PIRATES

Pirates plundered the North Carolina shore from the Cape Fear to Currituck. Below are a couple of the worst of the worst. Edward Teach (Bleackbeard)’s ship is underwater off the coast of Beaufort and artifacts from it are on exhibit at the NC Maritime Museum. If you are interested in pirates, come watch and participate in the Beaufort Pirate Invasion on the second weekend in August!

Edward Teach

Notoriety: Daring, crafty and frightful looking, his long black beard, which he twisted and tied into tails, gave him the name "Blackbeard."

His story: After serving as a privateer in Queen Anne’s War, he joined a pirate crew, capturing a French ship and renaming it Queen Anne’s Revenge. He blockaded Charleston, S.C.; marooned crewmen, ran theQAR aground in Beaufort Inlet and made off with the booty; held and infamous pirate party on Ocracoke; and had a home in Bath, where he hobnobbed with polite society.

His ending: In 1718, Teach opened fire on pirate hunter Capt. Robert Maynard and believed he’d won the battle. Once onboard Maynard’s ship, the pirates were overpowered by crewman hidden in the hold. Teach was killed after reportedly being shot five times and cut more than 20. Maynard displayed Teach’s head on the bowsprit of his boat.

Stede Bonnet

Notoriety: "The Gentleman Pirate" was born into wealth and owned a plantation on Barbados, but threw it away to become a pirate.

His story: Abandoning his life and family in 1717, Bonnet bought a sloop he named Revenge and joined Blackbeard’s pirate fleet, only to lose his command, crew and loot to the craftier corsair. After Blackbeard ran the QAR aground in Beaufort Inlet, Bonnet fled to Bath for a gubernatorial pardon, then he resupplied his ship, got a new crew and set out to exact revenge, sailing under the name Captain Thomas.

His ending: Anchored at Bonnet’s Creek on the Cape Fear Inlet, he was captured in September 1718 by Col. William Rhett to answer for his crimes in Charleston, S.C. There, he escaped, was recaptured and hanged.