Zheng Yi (pirate) facts for kids

Zheng Yi (born Zheng Wenxian; 1765 – 16 November 1807) was a very powerful Chinese pirate. He operated from Guangdong and across the South China Sea in the late 1700s.

Life as a Pirate Leader

Zheng Wenxian was born in 1765 in Xin'an County, Guangdong, which was part of Qing China at the time. His family, including his father Zheng Lianchang and younger brother Zheng San, had been pirates for many generations.

Joining the Pirate World

Zheng Yi and other pirates sometimes worked as hired fighters for the Tây Sơn dynasty until 1801. Around 1798, Zheng Yi captured a 15-year-old boy named Cheung Po. Cheung Po was the son of a fisherman from the Tanka people. Zheng Yi forced him to become a pirate. Cheung Po was very talented and quickly learned how to be a pirate. He rose through the ranks very fast.

A Powerful Alliance

In 1801, Zheng Yi met a clever 26-year-old woman named Shi Xianggu. He decided to marry her, possibly to make his pirate group even stronger. Shi Xianggu agreed to the marriage with a special contract. This contract gave her half of the control and share of his pirate business. Shi Xianggu became known as "Zheng Yi Sao," which means "wife of Zheng Yi."

Zheng Yi and Zheng Yi Sao adopted Cheung Po as their son. This made him Zheng Yi's official heir. Zheng Yi Sao also had two sons with Zheng Yi: Zheng Ying Shi and Zheng Xiong Shi.

The Red Flag Fleet

Zheng Yi used his strong military skills and his reputation to bring together many different pirate groups from the Cantonese region. By 1804, this group of pirates became a huge and powerful force. They were known as the Red Flag Fleet. This fleet was one of the strongest pirate groups in all of China.

In 1804, the pirate coalition attacked Macau for several weeks. The Chinese government tried to fight back. In September 1805, a Chinese attack with 80 gunboats managed to capture or destroy 26 pirate ships. The general leading the attack offered to forgive pirates who surrendered. About 3,000 pirates accepted this offer before it was stopped in December 1805.

By 1806, almost every Chinese ship along the coast paid the pirates for "protection." This meant they paid the pirates to keep them safe from other pirates, including Zheng Yi's own fleet!

Zheng Yi's Death

Zheng Yi died suddenly in Nguyễn Vietnam on 16 November 1807. People are not sure exactly how he died. Some say he died in a typhoon or fell overboard by accident. Others believe he might have been killed by his wife, Zheng Yi Sao, or his adopted son, Cheung Po Tsai. After Zheng Yi's death, Cheung Po Tsai became Zheng Yi Sao's second-in-command of the mighty Red Flag Fleet.

See also

• Pirates of the South China Coast
• Zheng Qi
• Ching Shih
• Cheung Po Tsai