A privateer was basically a legal British mercenary pirate.

私掠船船员是合法的英佣军海盗。

Maybe the most famous example comes from an English privateer named Sir Francis Drake.

也许最著名的例子来自位名叫弗朗西斯·德雷克爵士的英海盗。

Their privateers wrapped up their raids on English merchant ships in the region.

他们的私掠船束了该地区对英商船的袭击。

A privateer was usually limited to tracking down one particular ship for a certain period of time.

私掠船船员通常只在段时间内追踪艘特定的船舶。

We should mention at this point that, although nowadays we use terms like pirate, privateer and buccaneer.

在这我们应该提到，尽管现在我们使用像pirate, privateer和buccaneer这样的词。

The privateers spent a few weeks in the city time, during which they took everything of value that was left behind.

海盗们在城里呆了几个星期，在此期间，他们带走了遗留下来的切有价值的东西。

So was he a pirate or was he a privateer, the answer really depends on who you ask.

他到底是海盗还是皇家海盗，答案取决于你问谁。

He also became a heavy drinker, particularly fond of the local rum which he enjoyed, while swapping old war stories with other former privateers and buccaneers.

他还成了个酒鬼，尤其喜欢喝当地的朗姆酒，他喜欢这种酒，同时还和其他前海盗和海盗们分享古老的战争故事。