Shih, Queen of the Sea
New film in pre-production by Director Tsui Hark
Director Tsui Hark is teaming up with screen writer and co-producer Anthony McCarten to write and create a new film about the life of the famous Chinese woman pirate Shih Yang who herself commanded 1800 pirate ships and terrorized the South China Sea in the 1800s.
Director Tsui Hark and Anthony McCarten
McCarten (writer for Bohemian Rhapsody and The Theory of Everything) has written the script about Shih Yang (aka. Cheng I Sao) who dominated the South China Sea during the Qing Dynasty. Born into poverty, she worked on a “flower boat” brothel where she met the notorious pirate leader Cheng Yi, who already commanded a large fleet of pirates and Shih joined him. After the death of Cheng Yi in 1807, Shih Yang assumed full command of the fearsome Red Flag Fleet and began commanding the fleet of over 1,800 pirate ships with an estimated 80,000 pirates.
Shih Yang the woman pirate
Shih instigated reforms to the rules of piracy, ordering execution for rape or marital infidelity and insisting on equality between the sexes. Much of what is known in the West about her is due to the writings of an English diarist, Richard Glasspoole, who was captured by her and later formed a strong bond with her.
The true story of Shih Yang woman pirate
Captain Richard Glasspoole was also captured by Shih Yang's crew and forced to work with the other pirates, however later Captain Glasspoole and Shih Yang became close. Captain Glasspoole wrote a short book about his capture during the pirate queen, his writings were published in 2012. The book can be purchased as an eBook (click on image below)
Captain Glasspoole's memories
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