WEBVTT - Pirates 10: Brethren 0:00:05.200 --> 0:00:09.280 In the twelfth century, cities like Lubeck, Hamburg, Bremen, Danzig 0:00:09.360 --> 0:00:11.879 and others along the Baltic and the North Sea coast 0:00:12.119 --> 0:00:15.960 experienced an increase in maritime trade, and of course, wherever 0:00:16.000 --> 0:00:19.000 there are valuables for the taking, there were pirates. To 0:00:19.040 --> 0:00:22.560 help address the issue, Lubeck and Hamburg created the Hanseatic 0:00:22.640 --> 0:00:26.279 League in twelve forty one, also commonly called Hansa. The 0:00:26.440 --> 0:00:30.880 term means fellowship or community, more of a mercantile alliance 0:00:30.920 --> 0:00:34.280 than a city by city effort. The League both supervised 0:00:34.320 --> 0:00:38.840 maritime trade and helped to safeguardships against pirates. By hundred 0:00:38.960 --> 0:00:42.600 nineteen major ports had joined. Some countries, like Denmark, were 0:00:42.680 --> 0:00:46.080 against Hansa and the mercantile monopoly the League had become 0:00:46.360 --> 0:00:50.479 the opposing country. Solution was to create smaller brethren organizations. 0:00:50.880 --> 0:00:54.760 One such group of free booters, the Vitalin Brewder or 0:00:55.000 --> 0:00:59.080 Victual Brothers, consisting of mercenaries and pirates, had been hired 0:00:59.120 --> 0:01:02.560 to bring food visions to Stockholm in the thirteen nineties. 0:01:02.600 --> 0:01:04.840 The Danes had waged an assault on the city in 0:01:04.880 --> 0:01:07.880 an attempt to capture and control it. In response to 0:01:08.040 --> 0:01:11.000 Hanseatic cities in Mecklenburg put out a call for free 0:01:11.000 --> 0:01:14.240 booters at their own expense. The Victual Brothers would harass 0:01:14.280 --> 0:01:17.720 and plunder ships from Denmark and Norway. Thus began the 0:01:17.920 --> 0:01:21.320 privateers War, But seeing as the applicants lining up for 0:01:21.360 --> 0:01:25.640 a license had seed reputations, the conflict seemore like pirates 0:01:25.800 --> 0:01:30.160 versus pirates. The Victual Brothers frequently targeted ports outside of 0:01:30.200 --> 0:01:34.080 Mecklenburg that belonged to the Hansa. Lubeck became a favorite target, 0:01:34.160 --> 0:01:37.080 although the Brothers attacked any ship in the Baltic they pleased. 0:01:37.319 --> 0:01:40.000 While they might have government allies, their actions showed that 0:01:40.040 --> 0:01:43.560 they were first and foremost pirates by nature. One of 0:01:43.560 --> 0:01:46.160 the Brothers vessels made the mistake of attacking a German 0:01:46.200 --> 0:01:50.120 ship in Thirte. The German sailors bested the pirates and 0:01:50.280 --> 0:01:53.040 stuffed them into barrels with just their heads sticking out 0:01:53.040 --> 0:01:55.840 of the top. Once the ship reached the port in Strawson, 0:01:56.000 --> 0:01:59.440 the men were carted off and beheaded. Other Victual brother 0:01:59.520 --> 0:02:02.800 pirates pressed on, eventually becoming so successful that trading in 0:02:02.840 --> 0:02:06.120 the Baltic nearly came to a standstill. Finally, a treaty 0:02:06.200 --> 0:02:09.880 was signed in May of and the victual brothers were 0:02:09.960 --> 0:02:12.680 ordered to leave the Baltic by that July. It won't 0:02:12.680 --> 0:02:14.880 surprise you to learn that the brothers had no intention 0:02:14.919 --> 0:02:17.800 of giving up piracy, though, They just split into smaller 0:02:17.840 --> 0:02:20.720 groups and operated from their new capital on the island 0:02:20.720 --> 0:02:24.440 of Helgoland. The location provided easy access to passing ships. 0:02:24.639 --> 0:02:27.800 Local chieftains along the eastern coast of Frieseland hired the 0:02:27.800 --> 0:02:31.760 pirates for their conflicts and campaigns. From this new brotherhood, 0:02:32.000 --> 0:02:36.480 Klaus stora Becker became legendary in German folklore. Sometime around 0:02:36.480 --> 0:02:38.919 fourteen o one, the hands has set out a fleet 0:02:38.960 --> 0:02:42.200 of ships to capture and destroy Claus's base. For three days, 0:02:42.240 --> 0:02:45.960 the battle reached on. Men took to crossbows, axes, swords, 0:02:46.000 --> 0:02:49.480 and hand to hand combat. At last, Klaus's ship Sea 0:02:49.520 --> 0:02:52.480 Tiger was captured by the captain aboard the d Bunta Coup, 0:02:52.840 --> 0:02:57.160 which oddly translates to the colorful Cow. Klaus and seventy 0:02:57.200 --> 0:02:59.240 two of his crew were taken to Hamburg, where he 0:02:59.320 --> 0:03:02.560 negotiated pardon not for himself, but for any of his 0:03:02.639 --> 0:03:05.839 crewmen that he could walk past after the executioner cut 0:03:05.840 --> 0:03:09.399 off his head. The legend says that headless, Klaus stumbled 0:03:09.400 --> 0:03:12.799 past eleven men. If there's any truth to Klaus's end 0:03:12.880 --> 0:03:14.919 or not, it makes us wonder why we have always 0:03:15.000 --> 0:03:18.200 envisioned pirates as the lone, rogue wolves of the sea. 0:03:18.639 --> 0:03:24.240 After all, most wolves hunt impacts. I'm Aaron Manky and 0:03:24.320 --> 0:03:35.760 welcome two pirates. Pirate legends. We glorify them, massive ships 0:03:35.760 --> 0:03:38.760 with brave captains, traveling the seas in search of fortune. 0:03:39.040 --> 0:03:42.640 The Golden Age of Piracy even sounds somewhat romantic, but 0:03:42.880 --> 0:03:46.000 peel back the legends and the history underneath is a 0:03:46.040 --> 0:03:49.040 lot more brutal. Historians often debate just how long the 0:03:49.080 --> 0:03:52.400 Golden Age of Piracy lasted. Some argue it lasted only 0:03:52.440 --> 0:03:56.560 ten years, from seventeen fifteen to seventeen. Others claim it 0:03:56.600 --> 0:04:00.760 occurred between seventeen fourteen and seventeen thirty, while still more 0:04:00.840 --> 0:04:04.080 say that the exact start and end date is rather subjective, 0:04:04.440 --> 0:04:07.320 since pirates roamed the seas hundreds of years before the 0:04:07.320 --> 0:04:10.600 Golden Age of piracy. The definition is generally traced back 0:04:10.640 --> 0:04:13.600 to the use of privateers during conflicts in the Caribbean 0:04:13.760 --> 0:04:17.080 throughout the late sixteen hundreds and early seventeen hundreds. The 0:04:17.160 --> 0:04:20.440 Treaty of You treked in seventeen thirteen ended the livelihoods 0:04:20.440 --> 0:04:23.080 of many seamen who had come to places like Port Royal, 0:04:23.160 --> 0:04:26.400 Jamaica to earn a profitable living as what was essentially 0:04:26.560 --> 0:04:30.720 a sanctioned pirate for higher upwards of six thousand privateers 0:04:30.720 --> 0:04:33.880 previously working with the government found themselves either out of 0:04:33.880 --> 0:04:36.080 work or in a position where they had to return 0:04:36.120 --> 0:04:39.800 to their former employment aboard slave, merchant or navy ships 0:04:39.839 --> 0:04:44.200 with low pay and often deplorable conditions. Seaports in British 0:04:44.200 --> 0:04:48.560 and colonial territories teamed with unemployed seamen. Others chose to 0:04:48.600 --> 0:04:51.640 continue their line of work, officially making them pirates instead 0:04:51.640 --> 0:04:55.880 of privateers. Many attacked only the French or Spanish vessels, 0:04:55.880 --> 0:04:59.400 while others were less discerning and contributing to that rise 0:04:59.440 --> 0:05:02.760 where government without a means to enforce anti piracy laws. 0:05:03.200 --> 0:05:06.920 Most Caribbean pirates hailed from England, but not all of them. 0:05:06.960 --> 0:05:10.800 Pirates came from Africa, Scotland, Ireland and other places around 0:05:10.839 --> 0:05:14.599 the world. Regardless of their heritage, they formed a common bond, 0:05:14.920 --> 0:05:18.479 even working together. Many even came to another pirate's aid. 0:05:19.200 --> 0:05:21.920 We might think of them as lawless, but pirate crews 0:05:21.960 --> 0:05:26.760 formed highly democratic communities and hierarchies. Their captains were not tyrants. 0:05:27.040 --> 0:05:30.480 Crewmen could and did vote them out of power. Plunder 0:05:30.600 --> 0:05:32.919 was divided fairly, and the crew had to say in 0:05:32.960 --> 0:05:36.920 the captain's decision process. Democracy at sea granted them far 0:05:36.960 --> 0:05:40.400 better protection than their employers or governments offered on land. 0:05:40.720 --> 0:05:44.080 Some pirates from the Bahamas even provided disability benefits to 0:05:44.120 --> 0:05:47.839 crew members. Something more than booze, adventure and treasure attracted 0:05:47.880 --> 0:05:50.920 sailors to life as a pirate. It certainly wasn't the 0:05:50.920 --> 0:05:55.400 picture governments painted for them, bloodthirsty murderers, rapists and thieves 0:05:55.440 --> 0:05:59.000 out there only for themselves, who also relished in torturing 0:05:59.000 --> 0:06:02.679 women and children just for fun. While some individuals certainly 0:06:02.720 --> 0:06:06.880 did fit that description, other stories were simply exaggerated. Yet 0:06:06.920 --> 0:06:10.520 no matter what government officials said, the public regarded pirates 0:06:10.520 --> 0:06:13.520 as a form of folk hero even during the Golden 0:06:13.520 --> 0:06:16.679 age of piracy. So Aside from the money, the booze, 0:06:16.680 --> 0:06:20.160 the adventure, and the escape from poor working condition, there's 0:06:20.160 --> 0:06:25.040 another reason rebellion pirates took a social and political stand 0:06:25.080 --> 0:06:28.840 against injustices. When Queen Anne died, for example, and her 0:06:28.880 --> 0:06:32.160 brother was refused the throne because he was Catholic pirates 0:06:32.200 --> 0:06:35.440 like Benjamin Hornegald and Edward Teach remained loyal to the 0:06:35.440 --> 0:06:39.359 House of Stuart and rebelled against King George. It's important 0:06:39.400 --> 0:06:42.600 to remember that most pirates came from poor families, working 0:06:42.680 --> 0:06:45.440 jobs that had little chance of paying off. These men 0:06:45.440 --> 0:06:48.320 and women had nothing to lose and everything to gain, 0:06:48.760 --> 0:06:52.080 Although there were pirates who valued the lifestyle above all else. 0:06:52.480 --> 0:06:56.080 In seventeen twenty two, for example, pirate Joseph Mansfield once 0:06:56.080 --> 0:06:58.800 said that he loved drinking and a lazy life more 0:06:58.839 --> 0:07:01.640 than he valued any pure The men and women who 0:07:01.640 --> 0:07:04.120 were active during the Golden Age of piracy left an 0:07:04.160 --> 0:07:07.960 indelible mark on history, many becoming larger than life legends. 0:07:08.200 --> 0:07:11.840 When we think of pirates today, popular names like Edward Teach, 0:07:12.000 --> 0:07:15.040 Sam Bellamy, and Steve Bonnet come to mind, as well 0:07:15.040 --> 0:07:18.200 as the trio of Calico, Jack and Bonnie and Mary Read. 0:07:18.840 --> 0:07:21.480 And each of these pirates was powerful in their own right. 0:07:22.000 --> 0:07:24.920 They captained or served aboard flagships that could hold their 0:07:24.920 --> 0:07:28.240 own against any man of war, and with so many 0:07:28.280 --> 0:07:31.440 of them commanding what amounted to entire naval fleets, it 0:07:31.520 --> 0:07:35.080 seems as though they would see each other as direct competition. Yet, 0:07:35.280 --> 0:07:38.560 as it turns out, these very capable individuals and crews 0:07:38.960 --> 0:07:41.840 came to form a tighter bond. Not only did they 0:07:41.880 --> 0:07:45.440 know each other, but they also created a community referred 0:07:45.480 --> 0:07:55.080 to as the Pirate Republic. Pirates rated ships for more 0:07:55.080 --> 0:07:58.480 than just gold. Honestly, they would plunder anything of value. 0:07:58.720 --> 0:08:01.880 Of course, stolen goods required buyers who didn't ask a 0:08:01.880 --> 0:08:05.320 lot of questions. Port Royal and Martinique had once been 0:08:05.320 --> 0:08:08.040 prime locations to sell, but by the Golden Age the 0:08:08.080 --> 0:08:11.040 ports began to crack down on pirates and their buyers. 0:08:11.400 --> 0:08:14.679 Small colonies short on supplies sometimes looked the other way, 0:08:15.000 --> 0:08:19.120 but larger colonial ports prohibited and enforced laws preventing the 0:08:19.160 --> 0:08:22.400 sale of stolen goods. This forced the buyers and pirates 0:08:22.400 --> 0:08:25.640 to meet at prearranged locations to do their business. The 0:08:25.680 --> 0:08:27.960 easiest solution for the pirates was to find a port 0:08:28.000 --> 0:08:31.520 city they operated. They found the perfect spot in Nassau 0:08:31.640 --> 0:08:35.000 on the island of New Providence. In the late seventeenth century, 0:08:35.040 --> 0:08:38.440 England and Spain engaged in a conflict over salvaging wrecked 0:08:38.440 --> 0:08:43.400 ships in the area. Spain raided the then British controlled Bahamas. Naturally, 0:08:43.440 --> 0:08:46.920 the British retaliated with their own privateers against Spain. The 0:08:46.960 --> 0:08:50.040 hostilities resulted in burning the settlement to the ground, but 0:08:50.160 --> 0:08:54.400 mostly abandoned area attracted new settlers willing to rebuild, including 0:08:54.480 --> 0:08:59.840 English privateers. By the colonists established Nasa as the capital. 0:09:00.320 --> 0:09:03.560 As we learned earlier privateers found themselves without a job 0:09:03.600 --> 0:09:06.720 after the Treaty of Utrecht was signed. Afterward, both the 0:09:06.720 --> 0:09:09.960 Spanish and French ignored the treaty and rated Nassau in 0:09:10.000 --> 0:09:13.600 the early eighteenth century, and the settlement was abandoned once more. 0:09:14.280 --> 0:09:17.400 In seventeen fifteen, though, a fleet of Spanish treasure ships 0:09:17.400 --> 0:09:19.680 made their way home after a lengthy time at sea. 0:09:20.160 --> 0:09:22.840 On June thirty, as they sailed through the channel between 0:09:22.840 --> 0:09:26.240 Florida and the Grand Bahamas, they encountered a hurricane. The 0:09:26.400 --> 0:09:29.240 one hundred mile per hour winds tore the sails, and 0:09:29.280 --> 0:09:32.199 the fifty foot waves slammed the ships into the jagged 0:09:32.240 --> 0:09:36.360 reefs off the Florida coast. Only one ship survived. Ten 0:09:36.440 --> 0:09:41.000 others sank, along with an immense treasure of silk, coins, ingots, 0:09:41.000 --> 0:09:44.880 and jewels. When the hurricanes subsided, nearly a thousand corpses 0:09:44.920 --> 0:09:49.520 washed ashore approximately seven million pesos worth of treasure lay 0:09:49.600 --> 0:09:53.160 in shallow water. Everyone from the Spanish, to the navy 0:09:53.320 --> 0:09:56.640 to the pirates converged on the area. Port Royal's governor 0:09:56.720 --> 0:09:59.880 hired privateer Henry Jennings to bring back whatever he could. 0:10:00.480 --> 0:10:03.880 Jennings and his men attacked a Spanish garrison and seized 0:10:03.920 --> 0:10:07.360 nearly sixty thousand pieces of eight. Spain left the area 0:10:07.440 --> 0:10:11.280 in seventeen sixteen, leaving behind a significant amount of treasure. 0:10:11.679 --> 0:10:14.880 Jennings and his men packed up their treasure and left. 0:10:15.440 --> 0:10:19.080 While the pirates raked in considerable sums. Spending them proved 0:10:19.120 --> 0:10:22.079 a bit more difficult. They couldn't spend them in Port Royal, 0:10:22.240 --> 0:10:26.800 but Nasaw, a new providence, provided the perfect alternative. Benjamin 0:10:26.840 --> 0:10:30.760 Hornegald and Edward Teach had already established themselves in the settlement. 0:10:31.080 --> 0:10:33.680 Hornegald had a hundred men and a well armed sloop 0:10:33.720 --> 0:10:37.880 in the harbor, asserting an unchecked, if not temporary, authority 0:10:37.960 --> 0:10:41.839 over the settlement. Pirates nearly outnumbered other settlers, and they 0:10:41.880 --> 0:10:44.440 walked freely through the streets as though the town belonged 0:10:44.480 --> 0:10:48.120 to them. As more pirates converged, their dominance in Nasa 0:10:48.320 --> 0:10:51.480 increased the pirates began to refer to themselves as the 0:10:51.520 --> 0:10:55.920 Flying Gang. Those who didn't want to join left for Jamaica, 0:10:56.120 --> 0:10:58.920 fresh office treasure hunt in Florida, Jennings and his men 0:10:59.040 --> 0:11:02.760 arrived in Nasa. He stole a small Spanish sloop belonging 0:11:02.800 --> 0:11:06.080 to Hornegal, challenging the status quo. As it turned out 0:11:06.160 --> 0:11:09.120 the two men had a long history of rivalry. Hornegal 0:11:09.280 --> 0:11:11.680 had to do something to prove his worth or risk 0:11:11.800 --> 0:11:14.880 losing control, so he took Edward Teach and two hundred 0:11:14.920 --> 0:11:17.840 men on his ten guns sloop through the Florida Straits 0:11:18.120 --> 0:11:21.720 and around Cuba during the spring of seventeen sixteen, where 0:11:21.760 --> 0:11:26.080 the crew captured several valuable prizes. Hornegal recruited a few 0:11:26.080 --> 0:11:30.240 other pirate captains, including Sam Bellamy and an unlikely ally 0:11:30.400 --> 0:11:34.480 French captain, Olivier Labouse. They returned to Nasa, only to 0:11:34.559 --> 0:11:39.080 discover that the pirate community had substantially increased the population 0:11:39.160 --> 0:11:42.040 there of pirates and illegal traders. Caught the attention of 0:11:42.120 --> 0:11:45.960 Virginia's governor, who complained to England that pirates had taken 0:11:46.000 --> 0:11:49.000 control of the Bahamas, and as time went on, streams 0:11:49.000 --> 0:11:52.360 of outcasts found their way to Nassau from farmers to 0:11:52.480 --> 0:11:56.360 runaway slaves. Life among the pirates provided them with freedoms 0:11:56.400 --> 0:11:59.120 and a sense of community that they didn't have back 0:11:59.120 --> 0:12:02.840 in the colonies. By seventeen seventeen, most of the names 0:12:02.880 --> 0:12:06.080 that were familiar with called Nassa home, though not all 0:12:06.120 --> 0:12:09.200 of them belonged to the Flying Gang, and although Jennings 0:12:09.200 --> 0:12:12.840 and Hornegold remained enemies, the island provided room enough for 0:12:12.920 --> 0:12:17.520 both leaders. New providence had become a pirate's paradise. Sources 0:12:17.520 --> 0:12:19.960 indicate that they might have taken counsel with each other 0:12:20.120 --> 0:12:23.840 and may have formed an organized and structured community, living 0:12:23.880 --> 0:12:28.319 what we might call governing by pirate code. But utopia 0:12:28.520 --> 0:12:32.000 is just an illusion, and all good things, as they say, 0:12:32.520 --> 0:12:42.560 must come to an end. Word reached England's King, George 0:12:42.600 --> 0:12:45.360 the First that the Caribbean had become so infested with 0:12:45.440 --> 0:12:48.679 pirates that the future of trading, even into the American 0:12:48.720 --> 0:12:52.400 colonies had become endangered. To deal with the pirates and 0:12:52.480 --> 0:12:55.160 those trading with them, the king signed a proclamation in 0:12:55.200 --> 0:13:00.000 September of seventeen seventeen. Pirates had until the following September 0:13:00.160 --> 0:13:04.199 to surrender to authorities. However, instead of punishment. They would 0:13:04.200 --> 0:13:07.800 receive a pardon as long as they gave up piracy 0:13:07.840 --> 0:13:11.160 for good after one year. England would offer a bounty 0:13:11.200 --> 0:13:14.760 for the capture of pirate officers, and of course, military 0:13:14.800 --> 0:13:19.000 force would be used against all pirates. The proclamation reached 0:13:19.040 --> 0:13:22.840 New Providence in December. As you might imagine, the letter 0:13:22.960 --> 0:13:26.360 divided the pirates into two different camps, those who favored 0:13:26.400 --> 0:13:29.720 taking the pardon, like Jennings and Hornegal, and those who 0:13:29.760 --> 0:13:33.559 were against it, like Charles Vane. Those who accepted flew 0:13:33.600 --> 0:13:37.079 the Union Jack on top of Fort Nassau to signify submission. 0:13:37.760 --> 0:13:41.440 Vain wasn't alone in his refusal to submit. Jack Rackham 0:13:41.559 --> 0:13:45.240 and Edward England, among others, didn't see themselves as outlaws. 0:13:45.280 --> 0:13:49.600 Although their individual reasons varied, they basically saw themselves as rebels. 0:13:49.800 --> 0:13:53.120 They removed the Union Jack, replacing it with a death's 0:13:53.160 --> 0:13:56.800 head flag. Both sides held counsel but were unable to 0:13:56.840 --> 0:14:00.440 agree on the pardon. Those opposed mostly packed up and left, 0:14:00.760 --> 0:14:04.440 and when the HMS Phoenix arrived in February of seventeen eighteen, 0:14:04.760 --> 0:14:07.400 many of the pirates welcomed the ship, much to the 0:14:07.440 --> 0:14:10.920 captain's surprise. Regardless of where they stood on the King's offer. 0:14:11.160 --> 0:14:13.960 Hornegold had counseled them to take the pardon and buy 0:14:14.000 --> 0:14:17.440 some time. They could always return to piracy. Later, the 0:14:17.440 --> 0:14:19.680 Phoenix returned to New York with the names of over 0:14:19.720 --> 0:14:22.680 two hundred pirates willing to take the pardon. But while 0:14:22.720 --> 0:14:25.320 the Phoenix had been there in Port, Charles Vane had 0:14:25.320 --> 0:14:28.640 been busy assembling a crew. Not long after the Phoenix left, 0:14:28.680 --> 0:14:32.000 his reign of terror began. Not only did he plunder ships, 0:14:32.040 --> 0:14:36.200 but he also brutalized their crews. In response, Britain named 0:14:36.200 --> 0:14:38.440 a new governor in the Bahamas to help bring the 0:14:38.480 --> 0:14:41.760 Golden Age of piracy to an end. Newly appointed Woods 0:14:41.840 --> 0:14:46.120 Rogers had once successfully keptained a privateering crew, providing them 0:14:46.120 --> 0:14:50.520 with fair treatment, good food, and medical care. During his service, 0:14:50.560 --> 0:14:53.800 he also managed to capture a Manila galleon, a feat 0:14:53.880 --> 0:14:57.479 that only four other ships and three centuries had ever accomplished. 0:14:57.760 --> 0:15:01.000 Described as courageous and deeply devoted to king and country, 0:15:01.360 --> 0:15:04.360 Woods Rogers was eager to devote himself to the task. 0:15:05.080 --> 0:15:08.440 Three Navy warships escorted the British fleet to New Providence 0:15:08.480 --> 0:15:13.320 on the evening of July eighteen. The squadron anchored just 0:15:13.440 --> 0:15:16.760 outside the harbor. Even under the cloak of darkness, the 0:15:16.800 --> 0:15:20.440 pirates knew the ships were there. The arrival took Charles 0:15:20.480 --> 0:15:23.200 Vane by surprise. Although he had added his name to 0:15:23.280 --> 0:15:25.920 the people on the pardon list, he had no desire 0:15:25.960 --> 0:15:28.560 to honor it. Over the last few days, he and 0:15:28.600 --> 0:15:31.160 his crew had prepared his ship to leave New Providence 0:15:31.160 --> 0:15:35.080 and set sail for Brazil. But now Roger's fleet blocked 0:15:35.120 --> 0:15:38.240 his exit. He couldn't fight his way out, but he 0:15:38.320 --> 0:15:41.080 did have a plan of escape. That night, the crew 0:15:41.120 --> 0:15:44.480 took a French ship filled with combustibles. They rolled the 0:15:44.520 --> 0:15:47.520 guns to their gun holes and filled them with cannonballs 0:15:47.520 --> 0:15:51.040 and gunpowder. The men slathered the deck and rigging with tar, 0:15:51.760 --> 0:15:55.480 and then they set sail. Vain and the rest of 0:15:55.520 --> 0:15:58.240 the crew sailed out in a smaller sloop behind them. 0:15:58.520 --> 0:16:01.720 The crew aboard the French vest set their ship on fire. 0:16:02.080 --> 0:16:04.840 When they drew closer to the anchored British fleet, they 0:16:04.920 --> 0:16:08.280 jumped overboard, hoping their fiery ship would collide with one 0:16:08.320 --> 0:16:10.960 of the Navy's vessels. The men aboard two of the 0:16:10.960 --> 0:16:13.920 British ships, the Rose and the Shark, scrambled to cut 0:16:13.920 --> 0:16:16.960 the anchor lines and raise their sails. The Navy ships 0:16:17.000 --> 0:16:20.360 moved just in time, nearly colliding with the French ships. 0:16:20.400 --> 0:16:25.240 As the cannons and gunpowder exploded, Charles Vane sailed straight 0:16:25.240 --> 0:16:28.240 out of the harbor, black flag flying in the wind. 0:16:28.640 --> 0:16:31.800 After outrunning roger ship, he set off a single cannon 0:16:31.880 --> 0:16:35.080 shot in defiance. The next day, the new governor took 0:16:35.120 --> 0:16:38.960 control of New Providence. Later he hired Hornigal to hunt 0:16:39.000 --> 0:16:43.119 down vain In see Charles Vane was hanged for piracy. 0:16:43.440 --> 0:16:45.760 The remaining pirates, who had once served with each other, 0:16:46.080 --> 0:16:49.880 once more stood on two different and opposing sides, the 0:16:49.960 --> 0:16:53.800 hunted and the hunters. The golden age of piracy and 0:16:53.800 --> 0:16:57.560 the pirate community that had filled it had finally come 0:16:58.120 --> 0:17:07.000 to an end. The island of New Providence had provided 0:17:07.040 --> 0:17:09.560 the pirates with a distinct vantage point in which to 0:17:09.640 --> 0:17:13.960 see arriving ships, and now it served Woods Rogers. He 0:17:14.000 --> 0:17:17.200 had the island fortified, including a barricade around the fort, 0:17:17.560 --> 0:17:21.600 and armed militia watched for surprise attacks. In a short time, 0:17:21.640 --> 0:17:24.400 he'd done more to curb piracy in the Caribbean than 0:17:24.440 --> 0:17:28.400 anyone else before, and he remained staunchly devoted to England. 0:17:28.400 --> 0:17:31.560 In a time where many British colony governors were lining 0:17:31.600 --> 0:17:35.200 their pockets. Instead, Rogers used some of his own money 0:17:35.240 --> 0:17:38.960 to fund the efforts, believing in the greater cause. Things 0:17:39.160 --> 0:17:42.439 didn't run smoothly for him, though. The size of his crew, 0:17:42.600 --> 0:17:46.119 relatively small to start with, grew smaller still as the 0:17:46.160 --> 0:17:49.600 men succumbed to a variety of tropical diseases. Despite his 0:17:49.640 --> 0:17:53.400 hard work and his good results, England ignored his repeated 0:17:53.440 --> 0:17:57.240 requests for extra men and funding. Governors from the colonies 0:17:57.280 --> 0:18:01.240 wrote to England. Each stated their concern that without proper support, 0:18:01.560 --> 0:18:04.879 the pirates would overtake New Providence and set up camp 0:18:04.960 --> 0:18:08.600 once more. Even Vain sent Rogers a letter vowing to 0:18:08.680 --> 0:18:13.199 return and take back the island. Determined and eternally loyal, 0:18:13.480 --> 0:18:16.919 Rogers carried on even without support from the Crown. But 0:18:17.080 --> 0:18:20.240 his devotion would be his downfall. He worked until his 0:18:20.320 --> 0:18:25.840 health suffered. Exhausted, ill and bankrupt, he finally returned to England, 0:18:26.080 --> 0:18:29.160 hoping to start over. In his place. The Crown sent 0:18:29.320 --> 0:18:33.080 George Fenny to govern the Bahamas. Back in England, Rogers 0:18:33.080 --> 0:18:37.720 received no thanks, no gratitude, and no assistance for his work. Instead, 0:18:37.760 --> 0:18:40.840 he was thrown into debtor's prison. The new governor of 0:18:40.880 --> 0:18:44.959 the Bahamas, Fenny, didn't subscribe to his predecessor's honesty and 0:18:45.040 --> 0:18:48.480 became corrupt, and sometime in the late seventeen twenties, the 0:18:48.520 --> 0:18:52.280 Crown reappointed Woods Rogers to govern the Bahamas in his place. 0:18:52.880 --> 0:18:56.760 Once he returned, he eradicated the pervasive corruption in the colony. 0:18:57.000 --> 0:19:00.119 He continued his work to wipe away the pirate legacy 0:19:00.320 --> 0:19:03.720 and replace it with honest business and a booming economy. 0:19:04.359 --> 0:19:07.000 And the best part of all, he accomplished all of 0:19:07.040 --> 0:19:09.960 that in part by hiring some of the very same 0:19:10.000 --> 0:19:21.280 people he'd been sent to get rid of pirates. The 0:19:21.359 --> 0:19:24.159 centerpiece of the Golden Age of piracy, in the minds 0:19:24.200 --> 0:19:27.720 of many people today, is their community at Nassau. It 0:19:27.800 --> 0:19:29.800 was where they lived out the freedoms they fought so 0:19:29.880 --> 0:19:32.919 hard to acquire, where they rested, and where they planned 0:19:32.960 --> 0:19:36.320 for the future. But it wasn't the only place for pirates. 0:19:36.560 --> 0:19:39.800 In fact, my crewmates, Alie Steed has one more location 0:19:39.840 --> 0:19:42.080 to discuss with you, and if you stick around through 0:19:42.080 --> 0:19:51.600 this brief sponsor break, she'll tell you all about it. Well. 0:19:51.640 --> 0:19:55.080 The Pirate Republican New Providence is fairly well documented there's 0:19:55.080 --> 0:19:59.200 another pirate utopia nearly lost to history. Although there's much 0:19:59.240 --> 0:20:02.359 debate on exactly how much of the story happened, the 0:20:02.440 --> 0:20:06.640 roots appear based on some facts. According to Captain Charles Johnson, 0:20:06.720 --> 0:20:09.480 the author of the seventeen twenty four book A General 0:20:09.560 --> 0:20:13.680 History of the Robberies and Murders of the most Notorious Pirates, 0:20:13.880 --> 0:20:17.560 there was once a Captain James Mission. Mission was a 0:20:17.600 --> 0:20:20.399 restless soul by nature. When his father wanted him to 0:20:20.480 --> 0:20:23.600 join the Musketeers, he chose a life at sea instead. 0:20:23.880 --> 0:20:27.119 Hoping to satisfy his adventurous spirit, he found a spot 0:20:27.200 --> 0:20:30.520 on a French privateering ship called the Victois. Life at 0:20:30.560 --> 0:20:32.880 sea proved to be even more than he dreamed of, 0:20:33.000 --> 0:20:36.760 and Mission devoted himself to learning everything about life aboard 0:20:36.800 --> 0:20:39.480 a ship. At some point in the journey, the ship 0:20:39.560 --> 0:20:43.000 docked at Naples. With the captain's permission, the pious Mission 0:20:43.040 --> 0:20:46.600 traveled to Rome. What he saw there disheartened him. The 0:20:46.600 --> 0:20:50.000 immoral behaviors of the local clergy deeply shook his faith. 0:20:50.840 --> 0:20:55.320 A priest named Karaguli confirmed Mission's worst fears, telling the 0:20:55.359 --> 0:20:58.199 young traveler that organized religion served as a means to 0:20:58.280 --> 0:21:01.840 keep the public under control. Mission asked the priest to 0:21:01.880 --> 0:21:04.840 join him on the ship, and without hesitating, corrachially agreed. 0:21:05.680 --> 0:21:09.119 The two became fast friends and captured many treasures together. 0:21:09.560 --> 0:21:12.639 When the Victoria's captain died in battle, the crew voted 0:21:12.680 --> 0:21:16.400 Mission as their captain and currachily for their lieutenant. During 0:21:16.400 --> 0:21:19.440 their travels, the crew converted to the former priest's ideals, 0:21:19.840 --> 0:21:22.679 namely that all men were equal, regardless of race, and 0:21:22.720 --> 0:21:25.600 that they had a right to absolute freedom from both 0:21:25.640 --> 0:21:29.240 the chains of religion and the secular government. There should 0:21:29.280 --> 0:21:32.960 be no social status and no slavery. In fact, they 0:21:33.000 --> 0:21:36.639 wouldn't even speak the word Courragili suggested that they sail 0:21:36.680 --> 0:21:40.000 in defiance of any government. From then on they would 0:21:40.000 --> 0:21:43.400 have no grudges, only brotherly love and equality. The crew 0:21:43.480 --> 0:21:46.400 cheered and set sail across the sea, taking treasures from 0:21:46.440 --> 0:21:49.120 any merchant ship they found along the way. The men 0:21:49.200 --> 0:21:51.520 took great care to be as respectful as possible to 0:21:51.560 --> 0:21:54.360 the captains and crew of the ships they plundered. They 0:21:54.359 --> 0:21:58.080 rescued mistreated sailors and declared those aboard slave ships free, 0:21:58.440 --> 0:22:02.159 often taking on both his crew mates. Eventually they found 0:22:02.160 --> 0:22:04.840 their way to the northern tip of Madagascar and decided 0:22:04.840 --> 0:22:07.840 to establish a camp. The island they chose had an 0:22:07.880 --> 0:22:10.879 excellent harbor, and the area provided plenty of fresh water 0:22:10.960 --> 0:22:13.760 and good soil for farming. The men set to work 0:22:13.760 --> 0:22:17.159 building a settlement they named Libertalia. While some of the 0:22:17.160 --> 0:22:20.520 men built forts and homes, others searched for food. These 0:22:20.600 --> 0:22:23.639 hunters encountered in native men they befriended and gifted with 0:22:23.680 --> 0:22:26.960 an axe. As time went on, Pirate Captain Thomas too 0:22:27.000 --> 0:22:29.480 came upon the settlement. He and his crew became so 0:22:29.600 --> 0:22:33.080 impressed that they joined the establishment. As more time passed, 0:22:33.160 --> 0:22:36.399 the colony only grew. The men married local women and 0:22:36.440 --> 0:22:40.000 started families of their own. Every member in Libertalia equally 0:22:40.040 --> 0:22:42.520 shared in the work and the prizes taken from merchant 0:22:42.560 --> 0:22:46.040 ships they raided while at sea. Mission commanded ships with 0:22:46.119 --> 0:22:49.800 French crews, and two commanded those aboard English vessels. The 0:22:49.840 --> 0:22:53.480 colony eventually formed a government based on fairness and equity. 0:22:53.560 --> 0:22:56.000 They chose to elect a conservator who would serve for 0:22:56.040 --> 0:23:00.360 no more than three years. The village, of course appointed Mission. Well, 0:23:00.359 --> 0:23:02.760 it's true that Thomas too was a real pirate, The 0:23:02.880 --> 0:23:06.880 legend's timeline may be a bit more fabrication than fact. 0:23:07.359 --> 0:23:09.840 Two died by the end of the seventeenth century, and 0:23:09.960 --> 0:23:12.879 by the author's own account, some of the story's timeline 0:23:13.040 --> 0:23:17.280 happened after his death. Fact or fiction. The utopian town 0:23:17.320 --> 0:23:21.159 did not survive while Too was away, Natives ambushed the 0:23:21.160 --> 0:23:23.119 colony in the middle of the night, killing many of 0:23:23.160 --> 0:23:27.040 the settlers, including Karachili. Mission and some of the crew 0:23:27.080 --> 0:23:30.760 managed to escape and find Too. After hearing what had happened, 0:23:30.920 --> 0:23:34.320 Two suggested that Mission had to the Americus. Not long 0:23:34.359 --> 0:23:37.159 after the men parted ways, mission ships sank in a 0:23:37.200 --> 0:23:41.640 storm with no survivors, and while two ships arrived, he 0:23:41.720 --> 0:23:45.200 later died in battle. Skeptics point out that the story 0:23:45.240 --> 0:23:49.160 exists only in Johnson's book. They point to the striking 0:23:49.160 --> 0:23:54.040 resemblances to fictional pirate narratives, including the novel Robinson Crusoe. 0:23:54.720 --> 0:23:57.879 Many experts believed that Captain Charles Johnson was actually a 0:23:57.880 --> 0:24:02.080 pseudonym for Daniel Defoe, than novels author, and yet there 0:24:02.119 --> 0:24:05.800 are some historically correct details. There was a settlement of 0:24:05.840 --> 0:24:09.080 pirates in Madagascar, and we know that because Woods Rogers 0:24:09.119 --> 0:24:12.840 provided the novelist with accurate details about the life of pirates. 0:24:13.200 --> 0:24:16.600