Читать книгу The History of Piracy and Navigation - Dr. Suk Kyoon Kim - Страница 9

Torre Saracena Saracen pirates also sailed in disguise by flying the flag of a Christian state or the ally of the target area. Thus, it was hard to tell by only the flag of a ship if it was a pirate ship or a merchant ship traveling for trade. This historical legacy might have led to the provisions of the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea today: It affirms that ships should sail under the flag of one state, and that changing the flag during a voyage is not allowed; a ship which sails under the flags of two or more states, using them according to convenience, may be regarded as a ship with no nationality. The coastal residents of southern Italy frequently weren’t aware of an approaching raid until the pirates came inshore, setting off a panic in which residents fled – often, too late to save themselves. Since shores were left defenseless, pirates were able to go on shore with ease. The Byzantine Empire, beleaguered from external aggression, was incapable of defending the southern coast from the sacking of Saracen pirates. Thus, the coastal residents had no choice but to flee as quickly as possible when pirate ships came inshore. Watchtowers helped the locals buy themselves at least a little more time to escape. The best option for the locals was either to flee, carrying valuables, deep inland or hide away somewhere out of reach of pirates. Otherwise, they would lose their property and even their lives at the hands of horseback-riding pirates who destroyed and set fire to villages and committed various atrocities. Those who were captured would live a hellish life either as rowers aboard ships or in labor camps for life. The coastal residents had built multiple watchtowers along the coast. If the first watchtower onshore emitted signal fumes, the next watchtower would relay the message to those inland. At that time, the residents hid out deep inland, where the fourth or the fifth watchtower was located. When the pirates left, this method was provided the signal to confirm that it was safe to return to the sea. The main targets of Saracen pirates were monasteries and churches. Monasteries, which owned abundant properties and lands, were located in remote areas, making them a good target for pirates. The pirates also preyed on churches that served as hideouts for locals. Pirates were able to capture a large number of residents at once and to loot their properties with ease. The houses of wealthy landlords and rich people were definitely a good target. Borgo and Casbah Saracen pirates gradually expanded their activities deeper inland, looting settlements and towns and capturing residents as plunder. To flee or hide away from the pirates was merely a temporary solution. Thus, the residents decided to move their settlements to remote areas, out of reach of pirates. It was a desperate effort for residents as they fought for their survival. The residents who hid away in a remote area in the mountain might build a town on the rugged and steep cliff, for example. The medieval towns built for the purpose of avoiding pirate aggression were called borgo in Italian. This led to a new lifestyle: Coastal residents would stay in the borgo in the summer, during peak raiding season, and return home in the fall. In a sense, it was natural for coastal residents to return to the sea, which was the base for their livelihood, when the risk of pirate attacks diminished. However, on the part of city residents, it was an entirely different situation since a city of thousands could not be moved out every season. Thus, citizens had to rely on existing structures, build new defenses, or rely on geography to defend or escape from pirate attacks. One of the main defense structures was a labyrinth of a city, known as a casbah. These days, the legacy of the casbah is found in the northern cities of Italy, like Amalfi. When building a city, the focus of design was on defense for survival, rather than functional considerations, such as convenience and comfortableness. In this design, complicated and twisted alleys made it hard for pirates to find targets and easy for them to get lost. The divergent roads distracted the pirates, and thus allowed people time to escape or provided spaces to hide out.