Famous Pirates

Famous Pirates - that were barbary pirates and attacked the spanish main. This page lists famous pirate names like blackbeard the pirate and gives some great history.

Pirates and the Spanish Main. What was the Spanish Main you ask? The "Spanish Main" was all the spanish portsor towns in the americas.

This was why the pirates of the caribbean were kept so busy. They would raid all the spanish strongholds, and theirmerchant ships. They would loot all of their treasure.

These characters created all the pirate mythology during the golden age of pirates.

Blackbeard the Pirate

Born in 1680 in Bristol, England

Pirate Names - Edward Teach or Edward Thatch, or Edward Drummond - better known as Blackbeard the pirate.

No one knows for sure which name was his correct birth name.

English Pirate in the Caribbean Sea and the Western Atlantic.

Famous Pirate Ships

Queen Anne's Revenge - believed to have run aground near North Carolina in 1718.

Pirate Clothes - wore a big feathered tricorn (hat) and many swords, knives and pistols looped on his belt.

Huge black beard - wove lit matches into it during battle to scare his enemies.

He would attack merchant ships and take all of their valuables.

He liked to have a ferocious reputation - although there is no evidence that he actually killed anyone.

Seems he created his own barbaric image for the fear factor.

Known most for his claim to fame was his blockade of Charleston, South Carolina. Held prominent citizens for ransom during this blockade asking for a chest of medicines. He got it, released all of his hostages without their clothes, but not harmed.

Robert Maynard went after the bounty on Blackbeard's head for 100 pounds. Blackbeard's head finally ended up on the end of a spike on the north shore of the Hampton River in Virginia - now called Blackbeard's Point - as a warning to other aspiring pirates.

Lived on many islands and was said to have buried his treasure all over the place. He created thelegend of pirate treasure as no one knew all his hiding places.

Black Bart

1682-1722

Born Bartholomew Roberts or John Roberts

Welsh Pirate who raided shipping off the Americas and West Africa.

Considered to be the most successful pirate of the Golden Age of Piracy, capturing more ships than some of the best known pirates.

Captured over 470 vessels.

Roberts was known to be very outspoken and a natural leader, and as a young sailor quickly found himself the captain of a pirate ship.

Even though he was a very successful pirate he was also known to be a gentleman. He did not drink excessively and apparently made all kinds of rules for his pirates including no mis-treatment of women.

This is what may have been fuel for the speculation that he was really a woman in disguise.

This rumour was floating around - although it is widely agreed now that he could not have been Anne Bonny in disguise as was previously believed. She was known to have been aboard Calico Jack Rackham's sloop cruising off Jamaica in October of 1720 at the same time that Roberts on the Royal Fortune - another famous pirate ship was in the mid-atlantic trying to reach the Cape Verde Islands.

So there is a myth dispelled.

At least historians think - although no one was ever sure of his gender.

If the idea of famous pirates actually being women entices you - read the page at the link.

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Henry Morgan

1635-1688

He was originally Welsh

A British Privateer - this means he was allowed to act like a pirate only for a particular nation - therefore allowed to attack spanish ships.

Became a pirate in the Carribbean.

His famous pirate ship was the Oxford.

So as a privateer he attacked Port Bello - with 10 ships and 500 men considered the center of spanish trade - fullof treasure and all kinds of valuables. They raided it, kept it for 2 months and stole everything from all of the residents as well.

He then attacked Maracaibo in Venezuela and then Gibraltar on Lake Maracaibo stealing all of the wealty citizen's treasureas well. While partying his crew accidentally set his ship the Oxford on fire. They managed to put it out.

Later he used another ship the Satisfaction as a fire ship to break through several Spanish ships blocking his escape.

Then Henry Morgan raided Cuba - you see all of these attacks so far were with Englands approval so he was not considereda pirate but a privateer.

When he decided to raid Panama (after being warned not to by the English, as they had a treaty with the Spanish there), hebecame a pirate.

Now he was wanted and the english caught him and brough him back to England in 1672. They decided not to punish him andinstead knighted him making him the Lieutenant Governor of Jamaica.

Basically he retired with all his loot.

Jean Lafitte

1776-1823

Was a pirate of the Gulf of Mexico

No one was sure where he was born either France or possibly Louisiana - even rumors of New York.

He made Barataria Bay his headquarters in 1803 - made it a really booming port full of pirates and smugglers.

It was said that he knew the swamps and the coast of Louisiana better than any other man.

He was so brazen that he might have had a warehouse and even a store right in the heart of New Orleans.

Famous Pirate Ships - Started with one ship and captured many others - picking and choosing which oneswould work for pirating the best.

He had the Dorada, La Diligent, and the Petit Milan.

Lafitte was known to treat captured crew and captains well - in fact he apparently gave back ships that weren't good for his work.

Governor Claiborne eventually got fed up with Lafitte's blatant bucking of the law and put a reward on his head.

Laurens de Graff

1653

Dutch

Captured in the Netherlands by spanish slavers and brought to the Canary Islands to work on a plantation.

This is why there was some speculation that he may have been of mixed heritage part african and part european ancestry.

He was described as tall blonde and very handsome, and he is one of the most romanticized pirates, partly due to his interesting heritage and also because he has a very intense love with a woman pirate.

This romanticism is what made him one of the famous pirates in this section.

1670's de Graff escaped slavery and became a pirate - he captured many towns and merchant ships mostly againstthe spanish.

Captured a spanish frigate witch became a famous pirate ship and renamed it the Tigre (tiger).

By 1682 deGraff was so successful Henry Morgan - now the Governor of Jamaica sent out a ship totry to capture him. Never happened.

In 1691 barely escaped a big battle with the Spanish.

1693 - Met Marie Dieu le Veult. After killing her husband they were married.

Laurens de Graff disappeared near Louisiane where he apparently helped set up a French Colony neartoday's Biloxi Mississippi.