Tell me what do you think, mate!
<b>BARTHOLOMEW ROBERTS, English (`1682-1722`)</b>
Ships: Royal Fortune, Great Fortune, Fortune, Rover, Great Ranger, Ranger
Bartholomew Roberts, referred to as the " Great Pirate Roberts", roamed the seas in the early eighteenth century. He traveled the coasts of North and South America. His reputation had grown so immense that guard ships stationed in the West Indies were reluctant to get involved with him, and even seemed to sail out of their way to avoid confrontation.
Born (as John Roberts) to a poor family in Pembroke County, Roberts rose to mate of a Barbados sloop by 1718. He was known as a tall, dark, and attractive man, with "personal Bravery, though he applied it to such wicked purposes". He was a popinjay among his fellow pirates dressing in rich crimson waistcoat, and breeches, a hat with a red feather, and a diamond cross hanging from a golden chain around his neck. In time of action, he was known to carry two pairs of pistols at the end of a silk sling across his shoulder.
Turning pirate, he cruised from Brazil to Canada to Africa. Altogether, he captured some 400 vessels, including several substantial prizes. Almost alone amongst pirate captains, he rarely drank alcoholic beverages.
In June 1719, Roberts was the third mate of a ship captured of Ghana by Howell Davis as its crew brought slaves for the Royal Africa Company. Roberts joined Davis' crew and took the name "Bartholomew." Tall, dark and handsome, he was called "Black Barty" by his shipmates.
The Pirates proceeded south and careened their ship at Principle Island. Toward the end of July, they were ambushed by the Portuguese governor, and Davis was slain. Roberts was elected captain of the Rover and revenged Davis by bombarding the town and burning the fort.
Roberts plundered a Dutch vessel and burned an English slave ship before making for Brazil. In September he fell in with a convoy of 42 Portuguese traders escorted by two `70-gun` warships. In a bold attack, he captured a larger and `better-armed` vessel with £30,000 in gold coins and other rich cargo. However, both the Rover and his prize were snatched by Walter Kennedy, left in command while Roberts was off in a captured sloop.
Roberts renamed the `10-gun` sloop Fortune, looted four small vessels, and outsailed a British ship sent in pursuit. And sold his booty in New England.
His boldness was reflected in his reliance on the unusual, relying on the both surprising and awesome. For example he was recalled to have sailed into Trepassey in Newfoundland,in June 1720, in a sloop of ten guns manned by sixty men, with "black colors flying, drums beating and trumpets sounding." The crews of the `twenty-two` ships in anchor in the harbor, immediately withdrew from the site and fled to safety off shore.
Roberts' raiders spread terror along the coast, captured 26 sloops and 150 fishing boats, and wantonly destroyed sheds and machinery along the shore.
With the Fortune, Roberts seized an `18-gun` galley and traded her for a `28-gun` French ship, renaming each in turn the Royal Fortune. As he returned south with his two ships, Roberts pillaged at least a dozen English merchantmen. The raiders fell upon the London ship Samuel like a "parcel of furies," destroying her cargo and taking away £8,000 in booty. Many seamen from his prizes voluntarily enlisted, and the pirates recruited others by force. Roberts preferred English seamen, and some reports say he tortured and killed French captives.
After taking on food at Deseada and Saint Bartholomew in the Caribbean, Roberts made for Africa. Through bad navigation, the pirates sailed to the south of the Cape Verde Islands and could not go back against the trade winds. Forced to return to the Caribbean, they ran out of water and survived on one mouthful a day.
Reaching the West Indies in September 1720, Roberts attacked the harbour at Saint Kitts, seized and looted one ship, and set fire to two others. The Fortune returned the next day, but was driven off by cannon fire. With his usual bravado, Roberts sent an insulting letter to the English Governor.
<b>Had you come off as you ought to a done, and drank a glass of wine with me and my company, I should not have harmed the least vessell in your harbour. Further, it is not your gunns you fired that affrighted me or hindered our coming on shore, but the wind… </b>
After repairing his ships at Saint Bartholomew, Roberts returned to the attack in late October and plundered 15 French and English vessels. In January, he captured a `32-gun` Dutch slaver and played a clever trick on the inhabitants of Martinique. The Dutch ship sailed past the harbours and signaled the Frenchmen to visit Saint Lucia, where Dutch smugglers sold slaves. The pirates seized and burned 14 French ships and tortured their crews. They severely whipped some victims and cut off their ears. Others they hung from the `yard-arm` and used for target practice.
Roberts looted another French vessel and then careened his ships at an Island of eastern Hispaniola. The Fortune was replaced by an `18-gun` brigantine, renamed the Good Fortune. Soon after, his two ships captured a French `man-of`-war carrying the Governor of Martinique. Roberts hanged the governor and took over his `52-gun` ship, the third to be named the Royal Fortune.
In April 1721, Roberts sailed to Africa to trade his plundered goods for gold. The Royal Fortune at this time had a crew of 228, including 48 blacks. The Good Fortune carried 100 white and 40 black seamen. To keep control of these large and often drunken crews. Roberts became increasingly autocratic. On the way to Africa, Thomas Anstis deserted with the Good Fortune, but Roberts had kept the best loot on board his own ship.
Roberts arrived at Africa in June, captured four prizes, and kept one, renamed the Ranger (later called the Little Ranger). After resting at the Sierra Leone River, the rovers headed for Liberia. There they captured the Royal Africa Company's Onslow (with £9,000 in cargo), which became the last Royal Fortune.
Roberts cruised southeast to Nigeria and Gabon and then went back to the Ivory Coast, taking at least six prizes along the way. On January 11, 1722, he reached Whydah (Ouidah, now in Benin) and captured 11 slave ships, each of which paid eight pounds of gold dust in ransom. When one Portuguese captain refused to pay, the pirates burned both his ship and it's cargo of 80 slaves. A `32-gun` French warship was retained as the Great Ranger.
Rogers decided to return to Brazil to disband his crew. Meanwhile, two British `men-of`-war had been pursuing the pirates along the coast. On February 5, the Swallow, under Captain Challoner Ogle, caught up with Roberts' squadron near Cape Lopez in Gabon. Mistaking the warship for a Portuguese trader, the Great Ranger chased the Swallow and surrendered after a gun battle.
The Swallow returned to Cape Lopez on February 10 and found the Royal Fortune at anchor. The pirates had taken a prize the previous night, and most either helplessly drunk or hung over. Roberts dressed for battle in a crimson damask waistcoat and trousers, a hat with a red plume, and a gold chain and diamond cross.
<b>Roberts career came to an end when he was killed at sea in a conflict off the coast of Africa.</b>
Giving orders with his usual boldness, Roberts sent the Royal Fortune toward the Swallow to escape with the wind. Grapeshot from the Swallow's broadside brought instant death. Loyal to his last wish, the pirates threw Roberts' body overboard, rather than let it be hanged in chains from a gallows.
The Royal Fortune surrendered about three hours later. Captain Ogle's men found about 300 pounds of gold dust (worth about £14,000) in Roberts' three ships. The captain of Roberts' last prize had escaped after stealing other booty from the Little Ranger. Captain Ogle took his prisoners to Cape Coast in Ghana, where a `Vice-Admiralty` court was set up. Seventy black pirates were returned to slavery. `Fifty-four` crewmen were hanged, 37 received lesser sentences, and 74 were acquitted.
Roberts' boldness was his trademark. He led his crew into action wearing a number of pistols tucked into a silk bandolier and carrying a sharp cutlass. He attacked ships of all nations, but particularly singled out France and its colonies. Roberts held so much hatred for the people of the islands of Martinique and Barbados, that he created his black flag to illustrate it. On it was an image of himself holding a flaming sword in one hand, and dagger in the other. His feet resting on two human skulls. Under one the initials A.M.H., for A Marinican’s Head, and beneath the other, A.B.H., for A Barbadian Head.
<img src="http://www.piratesahoy.net/components/com_akogallery/img_pictures/Batholomew%20Roberts.jpg" border="0" class="linked-image" />
A tall, handsome man who loved fine clothes he was also a gifted leader of men, and held his crews together by the use of prize money, codes of conduct and above all, constant success.
<img src="http://www.piratesahoy.com/forum/style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/bookish.gif" style="vertical-align:middle" emoid=":mm" border="0" alt="bookish.gif" /> Sources:
<a href="http://www.kipar.org/society/author/`pirates-history`/`pirate-fame`.html" target="_blank">http://www.kipar.org/society/author/pirate...-fame`.html</a>
<a href="http://www5.netmart.com/kiss/" target="_blank">http://www5.netmart.com/kiss/</a>
Ravenheart
Tell me if you wanna change something
" border="0" alt="onya.gif" /> Good mate!!
" border="0" alt="yes.gif" /> <img src="http://www.piratesahoy.com/forum/style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/onya.gif" style="vertical-align:middle" emoid="
" border="0" alt="par-ty.gif" />
