RedHanded ShortHand: White Slaves & the Pirates of the Barbary Coast
Feb 10, 2026
A forgotten chapter of slavery where North African corsairs raided European coasts and carted people off to the Islamic world. The rise of Ottoman-backed privateering and how corsair economies profited from captive trade. Shocking raids on places like Iceland, the Sack of Baltimore, and stories of Europeans who became pirate leaders. The military campaigns that finally broke corsair power.
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Europeans Were Also Enslaved Historically
- The Arab slave trade lasted over a millennium and enslaved not only Africans but many Europeans as well.
- The word "slave" derives from "sclavus" because so many Slavs were captured and enslaved in medieval Europe.
Corsairs Were State-Sanctioned Privateers
- The Ottoman Empire used state-sanctioned corsairs to project naval power across the Mediterranean.
- Corsairs attacked many non-Ottoman ships and taxed captured goods and people for state revenue.
Systematic Enslavement And Harsh Conditions
- Captured Christians could be claimed by the Pasha or sold at slave markets, fueling a large institutional trade.
- Many slaves endured brutal prison conditions and were forced into hard labor like rowing on galleys.
