II.   Sovereign

A Privateer is an early 18th Century legal term for one duly commissioned by a belligerent power to make war upon the enemy, by preying upon his commerce.

The earliest reference to Privateer in Western-Roman Law “public statute” is in 1704 through 3 & 4 Ann. c.13 regarding “fraudulent captures” by Privateers in the commercial war against France. It is then greatly expanded upon in 1707 with 6 Ann. c. 37 and the “encouragement of trade to America” which effectively opened all the colonies up to the business of “Privateers” against enemies of Great Britain.

The legal mechanism since the start of the 18th Century for authorizing a Privateer is by a letter of marquee and reprisal, also known as letter of marquee which “licensed” a Privateer to attack and capture enemies of the state under Admiralty Law and bring them before admiralty courts for condemnation and sale. The value gained from such action was called the “prize”.

As the legal mechanism for authorizing a Privateer by a letter of marque was invented under Admiralty Law, since 1707 the following conditions are required for the actions of a Privateer to be legal:

(i) A formal declaration of war by the legislative body that has not been extinguished by a treaty of peace and amicability; and

(ii) The existence of validly constituted Admiralty Courts operated by public officials (that is officials not operating under any letter of marque themselves); and

(iii) Possession of a valid Letter of Marque issued by the official agents of the legislative body to the Privateer; and

(iv) The “mark” or “prize” being the enemy property not being protected by any “safe harbor” protection or “safe conduct” registration and that the alleged enemy is accurately enemy that has not declared themselves an ally or reached any formal peace agreement; and

(v) Clear evidence of belligerence or belligerent intent by the enemy, either by aggression, bad faith, vexation, threat, resistance, possessing arms and weapons.

As Admiralty Law did not formally exist in terms of the operation of courts, letters of marque and administration of Privateers prior to 1707, any claim that Privateers existed in the same legal sense or that letters of marquee functioned prior to 1707 is deliberately false.

Contrary to deliberately false claims, Admiralty Law since its formal creation in 1707 through 6 Ann. c. 37 has permitted Privateers to operate not only on the seas, but along waterways and the shoreline. Furthermore, since the 19th Century when all official watermarks were reset at the highest peak of countries, all nations are considered “technically under water” to permit the global operation of Admiralty Law.