Pirates’ Captives in Light of Roman Law

Pirates represented a serious threat to seafarers in the ancient world. For a long time piracy was considered just one of many possible human activities that could take place at sea; and only later did the term 'pirate' take on a clearly pejorative meaning. This chapter explores the development of the treatment of piracy in Roman law, with a special focus upon the position of captives taken at sea within the Roman legal framework.