Pirate republic in the Bahamas: the causes and the impact on the system of government

Abstract

The subject of the research is the military-political, economic, ideological and natural-geographical reasons for the emergence and characteristics of the organization of the Pirate Republic in the Bahamas. The object of the study is the social relations that developed in the process of development of the pirate community as a special social group, its expansion into the Bahamas of the Caribbean in the 17-18 centuries. Particular attention is paid to the relationship of the British Crown with the pirates and the factors that influenced the transformation of this policy. The author examined in detail the political and legal features of the organization and functioning of the public authority system in the Bahamas during the period of pirate domination. The research methodology was composed of historical, structural, systemic and comparative methods, which made it possible to formulate theoretical conclusions relevant to the processes taking place in the world today and ongoing scientific discussions about the fate of Western civilization, the possibility of building multicultural societies, and the adaptation of political and legal institutions to these processes. The scientific novelty of the study lies in the fact that it is the first experience in the study of the causes and essence of the Pirate Republic in the British colonial system in Russian historiography. It is concluded that, not being a state in the strict sense of the word, the Pirate Republic was a unique experience of social and territorial self-organization. The experience of its emergence and existence left a bright mark in the development of not only the colonial system, but also in world history, as a whole, becoming yet another evidence of the viability of one or another local alternative political model, without a support of influential geopolitical forces and factors.