The Log of a Privateersman

The story opens on a storm‑laden night in October 1804, when a small French party slips silently into Weymouth Harbour and seizes the newly‑arrived West Indian trader Weymouth. Laden with rum, sugar and tobacco, the merchant vessel vanishes under cover of darkness, leaving its astonished owner, Peter White, to discover its disappearance at dawn. By the time the sunrise paints the sky, a British sloop has reclaimed the prize and the ship is moored once more, but the shock has taken a heavy toll on the aging merchant.

The narrative follows the ship’s crew and, especially, White as he confronts the peril of sailing unarmed in wartime. Determined not to risk another loss, he decides to lay the Weymouth up and turn his fortunes toward privateering—a risky but potentially lucrative path. The first act sets the stage for a tale of daring raids, moral choices, and the relentless pull of the sea.