Indian Ocean Company Trade and Piracy, c. 1690–1720

Around 1700 the Indian Ocean connected European chartered companies with Mughal India, Arabia, East Africa, Madagascar and Southeast Asia. Armed merchant ships carried textiles, spices, silver and other commodities through ports governed by many different states.

Pirates exploited the same routes, while company commanders and royal navies attempted suppression campaigns that often blurred the boundary between commerce, privateering and war. Local rulers and merchants remained essential participants rather than passive observers.

This context is appropriate for historical adventures about East India Company voyages, Madagascar, the Malabar coast, Arabian waters and pirate suppression around 1690–1720.