Captain "Red Legs" Greaves

Red Legs Greaves was a West Indian Pirate, who operated around 1670-80. As pirates go, Red Legs Greaves was not only a successful one but also a lucky one. He managed to survive his life as a pirate and live to ripe old age. What makes this even the more remarkable was how his life began. Greaves was born in Barbados, the son of Scottish slaves. Anyone familiar with the movie "Captain Blood" recalls the scene at the beginning of the movie where several men are tried for treason and eventually sold into slavery. This was a common practice in England and was the case of the...

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Eric Cobham and Maria Lindsey

Among the many pirates who swarmed over the Canadian seas in the so called Golden Age, none was more vicious than Eric Cobham, unless it was his wife and partner in piracy, Maria Lindsey. It seems that they killed for sport, followed a policy of leaving no survivors to bear evidence, and according to Cobham's own account, managed to get away with piracies spread over a period of twenty years. The Cobhams favourite base was in the Gulf of St.Lawrence, although they ocassionally raided farther south. According to tradition, their fort and careenage was in Bay St.George, at a place called...

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Lady Mary Killigrew and Elizabeth Trewinnard, Lady Killigrew

Mary was the daughter of a former Suffolkpirate. Mary's husband Sir Henry Killigrew, a former pirate himself, was made aVice-Admiral by Queen Elizabeth I and tasked withsuppressing piracy. Whenever her husband went to sea Mary engaged in piracyusing the staff of her castle (Arwenack Castle in Cornwall)as crew and possibly with the Queen's knowledge. In 1570 she captured a Germanmerchant ship off Falmouth and her crew sailed it to Irelandto sell. However, the owner of this ship was a friend of Queen Elizabeth whothen had Lady Mary arrested and brought to trial at the Launceston assizes.Some sources say she was sentenced to death and then pardoned...

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Anne Dieu-Le-Veut

AnneDieu-Le-Veut also called Marie-Anne or Marianne (born ca 1650)was a French Pirate,a so called Buccaneer,and together with Jaquotte Delahaye one of very few female ones.Her name means "Anne Gods-wants-it"; as it seemed that if she wantedsomething, it was as if God gave it to her.Shewas originally one of the women called "Filles de Roi" ("King's Daughters")sentby the French government to Tortugain Haitito become wives to the local male colonists, as was a French policy in manyother French colonies, such as Louisiana and Quebec, and she is believed tohave been a criminal deported from France in this manner, as were many of thosewomen. Her deportation...

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Captain Benito de Soto

Galician slaver turned pirate De Soto sailed to Africa from Buenos Ayres Brazil in 1827 aboard the Defense de Pedro. Almost as soon as he left port he began plotting to seize vessel and turn pirate. The crew bided its time waiting for the legitimate captain to domost of the work. After picking up a consignment of slaves off the Africa coast, de Soto waited for the ship to reach the deep ocean and then led his co-conspirators in a bloody mutiny. The ship's captain and those loyal to himwere thrown overboard and left to drown. De Soto then took the ship to the West Indies and sold the slaves.After collecting his profits, de Soto renamed his...

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Pirate Clothin

TheGolden Age of Pirates! The pirates who operated during the Age of Explorationhave become synonymous with a definite style of   Pirate Clothing.But what pirate clothing was fact and what pirate clothing was fiction? Thelegendary apparel of a pirate has created a pirate stereotype. But much of thepirate clothing was developed through necessity and befitted the lifestyle of apirate seaman.PirateClothing - the 'Slops'Many pirates were recruited from unemployed seaman - there was plenty of workfor a fighting sailor during times of was but during peacetime the seamanbecame impoverished and turned to a life of piracy. In 1628 the BritishAdmiralty...

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THE LIFE, ADVENTURES, AND PYRACIES, Of Captain Singleton by Daniel Defoe

Captain SingletonDaniel DefoeTHE LIFE, ADVENTURES, AND PYRACIES, Of the Famous Captain SINGLETON: Containing an Account of his being set on Shore in the Island of Madagascar, his Settlement there, with a Description of the Place and Inhabitants: Of his Passage from thence, in a Paraguay, to the main Land of Africa, with an Account of the Customs and Manners of the People: His great Deliverances from the barbarous Natives and wild Beasts: Of his meeting with an Englishman, a Citizen of London, among the Indians, the great Riches he acquired, and his Voyage Home to England: As also Captain Singleton's Return to Sea, with an Account of his many...

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