 1807, Ching Shih inherited these armies and grew her forces to hundreds of ships (some say as many as 1500) and operated under the field command of her new husband while she operated as Commander-in-Chief. This Pirate Confederation continued to dominate the region until an eventual armistice that included a full pardon for Ching Shih, who retired and lived to the ripe age (for a pirate) of 69 in the company of her family, including grandchildren.

Ching Shih and her husband Zheng Yi Sao are credited with a modernization of the pirate code. While all pirates were violent and often committed unspeakable crimes, the new pirate code established women as equals and even decreed that captured women (pirates or civilians) were to be respected and not mistreated, under pain of execution.

In many ways this infamous Pirate Queen had an impressive impact on the history of 19th century Pacific Ocean history, and her bold intrepid nature inspires this new bold Pirate Series Blend!