The Pirate Queen of the South China Sea

Glossary: 

Junk → classic Chinese sailing vessel, complete with five masts and square sails. 

The plunderers of the seven seas are some of the most notorious criminals in history, with records of piracy dating back to Ancient Greece - The Odyssey itself portraying these tales. It is commonly accepted that the 'pirate population' was composed solely by men, with "No Women on Board '' believed to be a common saying amongst sailors in the past. The most well known explanation for this was the notion that women would bring bad luck to the sailors, variations included women seen as 'distractions' to the sailors as well as angering the Gods who could cause rough seas and weather. However, this has since been proved wrong. During the Golden Age of Piracy (17th and 18th centuries) there are several examples of women not only sailing but also commanding fleets. The area of piracy that is most commonly recognised in modern media is in the Caribbean, where the most prevalent years of piracy largely ended in the 1730s. In these years, two women are well known to have captained pirate ships, their names were Anne Bonny and Mary Read.

However, the Golden Age of Piracy was not entirely over.  In Chinese waters the 'reign of terror' of piracy persisted until the middle of the 19th century. Amongst the fearsome figures who ravaged the seas was a woman who, while not born or brought up as a pirate or even a sailor, , became the most feared person in China. This was Zheng Yi Sao (can also be found as Cheng I Sao). The woman who married into piracy and commandeered the largest fleet in the world. The literal translation of her pirate name is  'wife of Zheng Yi'. It is believed that her real name was Shi Yang, although it is impossible to say for certain as the primary sources all refer to her by her married name. This article will introduce you to the pirate and her importance to history as well as discuss the overall participation of women within piracy.

Zheng Yi Sao lived during the Qing Dynasty. At this time, it was common to see women in roles in seafaring communities in coastal regions, especially if they were part of a seafaring family. Some would work driving small rafts, they would deliver necessary items to those who lived at sea as well as learn the 'domestic arts'. Throughout the Qing Dynasty, China faced many perils. Famine, wars and revolutions were some of the most well known problems. Alongside these, the large presence of piracy along the Chinese coast was a large problem for the government even before Zheng Yi Sao grew into her position as the Queen of piracy - a title granted by historians postmortem.  

Researchers know that Zheng Yi Sao married into piracy but some argue it was not out of choice. Certain Chinese tales from how she came into the business vary but they all agree that, before becoming the wife of Zheng Yi, she worked as a prostitute. It is believed that she was born around 1775 in Canton and married Zheng Yi - one of the most powerful pirates at the time - in 1801. Whilst not near the coast, Canton, today known as Guangzhou, became one of the most prominent and convenient riverine ports for both Chinese and foreign ships from the 18th century onwards. There are different versions of how the marriage came to be, ranging from a passive acceptance to the marriage, perhaps for the financial security it would provide, to some suggesting that the captain became infatuated by her when she tried to bite him. However, although  it is popularly accepted by most that she was a prostitute, according to Dianne Murray, there is no actual evidence in primary sources which proves she was a sex worker. This information has been gathered by analysing secondary sources that have been published - many consider piracy as a whole rather than having a specific focus on Zheng Yi Sao herself. Assumptions of prostitution may be an example of misogyny of the historians, or an educated guess of how she would have been most likely to meet him.  

During their marriage, they successfully brought together varying different pirate crews into one large confederation. By the time of her husband’s death, their fleet numbered seventy thousand men and 400 junks. They organised their fleet by dividing it between Red, Black, White, Yellow, Blue and Green fleets - and Zheng Yi Sao played a prominent part in the 'business'. Working alongside her husband, she understood the ins and outs of the fleet, how to manage the men, the ships, and the finances. With the expertise and experience gathered during her years - both as a sex worker and wife of the captain - there was no opposition from the crew when, after Zheng Yi's death in 1807, she took over the command. To make sure she had support throughout the fleets, Zheng Yi Sao appointed Cheng Pao, a promising young sailor who had been captured, adopted by the couple and later rumoured to have been a lover of Zheng Yi, as captain of the Red Fleet - the largest of them all. Zheng Yi Sao would later come to marry Cheng Pao to ensure further loyalty.  

During the period she was ‘Pirate Queen’ of Chinese waters, Zheng Yi Sao became one of the most feared persons in the South China Sea, threatening not only to the Qing Emperor but also to the members of her own confederation. She developed a code of conduct for the crew, enforcing rules that if broken would be punishable by death. Some of the aspects of the code included cowardice, raping women and taking more treasure than allowed. Her economic and military power rose to such heights that the Chinese government begged both the Portuguese and British navies in 1809 for assistance to attack Zheng Yi Sao's confederation - which was victorious in the battles against the Western forces. After many battles at sea and discussions with their crew, Zheng Yi Sao and Cheng Pao proposed negotiations with the Empire. The negotiations were futile with Cheng Pao's leadership so,  in 1810 Zheng Yi Sao went unarmed and alone to a meeting with the governor-general of the Qing Dynasty - and refused to leave until her demands were accepted. 

Zheng Yi Sao not only successfully administered the largest confederation of pirates in the world, but through negotiating their surrender she was able to maintain 80 junks for Cheng Pao for personal use, granting him a high military rank and additional 40 junks for commercial use. The pirates that made up their crew all got positions in the military - the fleet leaders placed in high positions and the remaining pirates serving as soldiers. Zheng Yi Sao lived alongside Cheng Pao and convinced the government to grant her titles that would equal her husband's patents. It is rumoured she started her own brothel which she successfully managed until her death in 1844. 

A woman with no military training or formal education, Zheng Yi Sao's impressive achievements in piracy should make her a house-hold name such as Blackbeard. From her tactics in leading the largest pirate fleet in the world to her remarkable negotiating skills that made sure no member of her fleet was to be left in danger of being charged for piracy crimes and were settled in the navy. Whether for the lack of known sources that can assert her incredible feats or simply for the small research done into women in piracy, Zheng Yi Sao was a forgotten woman in history but remains a very important figure to be studied and presented to the public. 

Read More about Women in Piracy and Zheng Yi Sao: 

→ Pirate Women, the Princesess, Prostitutes and Privateers who Ruled the Seven Seas by Laura Soook Duncombe; chapter "The Most Successful Pirate of All Time" p. 237 - 256

→  Flying the Black Flag: Revolt, Revoluition and the Social Organization of Piracy in the Golden Age by Chris Land - https://doi.org/10.1177/1744935907078726

→ In the Business of Piracy: Entrepreneurial Women Among Chinese Pirates in the Mid-Nineteenth Century - chapter by C. Nathan Kwan in Female Entrepreneurs in the Long Nineteenth Century 

→ The Pirates of Macao in Historical Perspective by Robert J Antony

→ One Woman's Rise to Power https://www.jstor.org/stable/41298765