The Golden Age of Piracy: Blackbeard

Blackbeard battles Lt. Maynard at the height of the Golden Age of Piracy

As the end of the Seventeenth Century approached, peace came to most of Europe. Privateers found themselves without jobs, as did many naval seamen. This “golden age” saw the greatest upswing in piracy ever. Unlike their predecessors, the buccaneers, these pirates preyed on merchant ships rather than Spanish galleons laden with gold and silver. Most prowled the Caribbean and Atlantic coast of North America, but some plied their trade off the West Coast of Africa and in the Indian Ocean.

The Buccaneering period, c. 1650–1680

Historians, such as John Fiske, mark the beginning of the Golden Age of Piracy at around 1650, when the end of the Wars of Religion allowed European countries to resume the development of their colonial empires. This involved considerable seaborne trade, and a general economic improvement: there was money to be made—or stolen—and much of it traveled by ship.

French buccaneers had established themselves on northern Hispaniola as early as 1625, but lived at first mostly as hunters rather than robbers; their transition to full-time piracy was gradual and motivated in part by Spanish efforts to wipe out both the buccaneers and the prey animals on which they depended. The buccaneers' migration from Hispaniola's mainland to the more defensible offshore island of Tortuga limited their resources and accelerated their piratical raids. According to Alexandre Exquemelin, a buccaneer and historian who remains a major source on this period, the Tortuga buccaneer Pierre Le Grand pioneered the settlers' attacks on galleons making the return voyage to Spain.

The growth of buccaneering on Tortuga was augmented by the English capture of Jamaica from Spain in 1655. The early English governors of Jamaica freely granted letters of marque to Tortuga buccaneers and to their own countrymen, while the growth of Port Royal provided these raiders with a far more profitable and enjoyable place to sell their booty. In the 1660s, the new French governor of Tortuga, Bertrand d'Ogeron, similarly provided privateering commissions both to his own colonists and to English cutthroats from Port Royal. These conditions brought Caribbean buccaneering to its zenith.

Although pirates flew flags before this time, the Jolly Roger we know belonged to the pirates of this age. They favored sloops and ketches to hunt their prey. While New Providence in the Bahamas provided them a safe haven for a time, Woodes Rogers changed that after his appointment as governor. He offered pardons to the pirates, then employed any who accepted to hunt other pirates. Those captured hanged.

The pirates of the Golden Age had common traits. Their victims usually surrendered. The pirates boldly declared their identity rather than engaged in tactics such as the ruse de guerre. They attacked ships away from land and took their time gathering their spoils. The majority of plunder taken wasn’t gold and silver, but supplies to maintain their ships and whatever everyday items (such as food and drink) they needed. The most successful ventures occurred when two or more pirate ships confronted their prey.

Blackbeard perhaps the most famous pirate was a master at intimidation. Blackbeard carried three braces of

Blackbeard (c. 1736 engraving)

pistols, placed smoking hempen cord in his beard, drank rum mixed with gunpowder, and looked at people with wild, staring eyes. Mentioning his name was enough to frighten any eighteenth-century mariner.

Like many Golden Age pirates, Blackbeard was a privateer before he turned pirate. When peace finally came to Europe, he embraced piracy and became a charismatic legend in his own time.  Initially, he signed with Benjamin Hornigold, a pirate who nurtured Blackbeard and taught him a fierce reputation would stand him in better stead than engaging in torture to achieve his ends. They based their operations in Nassau and plied the coastal waters of the American colonies. On their way home, they captured a French vessel named Concorde. It was to be the last prey Hornigold took, for he decided to seek the king’s pardon. Eventually, this pardoned pirate became a pirate hunter.

Blackbeard converted the Concorde into a pirate ship manned by three hundred men and carrying forty guns. He changed her name to the Queen Anne’s Revenge (QAR) and chose her for his flagship. Following Hornigold’s advice, he cultivated a bloodthirsty and wicked reputation. His successful attacks against ships of the British Royal Navy further enhanced that image. He did not engage in wanton murder and mayhem unless his victims resisted.

Queen Anne's Revenge

During the first three months of 1718, Blackbeard disappeared. No records exist to tell where he went or what he did. When he resurfaced, he led his fleet of eight vessels to Charleston harbor, blockaded the port, and held some of the town’s leading citizens for ransom. Rather than demand jewels and money, he requested a chest of medicine worth £300. When four days passed and the governor of South Carolina still had not met his demands, Blackbeard aimed all his guns on the town and would have fired had the pirates who delivered the ransom note not returned with the medicine.

Eventually, Blackbeard sailed to Ocracoke Island on the Outer Banks of North Carolina with the intent of seeking the king’s pardon. He knew, though, that too many pirates accompanied him, so he hatched a plan to rid himself of some. He purposely grounded the QAR and another ship, then sent some men ashore with orders to seek out a pardon for everyone. After they left, he and the remaining pirates sailed to Bath Towne, obtained pardons from the governor, and retired from piracy.

Blackbeard married a young woman, moved into a house, and became a local celebrity. He engaged in a smuggling operation, which he based on Ocracoke Island. Restlessness soon afflicted him, and once more he returned to piracy. On his return to Ocracoke, a fellow pirate visited him and they partied ashore. Before long, other pirates joined the festivities and fearful colonists demanded someone stop Blackbeard and his friends before they established a pirate fortress.

A map of the area around Ocracoke Inlet, 1775

On November 21, 1718, Lieutenant Maynard and fifty-eight men battled Blackbeard and twenty other pirates on the deck of Maynard’s sloop. He shot Blackbeard, but Blackbeard broke Maynard’s sword. A Highlander saved Maynard’s life by slaying Blackbeard before he delivered the fatal blow. On his return to Williamsburg, Maynard hung Blackbeard’s decapitated head from the bowsprit of his ship. He dumped the body overboard.

Blackbeard's Skull from the Edward Rowe Snow collection of the Peabody Today it is difficult to separate myth from reality where Blackbeard is concerned.  Some stories say he had fourteen wives, some of whom he shared with others.  He’s known by several names - including Drummond, Thatch, and Tash - but Edward Teach is considered his official name.  Few details of his early life are known, but he may have been born in Bristol, England. For thirteen months he terrorized people along the coast of North America and in the Caribbean. In the late 1990s archaeologists discovered an underwater wreck they believe is the QAR.  Their excavations are on going.


Source: Cindy Vallar.com 
Source: Wikipedia