“I don’t trust the scoundrel. No doubt he has designs on forming a new pirate nest in the Carolinas. Woodes Rogers will arrive in Nassau any day now and the rogues know they will be booted out of the Bahamas. Their days are numbered.”
“Perhaps he is doing nothing of the kind and is planning on seeking a pardon from Governor Eden and retiring from piracy for good?”
“But the King’s pardon does not cover acts of piracy committed after January 5 of this year, and Blackbeard is known to have taken part in the blockade of Charles Town and several other piracies. No, Robert, he is a marked man—and soon to be a dead one.”
“Perhaps. But as you well know, proprietary and colonial governors both retain the legal right to waive the timing clause and to extend immunity up to the moment a pirate surrenders. That is the reality.”
“Please don’t lecture me on the law, Robert. I firmly believe this rogue should be hunted down and exterminated. It would be a fine day indeed to see his bearded head hanging from the bowsprit of one of the Admiralty’s vessels.”
“Why you sound almost as if you have it out for the fellow. Is he taking too much of the limelight, or is he perhaps just the diversion you need to get Ludwell and his pit bulls off your back?”
Spotswood knew it was a bit of both, but he wasn’t going to admit that to his friend. The truth was he was jealous of all the attention Thache was getting in the newspapers and on colonial wharves and piers, but what fascinated him most about the pirate was his potential political value. The successful capture or killing of the infamous Blackbeard would distract his enemies, at least temporarily, from his perceived failings as governor. Furthermore, it would restore some of his fallen prestige and a sense of harmony with his legislature, or at least encourage mutual toleration. Right now, his ongoing battle with the Ludwell-Blair faction was a stalemate, with neither side able to win the argument without perhaps a Pyrrhic victory that would leave both sides decimated. Unless he managed to divert the attention of his Council and the House of Burgesses away from their internal power struggles with him, then his governorship would eventually be undermined by his adversaries. That was why—he understood right there and then—the ignominious cutthroat Blackbeard might very well prove to be a blessing for him.
“I can see from your expression how badly you want him, Alexander. Tell me what scheme are you cooking up in that head of yours?”
“It’s nothing. I was just thinking.”
“I know you better than that. Don’t tell me you’re planning on going after Thache in North Carolina? You know perfectly well that would be quite illegal.”
“As governor, I command all land militia and naval forces of the colony.”
“Yes, but that does not include making war against pirates in the territory of a neighboring colony.”
“The Admiralty’s ships retain the right to chase pirates anywhere at sea.”
“You’re parsing words like a lawyer. You know what I mean and must be careful about not angering our sister colonies. It is their right to operate in ways they see fit to maintain their own sovereignty.”
“Why you sound like a lawyer yourself, Robert. In fact, a lawyer for pirates.”
“I’m just warning you to tread carefully. And the truth is, Thache could be anywhere. He may have left Carolina waters.”
“He may have left, or he may be sailing into Bath Town as we speak to secure the King’s pardon. But don’t you worry about me, Robert. Whatever course of action I choose, I will do everything by the book.”
“I know you better than that. Just remember, you are answerable to our masters in London. Any conflict with your fellow colonial governors, or the colonists you rule, could reflect badly on you back home. Are you willing to put your career in jeopardy for the defense of the Crown?”
He pondered a moment, assuming a philosophical pose with his elbow on his desk and fist beneath his chin. “In the end, it’s about who controls the power, isn’t it? The real power is held by the elected local representatives, whether the House of Burgesses in Virginia or the Assembly in most other colonies. However, because I am Virginia’s Vice-Admiralty representative, I have no legal requirement to answer to them in this matter. Should I decide to take it up, that is.”
“Oh, Alexander, I can see you are up to no good. Well then, since I can’t talk you out of it, will you at least take a bit of advice from an old friend?”
“Yes, of course.”
“Follow the letter of the law—and let that be your guide.”
“Aye, I will, Robert. I will indeed,” he said, but he had no intention of doing any such thing, unless it promoted his own self-interests.
CHAPTER 42
BATH TOWN
PROPRIETARY COLONY OF NORTH CAROLINA
JUNE 24, 1718
FROM THE QUARTERDECK OF THE ADVENTURE—the name Thache had christened the Spanish sloop—the pirate leader stared out at the slate-green waters of Town Creek. Instead of being the commodore of a seven-hundred-man, five-vessel pirate fleet, he was the captain now of only forty men and an eighty-ton sloop. But she was a beauty. Stretching sixty-five feet in length on deck and twenty feet in her beam, she boasted sleek lines and an enormous bowsprit and main boom that nearly doubled her length to more than one hundred twenty-five feet. Thache took a deep breath of air. It was a torrid summer day, but the cool breezes running up and down the Pamlico River and her myriad tributaries made him feel comfortable. The wide creek was lined with tall, straight-trunked old growth pines, cypress, and juniper and ten- to fifteen-foot high bluffs.
Off his starboard beam, he could soon make out the familiar peninsula upon which the town of Bath Town had been built. He had been to the capital and principal port town of North Carolina twice before during his stint in the merchant service after the end of the war, but he didn’t know the town or its inhabitants well. Although Bath was the colony’s administrative center, oldest town, and official port of entry, the village itself was a modest affair. It contained three long streets, a pair of ordinaries, two dozen houses, a grist mill, a small shipyard, and a small wooden fort set along Town Creek. Another inlet known as Adams Creek joined Town Creek just below the village, so the stubby peninsula the settlement lay upon was bounded by the two inlets. The town’s waterfront faced west, onto Town Creek, and a sandy lane named Front Street formed its main street, running parallel to the harbor itself.
The settlement was first founded in 1705 and named after the English aristocrat John Granville, the earl of Bath, who was one of Carolina’s lords proprietors. It was now home to around a hundred people, including indentured servants and slaves. Governor Eden, Tobias Knight, and other North Carolina worthies had built homes in the area, and a handful of merchants had set up temporary stores on the edge of town to store large quantities of goods. The two ordinaries in town served the needs of the land travelers and sailors who passed through the port. Many of the original settlers were Huguenot and French Protestant emigres who had fled their native country to avoid persecution.
Growth and progress were slow and the town had failed to become the booming regional epicenter hoped for by North Carolinian authorities. Still, the town was growing. Its mill had been built in 1707, and its shipyard added later that year to construct the coastal vessels Bath needed to flourish as North Carolina’s principal trading center. Tobacco, furs, and naval stores were all shipped through the port; however, since Pamlico Sound and the Outer Banks were too shallow for most large merchant vessels, most of these larger craft shipped their goods to Charles Town and other larger cities further up or down the coast.
Despite its progress, the town was fortunate to survive and had been on the brink of rack and ruin since its inception. During the past decade alone, Bath had barely managed to survive disease, bloody political disputes, a devastating Indian war, drought, and famine. And now, for the first time in its history, the quiet hamlet had pirates on its hands.
Looking out at the town, Blackbeard was confident he ha
d found the right place for him and his men to set themselves up for retirement, or at least lay low for a while. With a small population, little commerce, and the ever-present threat of Indian attacks, North Carolina was nearly bankrupt and both the colony and its capital of Bath desperately needed an influx of hard currency, critical supplies, and sturdy men to defend against prowling native warriors. In Thache’s view, Eden would have little choice but to accept his gifts in exchange for his endorsements of their royal pardons. With pardons in hand, the sleepy harbor would be a perfect pirate refuge for him and his men for at least the short term, which would give him time to decide his future. Right now, he was filled with uncertainty and he needed time to think things through. With Nassau no longer an option as a pirate stronghold, he needed one or more new bases of operation, or at least a refuge or two where he would be supported by local traders and a sympathetic colonial population resistant to an overbearing British Crown and wouldn’t be actively hunted down. He was hoping that between the island of Ocracoke on the Outer Banks where he had anchored two days ago and Bath Town, he would have a pair of nice, quiet, out-of-way places for himself and his remaining men.
What made Bath perfect was that it had just enough trade to allow the selling of his pirated goods, but not enough for the merchants to form an anti-piracy lobby. As the colony’s primary port, the town was subject to the scrutiny of Tobias Knight as collector of customs, but Thache was confident he could offer sufficient gold dust that the official wouldn’t ask too many questions. But what gave him further reassurance that he could deal successfully with Eden and Knight was that he already had a connection to them from his merchant days and through his relationship to William Howard, the son of a prominent North Carolina landholder and well known in Bath, and the other Bath County pirates, whom Eden and Knight had sent to the Florida wrecks two years earlier.
The Adventure turned-up smartly before the wind off Tobias Knight’s landing—a place familiar to him from his previous visits and where all arriving vessels were required to report to His Majesty’s customs for the colony of North Carolina. Sails were lowered and the crew dropped anchor into the muddy bottom of the tannin-colored river. At Knight’s stately house above the landing, a dozen people turned out to greet them, including several slaves. Thache saw a strapping, confident-looking Governor Eden and a sickly-looking Tobias Knight among them. They must have been conducting their political affairs in Knight’s home, or perhaps someone had informed the governor that a large sloop was sailing upriver and he had headed over to Tobias Knight’s house to greet the newcomers.
In any case, Thache realized, the situation was perfect, for he already had his audience with the two most important political figures of North Carolina. He tipped his tricorn hat to them and they returned the gesture, which he took as a good sign. Five minutes later, he was rowed ashore in a longboat along with a half-dozen of his men and several gifts. Stepping onto the dock, he and his men were led by a black slave to the house.
Arriving at the foot of the steps, he bowed courteously. “Edward Thache, Captain of the Adventure at you service,” he said officially.
The gaunt-faced Tobias Knight looked at Eden and then back at him. “And what would be your business here today, Captain Thache?”
He gave his most disarming smile. “Why we are here to meet with the government in order to apply for His Majesty’s most gracious pardon.”
Now it was Governor Eden who responded. “We have been expecting you, Captain,” he said deferentially. “Please, you and your men step into Esquire Knight’s customs office so that we may hold a conference. Your friend Captain Bonnet of Barbados was here not but a few days ago to obtain the King’s pardon, which was officially granted to him and his men, so we are aware of your situation. Come inside and have a drink and we shall talk awhile. I am sure you have had quite a journey.”
“Aye, that we have, Governor. That we have.”
With all proper formality, Knight then ushered him and his crew, including William Howard, John Martin, Caesar, Nathaniel Jackson, and Joseph Brooks Jr. and Sr. into a parlor where they sat at a small black walnut table surrounded by yellow-colored chairs and a wooden bench brought in by the servants. When they had settled into their seats, Governor Eden looked intently at the tall, dark-skinned pirate with the long black, neatly braided beard, faded crimson jacket, and six bandoliered pistols. When their eyes met, Thache saw what he had hoped to see. The forty-five-year old, bewigged English noblemen appeared not to be at all a pompous colonial official, but rather a reasonable man who would consider very carefully what the pirate was about to tell him. He knew Eden basically had no choice. As the governor of an impoverished colony, he had the thankless job of transforming his pestilent backwater populated by aggrieved Indians and penniless settlers into a strong, affluent colony in which hard-working men and their families would want to settle.
“I remember the first time I met you years ago,” said Eden with a fatherly look in his eyes. “I said to myself then that one day you would be a man of some distinction.”
“Is that so? Perhaps I have received more distinction than is healthy for a man in these perilous times, Governor,” said Blackbeard with a wry grin.
“Yes, I see what you mean.” He took a deep breath. “Well, as I’ve said, we’ve been expecting you and are glad you’ve made it.”
“Your families are looking forward to seeing you, men,” added Tobias Knight. “I must confess that, during these past two years since you sailed for the Spanish wrecks, I wasn’t sure if I would ever see you all in Bath again.”
“We weren’t sure we would make it back either,” said William Howard. “But it’s good to finally be home.”
“He’s right, sir, it seems rather like a dream,” agreed John Martin.
“Yes, well it’s good to see you all.” He looked at his former slave Caesar. “Caesar, my lad, welcome home.”
“Thank you. It is good to be here.”
“Just so you know, Esquire Knight, Caesar is a free man now,” said Thache quickly so there would be no misunderstanding. “He’s been sailing with me and gets an equal vote and share of all plunder, and I will not abide by his being a slave again. But we have fifty slaves with us as cargo aboard our ship and they will, of course, be made available to you two gentlemen, to shall we say, pay the necessary duties on behalf of His Majesty’s customs. It is my understanding that Bath County could use productive laborers and defenders against Indian attacks, and that such men would indeed be quite welcome in these parts. They have been well fed and taken care of, and not one of them has been shackled in my hold. They have been free to move about the ship for much of the day when we’re at sail. But they are pure African and speak not a word of English.”
Eden exchanged a glance with Knight. “You have been informed correctly, Captain Thache,” said the governor. “We very much could use such a labor force in our homes, in our woods, and in our fields.”
“Good, then I would say we are off to a good start in these negotiations.”
As one of Tobias Knight’s slaves poured out glasses of wine, the black man and Caesar made eye contact and smiled at one another. Thache would later learn that the twenty-six-year-old was a close friend of Caesar’s named Pompey and the two of them had come to Bath together as slaves from Charles Town years earlier.
Knight looked around the room at the other Bath County pirates. “I know your families will be most pleased to see you, gentlemen.”
“And we look forward to seeing them as well,” said William Howard. “Once we get down to business here and reach a favorable agreement.”
“I see no reason that we cannot reach an accord,” said Eden. “No reason at all. But we must first hear the details of your recent seafaring activities as well as your journey here. Acquiring the King’s grace is a formal legal process, so we must make sure to dot all the i’s and cross all the t’s. As I’m sure you understand.”
“But as the governor said,” put in Tobi
as Knight quickly with an air of seasoned diplomacy, “we see no reason that a satisfactory accord cannot be reached.”
“Then I believe a toast is in order, gentlemen,” said Thache. “A toast to mutual understanding and to a bountiful future.” He withdrew a big leather purse from his jacket pocket filled with gold dust, and laid it in the middle of the table. “And we want to cordially thank you up front for lending us your expert counsel with regard to our duty payment and the King’s most gracious pardon. You see, gentlemen, our pirating days are done and over.”
“Done and over?” said Eden, eyebrow raised. “Why that is music to our ears, Captain Thache. Music to our ears.”
“Aye, we’re done with the account, and I mean for evermore. And to tell you the truth, Governor, it feels quite liberating.”
CHAPTER 43
CAPITOL, WILLIAMSBURG
JULY 10, 1718
THE STATE COACH glinted in the sunlight as it clattered down Duke of Gloucester Street towards the Capitol. Lieutenant Governor Alexander Spotswood looked out the carriage’s open window at his red-coated outriders stirring dust spouts in the loamy sand of Williamsburg’s main thoroughfare. Mid-July in Virginia brought oppressive heat and humidity—fine tobacco weather but a sickly season for the colonial inhabitants—but this morning it was refreshingly cool and the Assembly would be in session for another week before recessing from the summer heat. Harnesses jingled, wheels creaked, and hooves clomped as the carriage navigated its way down the swale-pitted dirt road along with the other traffic passing by on the crowded street. It was a busy summer day and Spotswood couldn’t wait to get started with his formal proclamation against piracy, despite the hostility he expected to receive at the hands of his adversaries in Virginia’s colonial government.
His gleaming coach with six matched horses drew up at the Capitol. Out stepped the lieutenant governor in his lengthy periwig, velvet coat, silk stockings, and silver-buckled shoes. As he strode into the portico a dress sword swung at his side. One wing of the H-shaped building comprised the Hall of Burgesses, with committee rooms above it; the other wing housed the dignified General Courtroom and above it the finely appointed Council Chamber. With his attendants behind him, the governor marched up the curved staircase to the Council Chamber, where he would announce his proclamation. In the crowded room, the members of his Governor’s Council and House of Burgesses waiting to hear his address grudgingly rose at his entrance out of respect for tradition rather than for any affection for him. The governor saluted them, sat for a moment at his designated chair near the podium, and then stood up to speak.
Blackbeard- The Birth of America Page 32
