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Under The Black Flag by David Cordingly

Explore the real history of pirates, separating realities from the myths of swashbuckling adventure.

ByChris

Under the Black Flag by David Cordingly separates pirate myth from reality, exploring life during the Golden Age of Piracy. While popular culture paints pirates as treasure-hunting swashbucklers with parrots and buried gold, Cordingly reveals that much of this image is romanticized. 

By examining historical records, he shows the true nature of piracy – focused on goods like silk, cotton, tobacco, and slaves – and contrasts the myths with the harsh realities.

Wooden Legs & Parrots

  • Modern pirate image is largely based on fictional characters (Treasure Island, Peter Pan)
  • Demographics
    • 73-98% were seamen (merchant sailors, Royal Navy, privateers)
    • Multinational
    • Mostly young men, very few aristocrats
    • Participated in slave trade, same societal prejudices
    • Captains were ruthless, skilled navigators, elected and removable by vote
  • Lifestyle
    • Serious injuries common (e.g., self-cauterizing a leg wound)
    • Animals kept as souvenirs – parrots popular for colors and speech
  • Henry Avery
    • Born 1653 in Plymouth; not aristocratic
    • 1694: Led mutiny when pay was delayed and turned to piracy
    • 1695: Captured the Great Mogul’s ship (40 guns, 400 rifles, worth $100M+ today)
    • Retired quietly; disappeared from record

Plundering The Ports

  • Spain & The New World
    • 1492: Columbus landed in the Bahamas
    • 1502: Settlement on Hispaniola
    • 1519: Cortés conquered the Aztecs
    • 1532: Pizarro conquered the Incas
    • 1596-1600: Spain imported treasures worth $774 million
  • Europe Finds Out
    • 1523: French captured Spanish ships, discovering gold and Aztec treasures
    • France, Britain, and others began raiding and exploiting New World wealth
  • Sir Francis Drake
    • 1573: Raided Spanish caravans in Panama; captured 15 tons of silver and £100,000 in gold
    • 1577: Began around-the-world voyage
    • 1578: Exited Strait of Magellan; raided South American coast
    • 1579: Captured Spanish ship disguised as a merchant; seized £12 million
    • 1580: Returned after 2 years 9 months; knighted; total treasure of £68 million

Sir Henry Morgan

  • Reputation
    • Widely admired; socialized with Parliament and the King’s circle
    • Knighted and appointed Lieutenant Governor of Jamaica
    • Owned thousands of acres and sugar plantations
  • Life
    • 1635: Born in Wale
    • 1654: Joined army; helped capture Jamaica for the British
    • 1665: Began raiding Spanish settlements; rose as a military leader
    • 1667: Named Admiral of the “Brethren of the Coast” (all buccaneers)
    • 1671: Arrested for violating peace, spent time in London mingling with Court
    • 1674: Knighted and became Lieutenant Governor of Jamaica
    • 1687: Died after years of illness and debauchery
  • Achievements
    • 1668: Ransomed Portobello, Panama – one of the century’s most successful ops
    • 1669: Escaped Spanish trap in harbor using gunpowder-laden decoy
    • 1670/71: Led largest buccaneer fleet to Panama City; defeated 1,200 defenders

Women Pirates

  • Women in Piracy
    • Deemed unfit for sea life; some joined Navy/merchants in disguise
    • Mrs. Cheng: Led a pirate confederation of 50,000, larger than many navies
    • Calico Jack: Small-time pirate, semi-respectful to victims, favored women
  • Anne Bonny
    • Illegitimate daughter of an Irish lawyer
    • Raised as a boy to avoid scandal
    • Married a seaman; sailed to New Providence
    • Abandoned husband to join Calico Jack
  • Mary Read
    • Born in England; father absent, siblings died
    • Raised as a boy; joined army
    • Moved to West Indies after husband’s death
    • Ship captured by Calico Jack; joined the crew
  • 1720
    • Calico Jack and crew hanged
    • Read died in prison from fever
    • Bonny’s fate remains unknown, claimed pregnancy to avoid execution

Life at Sea

  • Shipwrecks & Storms
    • 1717: Largest shipwreck off Cape Cod; 144 men died, including Sam Bellamy
    • Navigation was difficult; no reliable method to determine longitude until 1760s
  • Daily Life
    • Generally easy-going but with structure
    • Hard drinking, coarse language, gambling, casual cruelty
    • Democratic elements: crew elected captains and decided destinations/targets
    • Captain held absolute authority during battles and pursuits
    • Quartermaster managed disputes, led attacks, commanded captured ships
  • Pirate Code
    • Written articles for each voyage; all members signed
    • Set rules for plunder, injury compensation, and punishments
    • Included “disability insurance” (loss of right arm = 600 pieces of eight)

Pirate Attacks

  • Typical Pirate Attacks
    • Victims rarely resisted; pirates openly signaled hostile intent
    • Looted gear, goods, food; skilled men detained (carpenters, surgeons, etc)
    • Most were single ships; only top captains had multiple ships
    • Bartholomew Roberts & Blackbeard had ~500 men
  • Bartholomew Roberts (Black Bart)
    • Most successful pirate; captured 400+ ships
    • Stylish, abstained from drinking, discouraged gambling
    • Captured Portuguese ship: 40 guns, 150 men, 90,000 gold pieces, other goods
  • Pirate Flags
    • Symbols: bleeding hearts, hourglasses, spears, cutlasses, skeletons
    • Black flag: death, piracy
    • Red flag: battle, no prisoners

Violence

  • Reality vs. Romanticized
    • Walking the plank rarely happened; only one recorded case (1829)
    • Black Bart: whipped men to death, cut off ears, used men for target practice
    • Henry Morgan: burned women in indecent areas; roasted one on a stove
    • Montbars: nailed victim’s guts to post, forced man to dance to death
  • Common Tortures
    • Limb-stretching while beating
    • Twisting cords around heads until eyes burst
    • Burning
    • Marooning

Pirate Haunts

  • Port Royal, Jamaica
    • 1655: Founded
    • 1680: Population ~3,000; had houses, churches, taverns, workshops
    • Supported pirates for protection and economic reasons
    • 1692: Earthquake destroyed the town
    • Kingston became new capital; pirates no longer welcomed
  • Madagascar
    • 1695: Henry Avery captured the Great Mogul’s treasure ship
    • 1696: Pirate colony established, trading as far as NYC
    • 1700: 17 ships, 1,500 men
    • Rivalries with natives and tropical diseases ended the colony
  • Bay of Campeche & Bay of Honduras
    • Harsh living conditions: swamps, mosquitos, alligators, parasites, heavy drinking
  • Nassau, Bahamas
    • Largest headquarters: Benjamin Hornigold, Blackbeard, Charles Bellamy, Charles Vane, Stede Bonnet, Calico Jack, Mary Read, Anne Bonny
    • Pirates overran the town; King sent warships to eliminate them

Pirate Ships

  • Pirate ships: faster, better armed than merchants
  • Schooner not widely used until after the Great Age of Piracy
  • Famous Pirates & Their Largest Ship
    • Bartholomew Roberts: Royal Fortune, 230 men, 51 guns
    • Henry Avery: Fancy, 46 guns, 150 men
    • Captain Kidd: Adventure Galley, 287 tons, 152 men, 34 guns
    • Sam Bellamy: Whydah, 300 tons, 28 guns, iron grenades

Buried Treasure

  • Few pirates actually buried treasure – most spent on drinking, gambling, and luxuries
  • Captain William Kidd
    • Born 1614 in Scotland; large, violent temper; struggled for crew respect
    • 1689: Privateer in the Caribbean
    • 1691: Moved to NYC, married wealthy widow, built political connections
  • Privateering Expedition
    • Funded by King William III, Lord Chancellor, Massachusetts Governor
    • 1696: Left NYC with 152 men
    • Attacked pilgrim convoy outside contract, flew pirate flag, tortured English crew
    • 1699: Declared pirate by British government
    • Ship sailed near NYC Gardiners/Block Islands before arrest, fueling legends
    • Sentenced to hanging

Hunting Down Pirates

  • Blackbeard’s Final Battle (1718)
    • Virginia governor organized expedition
    • Lieutenant Maynard hid men below deck, surprised Blackbeard during boarding
    • Blackbeard was shot 4 times, stabbed 20 times, continued fighting until final sword strike
  • Pirate Population
    • 1720: 2,000 pirates in Caribbean & North America
    • For comparison: Port Royal 3,000; Charleston 5,000; NYC 18,000
    • Rapid decline due to pardons, naval patrols, capture rewards, public executions
    • 1726 → <200 pirates, fewer than six attacks
  • Royal Navy
    • 67 “ships-of-the-line,” 63 warships, 13,000 seamen
    • Smallest ships had 50 guns, equal to Queen Anne’s Revenge

Trials & Executions

  • Execution
    • For 400+ years, pirates were hanged at Execution Dock on the Thames
    • Bodies disposed via unmarked graves, dissection, or hung in chains
    • 1716-1726: ~400 hanged
  • Trials
    • Lasted 1-2 days, even for large groups
    • Pirates had no legal representation; most were uneducated
    • Witnesses rarely testified in their favor

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