Encouraged by their governments to raid enemy ships, privateers turned pirates when war was over. Anjani Ganase tells the stories of some famous pirates.

The Golden Age of Piracy in the Caribbean extended between 1680 and 1730. During these 50 years, these outlaws roamed the seas from the North Carolina coast to Tobago. Their daring and bold acts became tales that were passed on.

Piracy had an unusual beginning. Leading up to and during the War of Spanish Succession, the British government hired British privateers to seek out and raid the Spanish galleons (large merchant ships) en route to Spain. Plying the transatlantic routes with substantial cargoes, Spain was rich with the treasures from the New World. The loot was the reward. During this time, the British and French formed alliances against the Spanish for this purpose, so French and British privateers were both targeting the Spanish.

As Spanish power declined in the Caribbean, the privateers began raiding their own British merchant and slave ships to maintain their livelihood. This became an issue, especially as the British were establishing their transatlantic trade routes for the shipment of slave to colonies in the Americas. The pirates robbed vessels of supplies, slaves and anything of trading value.

The rise of piracy resulted in retaliation and the British Monarch sought to stamp out piracy in the region. Between 1670s and 1718, the navy fleet grew from two to 124 ships.

The Caribbean’s vast geography contributed to the success of pirates, who could hide in any of the scattered islands that served as strongholds and grew on pirate economies. Safe havens included Tortuga, off Hispaniola, Port Royal in Jamaica, Nassau in Bahamas and the Isla de Providencia off Nicaragua.

The British navy was challenged by the vastness of the Caribbean and so many islands surrounding it. Many remote islands meant that the pirates could easily relocate to hide out and also lie in wait for ambush. Piracy was brutal, and punishment for pirates was death by hanging.

The news of the pirates in the Caribbean and their captures often made it to British readers. Illustrations of the pirates and tales of their misdeeds were documented and the image of the pirate was romanticised.

The Queen’s Revenge

Blackbeard is probably the most infamous pirate, whose character has been resurrected many times in pop culture and most famously in Disney’s Pirates of the Caribbean.

Edward Teach started out as a privateer, hired by the British, during the War of Spanish Succession, but turned to the life of piracy afterwards. He acquired his own vessel from the French, who had stolen it from the Spanish. Originally named the Concorde, Teach renamed it The Queen’s Revenge. It was a magnificent vessel with 40 guns and over 300 crew. During one year of service under Teach, the Queen’s Revenge was used to commandeer many other vessels to build his fleet and fortune.

Blackbeard’s appearance was meant to instil fear, with a great big black beard that extended to his waist. He would