Blackbeard, or Edward Teach, was a notorious pirate in the Caribbean in the early 18th century. He commanded the Queen Anne’s Revenge and became the leader of the pirate settlement in Nassau. His most famous feat was the blockade of Charleston in 1718. He was killed in a battle with Lieutenant Robert Maynard in November of that year. Blackbeard is known as one of the most famous pirates in history.
Blackbeard was the nickname of Edward Teach, a notorious pirate active in the Caribbean in the early 18th century. Although Blackbeard had a brief career as a pirate, lasting approximately two years, he has become the quintessential image of a fearsome pirate captain in the popular consciousness. Blackbeard was known for carrying multiple weapons and for having an enormous black beard, from which he got his nickname, into which he weaved hemp and burned matches during battle.
Little is known about Blackbeard’s early years. His date of birth and place of birth are a matter of conjecture, and his surname is variously given as Teach, Thatch or Drummond. He began his seafaring career as a British privateer, turning to piracy in 1716. Blackbeard commanded a ship he called the Queen Anne’s Revenge, formerly Le Concorde de Nantes, on which he had served as a privateer. Blackbeard became the terror of the seas in the West Indies and along the Atlantic coast, as well as becoming the leader of the makeshift pirate settlement in Nassau, nicknamed the “Private Republic”. Queen Anne’s Revenge had a lifelong rivalry with the British warship HMS Scarborough.
Perhaps Blackbeard’s most famous feat as a pirate was the blockade of Charleston, South Carolina in 1718. Blackbeard commanded four ships to block the trade route into the city, and the party pillaged five ships and prevented many more from entering the port. They also held some prisoners hostage and demanded the ransom of a medicine chest. Blackbeard shortly thereafter ran two of his ships aground in North Carolina, losing most of her crew, and retired to Ocracoke Inlet, North Carolina, with his treasure.
After this disaster, which some historians suspect was Blackbeard’s planning, the pirate captain commanded a smaller ship, called the Adventure, with a crew of 19. In November 1718, Lieutenant Robert Maynard was offered a reward by Governor Alexander Spotswood of Virginia to find and kill Blackbeard. Maynard set to work with two small sloops, HMS Ranger and HMS Jane. On November 21, Maynard met Adventure and tricked Blackbeard into boarding Ranger with ten of her crew. The ensuing battle was long and intense, but Maynard and his crew eventually prevailed and Blackbeard was killed on the morning of the 22nd.
Blackbeard has gone down in history as one of the most famous pirates in the Caribbean and legends surrounding the famous pirate captain abound. Interestingly, there are no verifiable records of Blackbeard killing anyone, but the image of him has become the epitome of the ruthless, bloodthirsty pirate of the golden age of piracy. A wreck found off Atlantic Beach, North Carolina in 1996 is suspected to be the Queen Anne’s Revenge, but the search is ongoing.
Protect your devices with Threat Protection by NordVPN
