Pirate or Privateer?

The story of Captain Kidd is an interesting one. It seems he was a celebrated naval seaman, doing well in Anglo-French and Anglo-Dutch conflicts in the mid C17th. He eventually moved to New York and married into wealth.

He then starts doing a bit of privateering, hunting down pirates and the like along the American coast. Then in 1695, backed by several prominant English Lords, he sets sail on a voyage to track down some pirates and intercept French ships. The adventure goes pretty badly and he ends up tip-toeing into the area of piracy to avoid complete financial ruin. He also murders a crew member. It's all a bit vague. Was he a pirate or a mercenary gone a bit astray in the fog of war?

When he's finally brought back to England all his noble backers and political allies desert him and he's pretty much shafted at court. Then hung. Then gibbeted.

It struck me that no war is ever clear cut and that the line between privateerring and piracy is always impalpably fine. The one thing you can guarantee is that the 'noble backers and political allies' are never going to take responsibility.