Not know who Drake was?? No splicing of the mainbrace** for you, shamguy! He is a national hero to us Brits (or should be!) -- and Vargev can go holystone** the maindeck and then clean the heads** for thinking Drake was ever accused of high treason. In the same way that some believed Arthur would arise in our hour of need, it was thought Drake would sail again when his naval skill was required. (Though whether this was a true legend, or simply something made up by Newbolt in his poem 'Drake's Drum' I don't know.)
Anyway, I echo the others, shamguy: for heaven's sake do not go the 'Arrrr, Jim lad', route. Have your pirates speak in the normal way for their age, education and class according to the period of history you are writing, but add a few nautical phrases to add flavour. I can recommend the O'Brian Aubrey-Maturin novels for very helpful phrases, not least because such expressions and parts of the ship are often explained to Maturin, especially in the early books, since he is a land-lubber.
As Vargev said, starboard is to the right of the ship if you are facing the sharp end (the bow). So an order 'three points t' starboard' is telling the person at the wheel to steer right by three points - I'm not sure of how big a 'point' is, though it may well be something to do with the spokes of the wheel.
J
** the mainbrace was an important piece of the rigging; splicing is a way of repairing it; splicing the mainbrace was a difficult operation and so was rewarded with a drink afterwards - by extension, the phrase came to mean just the drinking/celebration.
to holystone a deck was to clean it by scouring the wood with a block of sandstone.
the heads are the toilets on a ship.
