(1997) The Great Ships-The Pirate Ships, the History Channel’s documentary on pirate ships, is the perfect length for classroom use. It provides a well-organized summary of the Golden Age of Piracy in less than 50 minutes with little to distract from the key facts. Sir Francis Drake and the Golden Hind One of the first pirates highlighted in the film is Queen Elizabeth’s Sir Francis Drake. Considered a privateer and hero to the English, he was no more than a pirate in the eyes of Spain. The video follows Drake’s legendary voyage along the western coast of South America and the pillaging of Spanish towns along the way. With his ship, the Golden Hind, Drake was the first captain to survive a circumnavigation of the globe as shown in the film.