China's most famous female pirate: Who is Ching Shih?

Ching Shih was born in 1775 in a miserable corner of southeastern China's Guangdong province. After stepping into adulthood, she started forced sex work to contribute to the family budget. She got a job at a floating brothel in the Canton port city.

The young girl became known around the world as a result of her beauty, grace, quick wit, and dignity. Because of this, she became a favorite of many high-profile customers, including royal courtiers, military commanders, and wealthy merchants.

Zheng Yi Sao (1775–1844; born Shi Yang, a.k.a. Shi Xianggu), also known as Ching Shih, was a Chinese pirate leader who was active in the South China Sea from 1801 to 1810.

Notorious pirate commander Zheng Yi met 26-year-old Ching Shih in Guangdong in 1801. She was fascinated by the woman's beauty and her ability to wield her power by exchanging secrets among influential clients.

In 1805, Madam Cheng's husband, Zheng Yih, soon formed the largest pirate confederation in history. After her husband's death two years later, Madam Cheng took over the business and expanded it further. She commanded an estimated 1,800 ships and 70,000 men, the number equal to all other successful pirates combined.

With the help of her husband's adopted son and also her lover, Cheung Po Tsai, she sought protection money from coastal communities. She attacked ships in the south China Sea and even once kidnapped seven British sailors. The code of conduct Madame Cheng required of the crew was strict. Those who raped female prisoners were killed, and even if they were together by consent, the head of the pirate was cut off and cannonballs were attached to the woman's legs and thrown into the sea. The escapee's ears were cut off and the man was shown to the fleet as a lesson.

Madame Cheng later apologized in 1810, when the Chinese authorities began to take action against piracy. However, the pirates' property remained intact, and they were even given military duties. She was a prostitute in her youth and spent her golden years running a major opium smuggling operation. Her old age was no different; She ran a casino and brothel with her husband until her death at the age of 69.