At 10:28 AM -0500 on 2/14/03, Patrick Chkoreff wrote: > How would you distinguish the actions of the Royal Navy from those of > ordinary pirates? Just prettier uniforms, better weaponry, and a bitch > back in London with a crown on her head, or what?
British privateers weren't supposed to attack you if you were British, just if you were supporting the French or whoever else, and the Royal Navy was especially not supposed to attack you unless you were an enemy of some sort. Ordinary pirates, on the other hand, weren't supposed to attack you if you didn't have something worth stealing, but didn't mind if you were British, unless of course there were a bunch of Royal Navy ships loitering nearby.
