Piracy and the Making of the Spanish Pacific World

"Piracy and the Making of the Spanish Pacific World offers deeply researched stories that challenge the traditional narrative of modern Philippine history. Alliances between, on the one hand, the colonial government and the church and, on the other, Indigenous peoples, Chinese migrants, and Chinese mestizos were crucial to the longevity of Spain’s Asian empire. Piracy, this book convincingly shows, catalyzed the brokering of such alliances by invoking various crucial motivations for collaboration, including protection, opportunities for social advancement, and holy war... Opinions about such a fluid and expansive understanding of piracy may diverge and inspire further discussion. Yet whether we call it piracy or not, Flannery’s study of the relationship between maritime violence and the making of empire is a must-read for anyone interested in the study of Philippine history, the history of early modern Southeast Asia, and the Spanish Empire in general. Its clear argument and richly detailed descriptions of the experiences of groups traditionally ignored by historians make it an excellent book for undergraduate or graduate teaching."—Hispanic American Historical Review

"Kristie Flannery’s groundbreaking first book is not only about how Spanish colonial rule worked in the Philippine Islands. Rather, Piracy and the Making of the Spanish Pacific World analyzes how colonialism, forms of capitalism, and religion forged political, economic, and religious alliances across Asia, the Americas, and Europe...This is a carefully structured book with a geographical richness to enjoy. A book that becomes part of the field of colonial studies with a fascinating vision of a space sometimes forgotten by historiography: the Pacific."—Not Even Past

"Piracy and the Making of the Spanish Pacific World provides a pertinent new angle within the historiography of the Philippines, which overcomes traditional perspectives...[A] thoughtful and innovative approach to the colonial past of the Philippine archipelago, which will be very useful to researchers, teachers and students of colonial settings and of Southeast Asia."—Journal of Historical Geography

"[Flannery's] research goes beyond the conventional narrative of imperial power and control, delving into how piracy and maritime violence were factors that contributed not only to instability but, more importantly, to the consolidation and global expansion of Spanish colonial power in the Pacific and beyond...[A] significant contribution to global and imperial history studies ]that] breaks new ground for the analysis of collaboration as a strategy of survival and resistance in the colonial context."—Global Intellectual History

"Kristie Patricia Flannery’s Piracy and the Making of the Spanish Pacific World is a compelling account of Spanish colonial rule in the Philippines during the long eighteenth century. It takes readers on a journey through the tumultuous waters of the Spanish Pacific, where piracy was not just a threat but a defining force in shaping dynamics of power, resistance, and adaptation. Through meticulous research, Flannery uncovers the hidden influence of sea marauders in forging imperial destinies and shows that responses to piracy—ranging from military action to diplomatic negotiations—were central to the Spanish colonial project in the Philippines. This book offers a crucial addition to our understanding of the Spanish empire’s history in Asia and of the impact maritime violence had on the intertwined trajectories of colonization and globalization."—Sebastian Prange, University of British Columbia