The Most Famous
PIRATES from China
This page contains a list of the greatest Chinese Pirates. The pantheon dataset contains 25 Pirates, 2 of which were born in China. This makes China the birth place of the 6th most number of Pirates behind United States and France.
Top 2
The following people are considered by Pantheon to be the most legendary Chinese Pirates of all time. This list of famous Chinese Pirates is sorted by HPI (Historical Popularity Index), a metric that aggregates information on a biography’s online popularity.
1. Ching Shih (1775 - 1844)
With an HPI of 62.55, Ching Shih is the most famous Chinese Pirate. Her biography has been translated into 37 different languages on wikipedia.
Zheng Yi Sao (born Shi Yang; 1775–1844), also known as Shi Xianggu, Shek Yeung and Ching Shih, was a Chinese pirate leader active in the South China Sea from 1801 to 1810. Born as Shi Yang in 1775 to humble origins, she married a pirate named Zheng Yi at age 26 in 1801. She was named Zheng Yi Sao ("wife of Zheng Yi") by the people of Guangdong. After the death of her husband in 1807, she took control of his pirate confederation with the support of Zheng Yi's adopted son Zhang Bao, with whom she entered into a relationship and later married. As the unofficial commander of the Guangdong Pirate Confederation, her fleet was composed of 400 junks and between 40,000 and 60,000 pirates in 1805. Her ships entered into conflict with several major powers, such as the East India Company, the Portuguese Empire, and the Great Qing. In 1810, Zheng Yi Sao negotiated a surrender to the Qing authorities that allowed her and Zhang Bao to retain a substantial fleet and avoid prosecution. At the time of her surrender, she personally commanded 24 ships and over 1,400 pirates. She died in 1844 at the age of about 68, having lived a relatively peaceful and prosperous life since the end of her career in piracy. Zheng Yi Sao has been described as not only history's most successful female pirate, but one of the most successful pirates in history.
2. Cheung Po Tsai (1783 - 1822)
With an HPI of 54.65, Cheung Po Tsai is the 2nd most famous Chinese Pirate. His biography has been translated into 15 different languages.
Cheung Po Tsai (Chinese: 張保仔; born Cheung Po; 1783–1822) was a navy colonel of the Qing dynasty and a former pirate. "Cheung Po Tsai" literally means "Cheung Po the Kid". He was known to the Portuguese Navy as Quan Apon Chay during the Battle of the Tiger's Mouth.
Pantheon has 2 people classified as pirates born between 1775 and 1783. Of these 2, none of them are still alive today. The most famous deceased pirates include Ching Shih and Cheung Po Tsai. As of April 2022, 1 new pirates have been added to Pantheon including Cheung Po Tsai.
