Stolen Village

Product Description

In June 1631 pirates from Algiers & armed troops of the Turkish Ottoman Empire led by the notorious pirate captain Morat Rais stormed ashore at the little harbour village of Baltimore in West Cork. They captured almost all the villagers & bore them away to a life of slavery in North Africa. The prisoners were destined for a variety of fates
- some would live out their days chained to the oars as galley slaves while others would spend long years in the scented seclusion of the harem or within the walls of the Sultans palace. The old city of Algiers with its narrow streets intense heat & lively trade was a melting pot where the villagers would join slaves & freemen of many nationalities. Only two of them ever saw Ireland again. The Sack of Baltimore was the most devastating invasion ever mounted by Islamist forces on Ireland or Engl&. Des Ekins exhaustive research illuminates the political intrigues that ensured the captives were left to their fate & provides a vivid insight into the kind of life that would have awaited the slaves amid the souks & seraglios of old Algiers. The Stolen Village" is a fascinating tale of international piracy & culture clash nearly 400 years ago & is the first book to cover this relatively unknown & under-researched incident in Irish history. It was shortlisted for the Argosy Irish Nonfiction Book of the Year Award."