The Buccaneering career of Robert Surcouf
Robert Surcouf was born in 1773 in the Breton port of St Malo. Positioned in a relatively poor part of France, for centuries the only career options for its inhabitants had been fishing, farming or the church. But all that changed in the 18th century. France was frequently at war with Britain, and the French government encouraged la guerre de course, authorising privately owned warships (called privateers) to attack British commerce. St Malo was the perfect place to base such
