Piracy in Colonial North Carolina

• Someone who attacks, without legal authority, both ships and maritime cities
• Also known as “sea thieves”

• Blackbeard
• Edward Low
• Calico Jack
• Stede Bonnet
• Captain Charles Vane

• Mary Read
• Anne Bonny

• Real name was Edward Teach
• Born in 1680
• Ship’s name was “Queen Anne’s Revenge”
• Had a heavy, black beard
• Before battles, he would light pieces of slow-burning rope under his hat so that smoke would pour out
• Killed in Ocracoke in 1718

• Captured many ships in NC waters
• His ship flew a black flag with a red skeleton
• Terrifying because he was so mean to his captives
• Scary looking because he had knife scars all over his face

• Real name was Capt. John Rackham
• Liked to dress in brightly colored clothes
• Anne Bonny and Mary Read sailed with him
• Caught in Jamaica

• Didn’t become a pirate until he was middle aged
• Called the “gentleman pirate” because after he captured a ship, he took its crew safely back to shore
• Was double-crossed by Blackbeard
• Caught near Charleston, SC in 1718

• Became famous for robbing Spanish ships
• When he refused to fight a French warship, his crew called him a coward and sent him overboard in a small boat
• When he got a new ship and crew, it was wrecked in a hurricane and he was the only survivor
• A friend eventually turned him in while he was in
Jamaica

• Born in England
• Dressed as a boy
• Joined Capt. John Rackham’s crew
• Was friends with Anne Bonny
• Died of fever

• Born in Ireland
• Raised in Carolina
• She had a fiery temper
• Was married to James Bonny for awhile, but got tired of him
• Fell in love with Calico Jack and joined his crew
• Was friends with Mary Read

• Booty = pirate treasure
• Double-cross = to betray, deceive, or cheat someone
• Hard tack = a hard, moldy biscuit
• Jolly Roger = a pirate’s flag with skull and crossbones
• Maroon = to leave in a deserted place
• Scurvy = a disease caused by too few fresh citrus fruits

• A smiling devil’s face means torture
• Crossed bones means someone will die
• A skeleton’s head means death
• A bleeding heart means you will have bad luck

• Sometimes it was fun and exciting, but it was also very hard
• Pirates had many jobs on the ship, including fixing/cleaning weapons, mending torn sails, mopping the deck, and pumping water from the ship’s hull
• Sometimes, an injured pirate became the cook because he couldn’t do the other jobs

• Because there were no refrigerators, pirates either had to catch fish or they had to eat dried foods like crackers or salted/smoked meat
• The food was often infested with bugs and mice, and the water was stale and slimy
• If a pirate got scurvy, his gums became swollen and bled, his hair and teeth fell out, and he finally died

• Pirates also had to follow rules:
– Everyone got equal amounts of treasure, except for the captain, who got more
– Gambling was not allowed
– Women were not allowed
– If you hit a shipmate, you got whipped
– If you stole from a crew member, you would be punished or left on shore