During China's Qing Dynasty, a fearsome female pirate queen named Ching Shih ruled the South China Sea. She led the Red Flag Fleet, commanding over 1,800 pirate ships and around 80,000 pirates.

A Hong Kong-flagged cargo ship was almost overrun by pirates last month. Luckily, the crew escaped unhurt and the pirates’ boat was destroyed. However, things were very different in the 19th ...