The Book of Pirates

by Jamaica Rose

Jean Lafitte was a rebel at heart. He enjoyed breaking many of the new American laws. He and his Baratarians kept smuggling in illegal goods. They held “auctions” at secret locations in the swamps of Barataria, including “The Temple” and Cat Island. Many New Orleans citizens came out for the bargains. The American officials tried to put a stop to these “sales” without success. Exasperated, the American governor of Louisiana, Mr. William Claiborne, offered a reward of $500 to anyone delivering Jean Lafitte to the sheriff. Jean was in New Orleans the day the wanted posters went up. Insulted by the low amount of the reward, Lafitte paid a printer to make new posters. Late that night, he went about putting up his posters all over New Orleans, offering $1,000 reward to whoever captured the governor and brought him to Cat Island. The posters were signed “Lafitte.” In small print at the bottom, it said he was “only jesting & desired that no one would do violence to his Excellency.” The governor, however, did not find it very funny.

  Governor Claiborne soon had his revenge. The American government was making some headway in stopping the Lafittes. Officials had raided the Lafittes’ warehouses. Their property and ships were confiscated. Jean was being sued over smuggling charges. Pierre had been jailed for awhile. Several of the Baratarians were also arrested, including Dominique Youx (one of the Lafittes’ officers and possibly a cousin or a brother).

  The British Make an Offer

  Then the British came to Jean with an offer. They wanted his knowledge of the swamps and bayous that guarded New Orleans’ backdoor. The year was 1814, and the War of 1812 between the United States and England had been raging for a few years. The British thought if they took New Orleans, they could take the whole of the Mississippi River. Then they could invade the American states from the west. The British knew of Jean and Pierre’s problems with the Louisiana governor. They thought Jean would be willing to assist them, especially if they promised many rich rewards.

  Even after all Governor Claiborne had done, Jean still believed in the United States. He believed in the freedoms promised by the Constitution. Instead of accepting the British offer, he went to the Americans. He convinced the newly arrived General Andrew Jackson of their willingness and ability to help. Despite recent raids by the Americans, the Lafittes had a hidden supply of gunflints and weapons (both sorely needed by the Americans). Jean offered these to Jackson. The Lafittes also had many men to contribute. Jackson accepted the offer. A pardon was promised to the Lafittes and to any of their men willing to fight.

  Jean Lafitte meets with Governor Claiborne and General Jackson.

  Defending New Orleans

  The defense of New Orleans began on December 23, 1814, with the “pirates” of Barataria helping from the start. It all ended on January 8, 1815, after an hour-and-a-half struggle called the Battle of New Orleans.

  Lafitte and his men contributed greatly to the American success. Baratarians were manning many of the American cannons. They were brilliantly led by Dominique Youx. The British, who wore bright red coats and marched in orderly fashion, suffered losses of more than two thousand killed and wounded. Only eight Americans were killed and thirteen wounded.

  In thanks, President Madison granted a full pardon to all the Baratarians. The Lafittes were treated as national heroes. When a victory ball was held for Jackson’s officers, the Lafittes were invited. Still, Governor Claiborne would not allow the Lafittes to return to Barataria. The Lafittes were never able to recover their confiscated property or get back for damages by the Louisiana government. Jean eventually got some of his ships back, but only by purchasing them when they were sold at auction by the government.

  A New Barataria

  Soured on New Orleans, Jean and Pierre moved to the island of Galveston, off the coast of Texas (then in Mexican hands). They built a village called Campeachy. Others joined them at this new base, including many former Baratarians. From 1817 to 1821, the Lafittes used Galveston as their headquarters. Their ships flew the flags of countries in revolt against Spain. They claimed they only attacked Spanish vessels, but American ships were also being attacked. Jean was blamed for it. When a U.S. man-of-war ship came to Galveston, Jean found out that some of his men had acted against his orders. He quickly hanged the offenders from his men. The satisfied Americans left.

  In 1821, when American ships returned claiming new charges against the Galveston pirates, the Lafittes decided it was time to go. They burned all the buildings of Campeachy. When the Americans came ashore, they saw that everyone had left. What happened to the Lafittes after that is shrouded in mystery. There are some clues they worked for Cuba as spies for awhile. Some say they settled in the Yucatan, and there is some evidence that Pierre died in a village there. Among the various stories of how Jean and Pierre met their deaths, it is hard to know the truth.

  It was never clearly proven if either of the Lafittes were pirates, but they did have many shady business dealings. They enjoyed playing fast and loose with the law. It does seem very likely some of their lieutenants committed acts of piracy. The Lafittes were definitely smugglers and were the “godfathers” of New Orleans. They may have been the first American crime bosses, but they did care about the welfare of the young United States. If Governor Claiborne hadn’t been so hard on them, they might have stayed in New Orleans and become more respectable businessmen. Nevertheless, New Orleans and the United States owe a lot to the Lafittes.

  Real Pirate History to Visit:

  Chalmette Battlefield (part of Jean Lafitte National Park and Preserve)

  8606 West St. Bernard Highway, Chalmette, Louisiana

  Just downriver from New Orleans is the battlefield where the final stand for New Orleans was made on January 8, 1815. In fact, every year on the weekend near January 8, the Battle of New Orleans is reenacted at the Chalmette Battlefield, complete with a unit of Baratarians manning the guns.

  More info: www.nps.gov/jela/index.htm

  Pirates in the Movies: The Buccaneer (1958)

  Starring Yul Brynner, is loosely based on Jean Lafitte and the Battle of New Orleans. In some ways, it is rather accurate—for a Hollywood movie. Lafitte’s lieutenants mentioned in the movie were all actual people: Dominique Youx, Renato Beluche, and Vincent Gambi. Dominique Youx, a crack cannoneer, was instrumental in the Battle of New Orleans. On the other hand, the movie leaves Pierre Lafitte out completely. [NOTE: There is an earlier version of this movie (1938) with Fredric March as Lafitte. If you have time, it is fun to watch both and compare.]

  Talk Like a Pirate

  Pirates had a rich vocabulary. They combined the nautical lingo of sailors with their own specialized cutthroat phrases. Their way of talking was unique to their way of living. You can tell they are pirates just by listening to them talk. You can hear the lustiness and swagger in their words.

  Talk Like a Pirate Day

  Two buddies were playing tennis one summer day in 1995. Being a little bored, they decided to make the game more fun by talking like pirates. It was “Arrrgh” this and “Blast” that for the whole time as they hit the ball back and forth. These two guys had so much fun, they decided that people should talk like pirates more often. They invented a special holiday called “Talk Like a Pirate Day.” They declared September 19 as the day to celebrate. They even gave themselves pirate names—Ol’ Chumbucket and Cap’n Slappy.

  Little did they know what they started. For a few years, they told friends about the holiday, and a few people joined in with them. Then in 2002, Dave Barry, a newspaper columnist and author, found out about the piratical holiday. He wrote about “Talk Like a Pirate Day” in his column, and soon the whole world knew about this new holiday.

  When they started this whole thing, Cap’n Slappy and Ol’ Chumbucket didn’t really know much about pirates. Actually, we’re still not sure they know much about pirates, but that hasn’t stopped them from writing several books about the fun you can have just talking and acting like a bunch of scurvy pirates.

  To learn more about Talk Like a Pirate Day, the Pirate Guys,
and what people are doing to celebrate, visit www.talklikeapirate.com.

  Should you ever find yourselves at a loss for words, we give you...

  The Pirate Insult Kit

  Buccaneers, privateers, and sailors in general were known for their lusty oaths and colorful, spicy use of the language. To help you in the use of creative and salty mockery and ridicule, use the lists below. These are all words that were commonly used during the 1600s or earlier.

  It’s great when you can insult someone and they don’t even know what you are saying! But even though they don’t know what it means, it sure sounds bad.

  Simply combine at least one selection (you can use more) from each of the three groups below. Examples:

  Bilious crab-brained plague-rat

  Horrid, ship-sinking mermaid

  Cretinous, rum-sodden, grease-bellied tavern-scum

  You might try mixing and matching some of the hyphenated words for extra vocabulary. Let the list inspire you to greater heights of disdain.

  Brief definitions are given for those words not easily found in a modern dictionary.

  Group 1

  artless

  bilious

  blasted

  bogstuff (excrement)

  bootless

  cockered (pampered)

  craven

  cretinous

  cupshot (drunk)

  currish

  dankish (moist)

  droning

  dunderpate (oaf)

  errant

  fawning

  fetid

  fobbing (deceiving)

  frothy (trifling)

  froward

  gleeking (jibing)

  gorbellied (big belly)

  gouty (diseased)

  hapless (luckless)

  horrid

  impertinent

  keelhauled

  lubberly (oafish)

  loggerheaded (oafish)

  lumpish (oafish)

  malapert (rude, saucy)

  mammering (stuttering)

  mangled

  mewling

  paunchy

  pribbling (quibbling)

  puling

  puking

  putrid

  rancid

  rank

  recreant (cowardly)

  reeky

  salty

  saucy

  scummy

  scurrilous

  scurvy

  seasick

  slimey

  slovenly

  spongy

  surly

  toadying

  tottering

  unmuzzled

  venomed

  vile

  villainous

  vomitous

  wayward

  weasely

  weedy

  weevily

  yeasty (trifling)

  Group 2

  barnacle-encrusted

  bat-fowling

  beef-witted

  bilge-lickin’

  bilge-watered

  biscuit-eatin’

  black-mouthed (slandering)

  blood-poisoned

  blue-blooded

  boil-brained

  bold-beating (blustering)

  bottle-pated (oafish)

  brandy-faced (red faced)

  bum-basted (beaten)

  canker-ridden

  chamberpot-lickin’

  chum-’eatin’

  clapper-clawed (thrashed)

  clay-brained (stupid)

  cony-catching (cheat)

  crab-brained

  dizzy-eyed

  doghearted

  dread-bolted

  fat-kidneyed

  flap-mouthed

  fly-bitten

  fool-born

  grease-bellied

  guts-griping

  half-witted

  high-stomached (haughty)

  hump-backed

  ill-favored

  ill-nurtured

  lack-witted

  land-loving

  light-fingered

  lily-livered

  lop-sided

  milk-livered

  maggot-infested

  maggot-ridden

  motley-minded

  onion-eyed

  plume-plucked (humbled)

  pus-festering

  rough-hewn

  rum-fogged

  rum-sodden

  scum-spewing

  scurvy-laden

  sheep-hearted

  slow-witted

  ship-sinking (bad luck bringing)

  sponge-spined

  squid-suckin’

  tickle-brained

  toad-spotted

  wall-eyed

  weather-bitten

  Group 3

  addle (putrid urine)

  addle-pate (oaf)

  barnacle

  bilge-rat

  bilge-slop

  blackguard

  black-pot (drunkard)

  blowfish

  burble (pimple)

  caitiff (coward)

  canker-blossom

  carbuncle-face

  catch-fart (a servant who follows his master very closely)

  chamberpot

  churlish (oafish)

  clinchpoop (dunce)

  coistrell (rascal)

  cormorant (glutton)

  coxcomb (fool)

  cozener (con artist)

  craddon (coward)

  fart-licker

  foot-licker

  fustilarian (scamp)

  grease-boy

  gudgeon (easy victim)

  gutter-snipe

  jackanapes (fool)

  jelly-fish

  jolthead

  Jonas (bad luck)

  lickspittle

  lout

  maggot-meat

  malt-worm

  measle

  mermaid (bad luck)

  milk-sop

  minnow (easy victim)

  miscreant

  moldwarp (mole, spy)

  pantaloon (old man)

  peacock

  plague-rat

  poltroon (coward)

  pumpion (pumpkin)

  puttock (buzzard)

  recreant (coward)

  sea-cow

  sea-dog

  sea-slug

  sea-snake

  swab-stick

  tavern-scum

  toredo worm

  tosspot (drunkard)

  varlot

  vassal

  wharf-scum

  whey-face

  Aliases & Nom de Guerres: Pirate Names

  Pirates often got their nicknames and aliases from something they did, or from their appearance. Blackbeard, of course, had a big black beard. Olivier La Bouche was known as “The Buzzard,” perhaps because he looted dead bodies.

  For your pirate persona, you might pick a nickname from something special about your pirate. This may take a little time as you decide on your pirate’s background. However, if you and your friends need a quick way of picking out nicknames, perhaps for a pirate party, you can create a three-column chart. In the first column, list descriptive words such as Red, Black, Nasty, Tall, Mad, One-Eye, Smilin’, Fancy, Pegleg, Scruffy, etc. In the second column, give names such as Jack, Rita, Ted, Rosie, Francois, Dan, Bart, Meg, Juan, Thomas, Billy, Annie, Israel, Francois, Rock, Pierre, Roger, Grace, Mary, etc. The third column provides a fake title such as “the Terrible,” “the Forgetful,” “the Hook,” “the Mighty,” “the Gruesome,” etc. Choose one name from each column, or you could make it a chance game—throwing darts or tossing coins on the chart. Of course, if you come up with “Slack-jawed Thomas the Forgetful,” just throw the darts again. You could set a limit on how many times you can throw, possibly three.

  Pastimes for Scurvy Dogs

  Finding Yer Inner Pirate

  Have you ever wanted to become someone else? Someone completely different—maybe a pirate like Long John Silver, Captain Jack Sparrow, or Anne Bonny?


  Well, now you’re learning how to TALK like a pirate, but it’s also time to learn how to become the pirate you always wanted to be. This is where a little acting and imagination comes in. And a lot of fun!

  You can abandon your regular self and become someone with a very different life. You don’t have to figure out everything about your pirate character or persona right away. You can create him or her slowly over time. And don’t worry if you don’t get everything right the first time. You can always change anything about your character you don’t like or start over with a whole new persona.

  You can “put on” and “take off” this persona like a set of clothes. In fact, when you put on your pirate costume, it is the perfect time to put on your persona too.

  Who Am I?

  Here are some basic questions that will help you create your pirate. As you decide who your pirate is, write your pirate’s biography (life story). You might also draw pictures to go with your answers. Draw what you and your fellow crewmates look like. If you cannot come up with the answer for something right away, that’s okay. It may come to you later. Remember, any part of your story can be changed later on. Nothing is set in stone.

  What is my name?

  What is my nickname or alias? Do I have more than one nickname or alias? (See the previous section. You might want to wait until you answer some of the questions below, and then maybe a name will come easily to you.)

  What do I look like?

  Am I tall/short? What color are my hair and eyes? Do I walk with a limp or have a squinty eye? Do I have any scars? How did I get them? (See chapter 6 for how to create scars.)

  How do I dress?

  What do I wear? Are my clothes clean or neat (not likely)? Dirty and torn?

  Do I have rich clothes (perhaps stolen)? Or just basic sailor clothes? If you don’t have fancy pirate clothes yet, then it will be easier to start at the bottom as a basic sailor (see chapter 6 to make your own Basic Sailor costume). You can always get promoted to captain later on.