Blackbeard
Little is known of Blackbeard's early life, but it is thought he is born in Bristol, England (the second largest city in England at the time and an important international port) around 1680, learns to read and write, and by the turn of the century has crossed the Atlantic Ocean and is in the Caribbean. It is said he learns his sailing and fighting skills during the War of the Spanish Succession (a war between European countries that begins with the death of Spanish King Charles II). What is known is that the man stands over six feet tall, has broad shoulders, is heavily muscled, and has dark black hair and a long beard, which he enjoys braided into pigtails that he sometimes adorns with small colored ribbons, and is extremely formidable in battle ... he wears a brace of three pistols on a shoulder sling, sticks slow matches from under his hat (it is also said he lights his beard on fire from time to time), carries several knives on his person, and is a master of the sword and cutlass.
Blackbeard
Operating out of the Caribbean island of New Providence, by 1716 Blackbeard is under the pirate tutelage of Captain Benjamin Hornigold, who places him in command of a sloop the men have taken as a prize. Preying on ships that make the mistake of coming in contact with the pirates, Hornigold and Blackbeard take 120 barrels of flour from a boat coming out of Havana, takke a 100 barrels of wine from a sloop out of Bermuda, empties the holds of the Robert from Philadelphia and the Good Intent from Dublin (after forming a small flotilla of four vessels and enlisting the services of another pirate and his crew, Captain Stede Bonnet). Breaking away from Hornigold when the captain accepts a Kings pardon, Blackbeard continues attacking commerce in the region ... the French merchant vessel, La Concorde, carrying a cargo of slaves, is taken (and refitted and renamed, becomes the 40-gun Queen Anne's Revenge), after a cannon duel, takes the merchant ship, Great Allen (after emptying it's holds, the vessel will be burnt and sunk), empties the merchant ship Margaret off the coast of Crab Island (before allowing it's captain and crew to sail her home), loots and sinks a French vessel off St. Christopher Island, incorporates the captain and crew of a log cutting sloop into his pirate fleet, loots nd burns the Protestant Caesar, captures a small Spanish ship leaving Havana, and attacks three ships while making his way to Charles Town, South Carolina.
Hornigold
Bonnet
Attacking
Calling himself a Commodore, Blackbeard and his fleet take nine vessels (and their crews) hostage as the ships leave Charles Town (over the period of a week), then negotiates a ransom of medicine and re-provisioning for their return ... when the deadline for the ransom passes, he sails his fleet into the harbor, where his terms are immediately met (the men sent to see to the matter originally have been on a two day drunken bender) ... and he releases his prizes as he said he would, but only after ransacking them for all the valuables they contain. Fleet reduced after the careening of several ships goes wrong and Bonnet accepts a pardon (it also reduces the number of men that can share his treasures ... there is also a marooning of 25 men on a small, sandy island off South Carolina ... all the men will be rescued by an enraged Bonnet), Blackbeard next moves his activities to the town of Bath, South Carolina, where for promises of good behavior, he accepts his own pardon ... for all of two months, before falling into his old ways, taking two French ships leaving the Caribbean.(claiming he found one of the ships afloat, but deserted).
Blackbread
Using his favorite anchorage at the Ocracoke Inlet, Blackbeard thwarts the efforts of Governor of Pennsylvania to arrest him, but soon becomes the number one project of Virginia Governor Alexander Spotswood. Seeking information on the pirate's whereabouts, even though he is outside of Spotswood jurisdiction, former Queen Anne's Revenge quartermaster, William Howard is arrested and put on trial, found guilty of piracy, sentenced to hang, but pardoned for providing valuable information about Blackbeard ... information that Spotswood uses to put together a plan, which the governor finances, to eliminate the brigand, Lt. Robert Maynard of the HMS Pearl will be given two sloops to command, which will set upon Blackbird from the sea. By sea, Maynard is given 33 men from the HMS Pearl, they will man a sloop they name Ranger, and 24 men from the HMS Lyme will crew the Ranger ... on land, should Blackbeard decide to fight there, is a force of sailors and North Carolinian soldiers under the command of Captain Brand of the HMS Lyme. Preventing river traffic from entering the inlet and given away that he is in the area, Maynard attacks at the perfect time ... thinking himself safe, Blackbeard has not set a guard as he entertains local guests aboard his ship, the Adventure, a vessel that is also lightly manned, having 24 men enjoying shore leave at Bath.
Blackbeard
Blackbeard's Pirate Flag
Dawn of 11/22/1718 sees Maynard's two ships go at Blackbeard (after a small boat takes soundings of the inlet to make sure the vessels won't run aground), as Blackbeard sends cannon shot their way (the tide and a blocking sand bar also influence the maneuvering of the ships) ... grape and ball that seem to decimate the entire crews of both of Maynard's ships (29 men are put out of commission), but it is a ruse, armed crew are hiding below deck on both ships, waiting for their moment to attack the pirates. Thinking the battle is his, Blackbeard and men from the Adventure throws grappling hooks at the Ranger, then after throwing grenades, board the ship. Firing at men at the stern of the ship, Blackbeard and his boarders are suddenly surprised, just as Maynard planned, when men swarm on to the deck from below and attack the invading pirates. Decks slick with blood, Blackbeard rallies his men, but when they are pushed back, suddenly finds himself in a one-on-one clash with Maynard and a group of his men. The two antagonists first fire pistols at each other, then when those are emptied, throw them away and go at it with cutlasses ... upper hand finally gained, Blackbeard is about to cut open Maynard's throat when other Ranger crew pitch into the battle, slicing away at the pirate chief until he falls to the deck and his men begin surrendering (body examined after the battle, it will be found that Blackbeard has been shot five times, and suffered twenty cutlass wounds). Battle over, to receive the reward he richly deserves, and to prove the pirate is dead, Maynard has Blackbeard's head cut off and displayed from the bowspit of the Ranger (of the sixteen men captured during the battle, fourteen will be found guilty of piracy, hung, and then left to rot in the gibbets of Williamsburg, Virginia).
Blackbeard vs. Maynard
Last Battle
The End
In death, Blackbeard somehow becomes an iconic figure that is still the subject of artwork, songs, books, television shows, and movies ... far too many to list. And also, the subject of countless rumors about what became of all the treasures he took during his short reign of terror over the waters of the New World ... two centuries after his escapades, no one knows still!
Blackbeard's Head
The Blackbeard Of Legend - Digital Art of Mark Fredrickson
What a legend.
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