Blackbeard- The Birth of America

by Samuel Marquis

  Since he was a boy, a part of him had looked down with disgust upon the forced labor of black African men and women. His father had been considered one of Spanish Town’s “enlightened” slave owners and had treated those indentured to him far above average, but Thache was still disgusted by the whole enterprise of enslavement. Not only that, but the young future Blackbeard looked suspiciously upon the increasingly rigid discipline and authoritarian approach of both the Crown and Jamaica’s plantation elite. Unlike most of his peers, he believed in the equality of men and that a person should be judged for his individual merits rather than his royal blood or the economic station held by his father and mother. Which was why he and Bellamy were instant brethren. It was a bond that would not be broken until one of them died.

  The story behind “Black” Sam Bellamy’s induction into the Flying Gang with Thache and Hornigold was an amusing one, and Thache had insisted that the young sea captain, two years his junior, tell it to him more than once while deep into their cups of rum. At Bahia Honda, it was Bellamy and his crew of New Englanders in the periauger that had helped Jennings and his Jamaican cohorts take the French Marianne and then subsequently plunder her. From the bay’s entrance, Thache had observed Bellamy’s small, fast boats tied astern, but at the time he hadn’t known to whom they belonged. When Jennings had spotted Hornigold and his consort outside the entrance—who unbeknownst to the pompous Bermudan happened to be Thache in the recently taken Mary of Rochelle—he had immediately given the order for his flotilla to weigh anchor and give chase. In the meantime, Bellamy and his second-in-command, Paulsgrave Williams, were still aboard the Marianne with their periagua tied astern. They helped the prize crew raise the French ship’s anchors and watched as Jennings and his two sloops raced off. By the time the plundered Marianne was underway, the fleet had passed out of sight. It was at that moment Bellamy saw an opportunity.

  As the Marianne pulled out of the harbor, he gave a signal and his men rose up in unison, surprising Jennings’s prize crew and the French prisoners, and took possession of the ship and nearly thirty thousand pieces of eight, worth over seven thousand British pounds. While a portion of Bellamy’s men held their captives at gunpoint, the others quickly hauled their periauger alongside and loaded sacks and chests of coins aboard. Keeping an eye on Jennings and his two ships in pursuit of Hornigold and Thache, more than six miles off, Bellamy got his men aboard the small vessels and rowed off into the wind. Meanwhile, Jennings, realizing that he was never going to catch up to Hornigold’s two boats and wondering why the Marianne had fallen so far behind, decided to turn around and return to the bay. But Jennings was too late. Bellamy had run off with his entire haul, leaving nothing behind but a furious crew close to mutiny. Three days later, Bellamy and Williams caught up with Hornigold and Thache off the western coast of Cuba and the pirates agreed to join forces.

  Thache had never seen a bigger smile on Ben Hornigold’s face than when Bellamy told him how he had stolen Jennings’s treasure from right under the pompous son of a rum puncheon’s nose. Then and there Hornigold decided to add Bellamy and his crew to that of the Benjamin. After the pirate articles were read, they joined the crew, and when the Flying Gang took its next prize, the ship was awarded to Bellamy. Thache knew that the twenty-seven-year-old Bellamy did not have the experience he or Hornigold possessed, but he liked the young upstart’s spunk and he had earned the respect of his crew by daringly outwitting the veteran privateer Jennings. Bellamy now had a well-built ocean-going sloop at his disposal, a chest of treasure in his hold, and two of the most experienced sea rovers of the day as his consort—Hornigold and Thache. All the impetuous “Black” Sam needed was a few three- or four-pounders to arm his new bellicose pirate-of-war.

  During the next two weeks, the Flying Gang continued to prowl the western end of Cuba, hoping to intercept Spanish and French vessels navigating through the busy sea lanes of the Yucatan Channel. But instead of a fat prize, they came across yet another pirate: a Frenchman named Olivier La Buse, captain of the armed sloop Postillion. Although Hornigold clung to the notion that he was merely a British patriot carrying on a righteous war against England’s two biggest enemies, Spain and France, he was convinced by Thache and Bellamy to form an alliance with La Buse and his French corsairs, who were bona fide buccaneers with no reservations about plundering any country for profit. After all, Thache and Bellamy reminded the older, stodgy Hornigold, they were “enemies of all mankind” now that they had clearly chosen to go on the account and there was no turning back. But even more importantly, they weren’t fighting for Britain, they were fighting against the system: European navies, royals, captains, shipowners, slave traders, the whole bloody lot of them, and many of Hornigold’s crew members agreed, especially his highly influential North Carolinian quartermaster, William Howard.

  Soon, the powerful new pirate consortium—with Hornigold as the flotilla’s overall commodore and Thache, Bellamy, and La Buse as captains—had taken several English and Spanish ships and they decided to make anchorage at Isla de los Piños to careen their vessels. In only three weeks’ time, they had accumulated solid stores of drink, coins, provisions, spare rigging, gunpowder, needles and twine, and cocoa as well as some much-needed skilled crewmen pressed into service. As they put into a sandy bay on the Southern Cuban island for fresh water and repairs, they came across four English sloops topping off water and firewood supplies. The pirate captains promptly announced to the British seamen that their vessels were to be commandeered to assist with the careening process: removing the sea debris that had accumulated on the hulls of the flotilla’s vessels and patching up any holes.

  It was a grueling ten days in the sweltering mid-May heat, but Thache knew it was a necessary duty to perform at least twice a year, and preferably three times. Below the waterline, wooden vessels were vulnerable to the destructive, hole-boring powers of the shipworm or teredo, a warm-water mollusk that, unchecked, could perforate the hull of a ship in just a few months. The first step was to lighten the load of each of the ships before they could be hauled-over. All the ships’ guns, stores of food, water and spirits, the topmast, and most of the ballast stones were removed temporarily to the shore. The English sloops were then used to heel the Mary, Benjamin, and other vessels over onto their beam ends using a line running from the English ships’ capstans to the masts of the pirate vessels. Using the English support vessels during the careening process made the job significantly easier, allowing the vessels to be heeled over onto both sides for cleaning and refitting. The main drawback of the process was that when exposed in this state, pirates made for vulnerable targets to prowling Royal Navy ships and Spanish or French pirate hunters.

  Once the ships were ready and in position to be properly cleaned and repaired, the bottom planking was inspected by Thache and the other captains personally, as well as by their respective master carpenters. Where the wood planks were weak, rotting, or penetrated by boring shipworms, they were replaced. The hull was then scraped clean of encrusted seaweed, barnacles, and other bottom-clinging organisms that drastically slowed a vessel down. Speed was a pirate ship’s most cherished attribute and every possible obstruction was scraped off the hulls to make the ships sail faster. The final step was to restuff all the narrow seams between the planking with oakum, a mixture of individual strands of hempen rope and tar, and seal each seam with heated pitch. Meanwhile, while all of this was going on, Thache had the crew repair all the worn and tired rigging, patch and replace the sails, and clean, oil, and prime his six guns and repair their carriages to make sure they were ready for use at a moment’s notice. When he was finished, he removed the name Mary from the escutcheon and painted on the name Margaret for his true love, making her look like a brand-new ship.

  It was a tough job to repair and refit all four of the ships, but the English boats made it much easier and the Flying Gang was sailing east again by mid-May. The diverse rogue fleet continued along the southern shore of Cuba and then eastward to the w
estern shores and coves of Hispaniola. The island was well positioned for raiding merchantmen coming in and out of the Caribbean, and its western shores were an ideal place from which to launch lightning strikes against shipping passing through the frequently-used Windward Passage. La Buse knew of some good hideouts along the shores of sparsely populated island, and directed the fleet in that direction. A lair was located and the members of the roving flotilla resolved to work in tandem to take as much treasure and necessary provisions as possible.

  Though the multifarious company made for an unusual team, Thache truly enjoyed the company of Hornigold, Bellamy, La Buse, Paulsgrave Williams, and their opinionated and occasionally unruly crews. He took a particular liking to Bellamy—indeed the lad was like a feisty younger brother to him. Together, they hoisted cups of wine and rum in honor of the James Stuart living in exile in Rome and to the damnation of the schnitzel-eating, Hanoverian imposter King George. Unlike Hornigold and Jennings, Thache and Bellamy no longer had any illusions about being privateers. They were pirates, pure and simple, with no sympathy for the shipowners, merchant and navy captains, and royals who dominated commerce at the expense of the working people of colonial America. Eventually, Bellamy was able to convince him that they were, in fact, really no different that Robin Hood and his Merry Men, taking from the wealthy merchants and enriching poor and mistreated colonial sailors. Although Thache and Williams came from well-to-do backgrounds, that didn’t make one iota of difference in their outlook. More than Bellamy and Hornigold who had risen from humble roots, they knew how rigged the system was against the common, hardworking seaman and those indentured to a world of servitude to rich men. They were both swept up by “Black” Sam’s powerful revolutionary words, but they were also motivated by their desire for adventure and riches of their own coupled with their Jacobite aversion towards King George and sympathy for the Scots and their deposed Stuart king.

  While Thache and Bellamy got along famously, Hornigold would eventually butt heads with Bellamy and La Buse regarding the prizes the group took. Hornigold remained steadfast in his insistence that the Flying Gang restrict their attacks to the vessels of England’s former enemies—France and Spain. La Buse was, of course, one of those former enemies, and Bellamy had no misgivings about seizing the property of all nations and desired to openly wage war against the rich, as a Robin Hood of the sea. By the end of May, with the friction amongst the pirate leaders increasing daily, Hornigold decided to leave his new partners and return to Nassau to cash in his share of loot, with the intention of regrouping with Thache, Bellamy, and La Buse later that summer.

  It was then Thache decided to sail home to Jamaica to fence his own goods and visit his family. But there was just one problem: Like his new hero Robin Hood, he was now a wanted man.

  CHAPTER 10

  GOVERNOR’S PALACE

  WILLIAMSBURG, VIRGINIA

  JUNE 15, 1716

  “THANK YE FOR COMING, HARRY,” said Lieutenant Governor Alexander Spotswood to his guest, Captain Harry Beverley, seated across from his expansive mahogany desk. “You know why you are here. I have a mission for you that will render great service to His Majesty King George. Here are the official orders.”

  Picking up two pages of foolscap from his desk, he handed the orders with an air of officiality to Beverley and then waited in formal silence while his guest read over the directive. Spotswood took unabashed pleasure in his lordly station, even though he was merely a deputy governor for the absentee earl of Orkney, George Hamilton, the older brother of Jamaica’s governor, Archibald Hamilton. He wanted to build up the suspense of the moment and underscore the importance of the enterprise to both the Crown and the King’s immediate representative in Virginia. In fact, every aspect of the scheduled meeting between the governor and captain of the armed merchant sloop Virgin of Virginia was arranged to emphasize both Spotswood’s and the Crown’s authority.

  En route to the governor’s sanctum sanctorum and chamber of power, Captain Harry Beverley—the older brother of Spotswood’s friend Robert Beverley of the notable Virginia Beverley family—had been politely shuttled by a small army of butlers, secretaries, and servants through a carefully orchestrated procession of spaces moving toward and culminating in Spotswood’s elegantly appointed, second-floor office. Down Palace Green, through the ornamental iron gates, across the forecourt, up the stone steps, into the great hall with its display of bayonet-tipped muskets and the royal coat of arms, up the stairs, down another resplendent hallway, into the governor’s upper middle room, and finally into the upholstered silk chair in front of Spotswood’s spacious desk where the captain now sat reading his maritime orders.

  But despite the glamor of the governor’s new residence, it was still unfinished and he, his family, and staff had yet to move in since many rooms had yet to be finished. Spotswood was unmarried and had no wife and children of his own. But he did have a niece, a secretary, and several other non-Negro servants that lived with him in his current temporary home and would share the Governor’s Palace with him once it was complete. The loud whacking of hammers and grinding of sawblades echoed down the hallway throughout the work week and showed no signs of letting up.

  When Beverley turned to the second page, Spotswood said, “As you and I have discussed, a nest of pirates has taken over New Providence. Their presence will prove dangerous to British commerce if not timely suppressed. These men are mostly English wreckers salvaging the remains of the Spanish treasure fleet. But I am told their numbers are augmented daily by logwood cutters from the Bays of Campeche and Honduras being expelled by the Spanish. It is both events that have led a considerable number of rough and dangerous characters to head for the Bahamas. The sheltered harbor at Nassau has become the meeting place for this motley gang of treasure hunters, logwood cutters, privateers, and unemployed seamen. That is why I am officially commanding you to provision a crew and take your sloop Virgin to visit the sites of the Florida shipwrecks. Once there, you are to recover what you can of the Spanish silver and gold, and from thence you will sail to New Providence and take an inventory of these pirates.”

  Captain Beverley continued to read. “Yes, I see. It’s all spelled out here.”

  “In your investigation of the current situation on New Providence, the scope of your inquiries and observations will include but not be limited to the following: assessing the total number of inhabitants, the number of pirate vessels and pirates among the population, the nature of their armament, and the state of old Fort Nassau. You shall, of course, carry the King’s arms for your own protection.”

  “Of course, Governor.”

  “If we’re going to stop these malicious scoundrels, we’re going to need to know everything about them: how they operate, their leadership structure, number of ships in their consort, and number of men and guns each vessel carries.”

  “We’ll have to be armed to the teeth just to get close to the wrecks.”

  “No doubt. I leave the details to you. Your orders also call for you to determine whether any of the wrecked treasure ships are near any coasts or islands belonging to His Majesty.”

  Beverley looked up from reading, eyebrow raised. “And if they are?”

  “Then you are to recover as much treasure as you can. And by doing thus, you will be asserting the claim of His Majesty to ye said wrecks by the Law of Nations as being within the jurisdiction of the Admiralty of Great Britain.”

  “How am I to be financed?”

  “You will receive the Crown’s backing to cover all of your expenses, as well as financial aid from individuals who hope to share in any recovered treasure.”

  “And if something happens to me and my crew? How will their families be looked after?”

  “The shares from any money or other returns from the wrecks will be disbursed to wives, children, and grandchildren, as appropriate. But nothing’s going to happen, Captain. It’s going to be a stroll through the park.”

  Beverley’s skeptical expression showe
d he didn’t believe him. “It will be a lot more dangerous than that, Governor, and you know it.”

  Spotswood feigned a look of casual disregard. “Perhaps, but I know you’re up to the task. You are up to it, aren’t you, Harry?”

  “Yes, Governor, of course I am. I just want to make sure I have the latest intelligence and the government’s full support. From what I’ve heard, there are some five hundred of these pirates down there, and more arriving every day. They’ve been salvaging from the Spanish wrecks and engaging in robberies, mostly on the Spanish.”

  “Quite right. So you know the likely consequences of allowing such a motley crew of robbers to establish themselves on the island. Why I am told that they’ve captured a ship of thirty-two guns. What a vessel of that force, manned by a company of such wicked desperadoes, may be able to attempt is easy to imagine.”

  “Is His Majesty the King aware of the extent of the problem?”

  “I have notified the King, the Board of Trade, and the Admiralty concerning this scourge in our hemisphere, and will be sending them another detailed report in the coming weeks, at which time I shall inform them of your enterprise. I consider it of the utmost importance that the full extent of the problem be brought to the attention of His Majesty and his ministers. It goes without saying that it is in the interest of Great Britain that some government be speedily established upon Providence Island and the place made defensible against the sudden attempt of pirates or the neighboring Spaniards, who have so often obstructed the settlement thereof. But that, of course, is going to take some time. So in the interim we have you, Captain Beverley. You are the eyes and ears of His Majesty in assessing the strength, whereabouts, and disposition of these seafaring rogues.”