spindown: The story of Privateer is unrelated to the story of the main Wing Commander series. So yes, you can play Privateer without spoiling 1+2.
theslitherydeee: Thanks, I wanted to look it up on the internet; but I was afraid to since so many people put spoilers up without any warning.
Congratulations on trading for one of my favourite games of all time! Spindown is, of course, correct. However, Privateer doesn't really introduce you to the universe as it assumes prior knowledge. It doesn't make a huge difference, but knowing the lore straight away doesn't hurt ;)