Many pirates thought the freedom of their adventurous lifestyle was worth dying for. Bartholomew Roberts, of lowly birth in Wales, put it this way: “In honest service there are commonly low wages and hard labour; in this plenty, satiety, pleasure and ease, liberty and power. Who would not balance credit on this side, when all the hazard that is run for it, at worst, is only a sour look or two on choking? (Cawthorne’s History of Pirates.)
Here is brief information on 16 of these rogues of the sea.
The Buccaneers
The term buccaneer comes from French words pertaining to woodsmen and smoking meat. It most often describes escaped convicts, slaves and indentured laborers on Haiti with double occupations: butchering livestock left by Spanish residents, curing the meat and making tallow to sell, and, during the rainy season, pirating ships. Some took to pirating full time in the 17th century West Indies, operating out of Tortuga.
- Pierre le Grand and 28 men captured a vice-admiral’s flagship from a treaure convoy, becoming the inspiration for future buccaneers.
- Francois L’Olonnaise (Jean-David Nau), a French pirate and one of the most ruthless and barbaric pirates that ever lived. He burned victims alive, pulled out their tongues or cut them to pieces.
- Roche Brasiliano, a drunkard famous for his cruelty, was elected pirate captain and terrorized Spanish shipping.
The Privateers
Privateers headed private vessels that had a government commission to attack enemy vessels, take possession and keep the plunder. Some, however, went way beyond actions covered by their commission.
Sir Henry Morgan, a Welsh privateer, went beyond his instructions, augmenting his forces with buccaneers. Nevertheless, this brilliant tactician received an admiral’s commission and a state funeral.
Sir John Hawkins was an older cousin of famed explorer Sir Francis Drake, also a privateer. Hawkins used his commission from Queen Elizabeth as a license to plunder. However, his streamlining of ships contributed to England’s defeat of the Spanish Armada.
Capt. Woodes Rogers, a privateer, later became Governor of Bermuda and pardoned many pirates.
Pirate Who’s Who
These are other famous pirates.
- Capt. Stede Bonnet, son of an English plantation owner, chose to become a pirate and was known for sadistic treatment of his men. He was hanged at Charleston, SC, in 1718.
- Charles Vane terrorized Caribbean shipping, lost his ship in a 1720 storm and was hanged in Jamaica.
- Capt. Henry Every, famous English pirate, was the model for the pirates in Daniel Defoe’s books; served in the Royal Army before becoming a pirate.
- Walter Kennedy was part of Bartholomew Roberts’ crew when they captured a Portuguese ship carrying rich bounty. He was hanged in 1721.
- Capt. Howell Davis, a Welsh pirate, preyed on ships off the West African coast and in the Caribbean between 1718 and 1719.
- Capt. George Lowther plied the waters of North America and the Caribbean until his arrest in 1728.
- Thomas Tew, based in Madagascar, supposedly had such a reputation for kindness that ships seldom resisted him.
- Capt. William Kidd had assorted adventures, covering a large territory from the Americas to the Indian Ocean. He was hanged for piracy and murder in London in 1701.
- Edward Teach, named Blackbeard for all his facial hair, was among the most dreaded and despised pirates of all times.
- Capt. Edward England was driven from the Caribbean in 1718 and became the scourge of African waters, even though he did not believe in torturing victims.
Dozens of novels and several websites are devoted to pirate lore and gore. (A companion article tells of two famous women pirates.)
Sources:
Cawthorne, Nigel, A History of Pirates: Blood and Thunder on the High Seas (Toronto: 2003); a deck of playing cards, made in Austria.
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