Book review #2 - Privateering, Patriots & Profits in the War of 1812, Faye Kert

[Hethwill]

Faye Kert is the type of research historian writer I admire. It baits the line and follows it up to the source, and in doing it reveals a lot more than the usual myths and mainstream misconceptions.

On Patriots & Profits she focus two decades of research into a focused work on the Yank and Canadian Atlantic privateering covering the most important names, numbers, places and, most important, the how everything links together in the "war of privateers" par excellence.

Full chapters dedicated to how privateer ventures were set, how ships were chosen, armed, equipped. A in depth and most important chapter covers insurance, both on the new world side and back in London with a superb representation on how some seemingly minor acts conducted by privateers, totally not mainstream, actually molded economy more than the big frigate combats.

The record entries cover very important aspects and should give any Naval Action player an idea of how it was in reality and how 'easy' we have it in game most especially regarding traders, prices of cargo and amounts carried by brigs, snows, pink and even indiaman.

The entire economic side of the privateer war is ever present. I would say it is colossal and traces the entire war escalation of prices, insurance prizes, taxes on products and services, harbor business and all other economic activities affecting the communities as far as London and South Carolina.

Combat and notable events are covered in rigorous form with extracts from the logs paired with how the news were presented to the public in the periodic newspapers. The presented data will break a few mainstream misconceptions but factual hard data is uncontestable.

This is not a mere book. It is a life's work dedicated to investigation of the last big privateer drive in the age of sail in the anglo-saxon universe.

Must buy!