1 00:00:01,120 --> 00:00:04,080 Speaker 1: Welcome to Stuff you Missed in History Class from how 2 00:00:04,120 --> 00:00:13,360 Speaker 1: Stuff Works dot com. Hello, and welcome to the podcast. 3 00:00:13,400 --> 00:00:17,680 Speaker 1: I'm Holly Fry and I'm Tracy V. Wilson. And today 4 00:00:18,040 --> 00:00:19,680 Speaker 1: I thought we were due for a little bit of 5 00:00:19,680 --> 00:00:24,759 Speaker 1: fun summer pirate time. Uh. This one is kind of 6 00:00:24,800 --> 00:00:28,080 Speaker 1: a fun story. It's a little kookie. Uh. This is 7 00:00:28,080 --> 00:00:30,159 Speaker 1: a subject that goes by two names, depending on the 8 00:00:30,160 --> 00:00:32,479 Speaker 1: source you're looking at. Sometimes you will hear it as 9 00:00:32,520 --> 00:00:35,760 Speaker 1: Libertatia the t I A ending. Some of it is 10 00:00:35,800 --> 00:00:39,200 Speaker 1: Libertalia with an L A ending. That's one of those 11 00:00:39,240 --> 00:00:42,760 Speaker 1: things that even in different printings of the same book, 12 00:00:42,840 --> 00:00:46,639 Speaker 1: you will see it both ways, depending on the printer's decision, 13 00:00:46,760 --> 00:00:49,680 Speaker 1: I presume. Uh. The other part that's fun is that 14 00:00:49,720 --> 00:00:52,239 Speaker 1: this may or may not have been a real thing. Yep, 15 00:00:52,440 --> 00:00:55,720 Speaker 1: but it is an interesting thing to examine. Um. The 16 00:00:55,800 --> 00:00:59,080 Speaker 1: primary account that we have of Libertalia is from a 17 00:00:59,120 --> 00:01:01,720 Speaker 1: general History of the Robberies and Murders of the most 18 00:01:01,760 --> 00:01:04,400 Speaker 1: notorious Pirates. This is in volume two, So if you 19 00:01:04,480 --> 00:01:06,920 Speaker 1: go looking online and you only get volume one, you 20 00:01:06,959 --> 00:01:08,720 Speaker 1: will not find this and be like what you said, 21 00:01:08,760 --> 00:01:11,600 Speaker 1: this was in here volume two. That one published in 22 00:01:11,640 --> 00:01:16,240 Speaker 1: sev The writing lists. It's author as Captain Charles Johnson, 23 00:01:16,280 --> 00:01:19,279 Speaker 1: and we're going to circle back to more specifics about 24 00:01:19,360 --> 00:01:21,120 Speaker 1: its authorship at the end. We've talked about it on 25 00:01:21,160 --> 00:01:23,200 Speaker 1: the show before as well, but we will revisit it. 26 00:01:23,800 --> 00:01:26,800 Speaker 1: And the idea that a bunch of pirates wanted to 27 00:01:26,840 --> 00:01:30,520 Speaker 1: create a utopia of equality, which is what this story is, 28 00:01:31,000 --> 00:01:33,760 Speaker 1: might seem a little bit far fetched, but it does 29 00:01:33,840 --> 00:01:37,000 Speaker 1: sound a lot like other utopian experiments we've talked about, 30 00:01:37,400 --> 00:01:39,720 Speaker 1: just set earlier on the timeline and with a high 31 00:01:39,720 --> 00:01:42,880 Speaker 1: seas theme, and there are also some instances we know 32 00:01:42,920 --> 00:01:45,480 Speaker 1: about of pirates kind of trying to do that, which 33 00:01:45,480 --> 00:01:47,280 Speaker 1: we'll talk about at the end. And it's also in 34 00:01:47,360 --> 00:01:49,760 Speaker 1: a place in the world that there were definitely a 35 00:01:49,760 --> 00:01:52,360 Speaker 1: lot of pirates, Yes, we talked about that at the 36 00:01:52,480 --> 00:01:55,800 Speaker 1: end as well. Um and Libertalia, which in truth, as 37 00:01:55,800 --> 00:01:58,920 Speaker 1: we said, might be completely fictional, would have been settled 38 00:01:58,960 --> 00:02:03,680 Speaker 1: sometime probably in the late seventeenth century, and that's just 39 00:02:03,720 --> 00:02:06,000 Speaker 1: based kind of on back dating from when the book 40 00:02:06,040 --> 00:02:09,000 Speaker 1: was published, because we don't have much in terms of 41 00:02:09,040 --> 00:02:12,280 Speaker 1: specific dates beyond that. So we're going to go through 42 00:02:12,400 --> 00:02:15,640 Speaker 1: this whole story of this unique pirate settlement as laid 43 00:02:15,639 --> 00:02:19,520 Speaker 1: out in the general history by Johnson, and then we 44 00:02:19,560 --> 00:02:22,120 Speaker 1: will talk about the other author who usually gets credit 45 00:02:22,120 --> 00:02:27,200 Speaker 1: for writing his story and whether that history has roots 46 00:02:27,240 --> 00:02:30,880 Speaker 1: in reality. The story of Libertalia begins with a man 47 00:02:31,080 --> 00:02:34,160 Speaker 1: named Mison, who was a Frenchman born in Provence to 48 00:02:34,240 --> 00:02:36,440 Speaker 1: a good family. The true name of the family is 49 00:02:36,560 --> 00:02:39,799 Speaker 1: purposefully left out of the general history of pirates to 50 00:02:40,000 --> 00:02:45,000 Speaker 1: safeguard their reputation. Well, Misson's father did pretty well. There 51 00:02:45,000 --> 00:02:47,839 Speaker 1: were so many children in the family that he knew 52 00:02:47,880 --> 00:02:49,720 Speaker 1: he needed to go make his own way in the 53 00:02:49,720 --> 00:02:53,280 Speaker 1: world rather than depending on any inheritance, which is a 54 00:02:53,320 --> 00:02:57,800 Speaker 1: popular pirate origin story. Yes, indeed, this one kind of 55 00:02:57,840 --> 00:03:00,160 Speaker 1: as we go through you'll find checks kind of all 56 00:03:00,160 --> 00:03:03,680 Speaker 1: the boxes of popular pirate story ease, but it also 57 00:03:03,720 --> 00:03:06,520 Speaker 1: has the fun one of we're not pirates. Uh so. 58 00:03:06,720 --> 00:03:11,440 Speaker 1: Misson was educated in humanity, logic, and mathematics, and then 59 00:03:11,520 --> 00:03:14,880 Speaker 1: at age fifteen, was sent to Angier in western France 60 00:03:14,919 --> 00:03:18,920 Speaker 1: for a year of military training. And per Charles Johnson's account, 61 00:03:19,200 --> 00:03:22,280 Speaker 1: which he claims is sourced from Misson's own writing about 62 00:03:22,280 --> 00:03:25,840 Speaker 1: his life, Misson's father had a life as a musketeer 63 00:03:25,960 --> 00:03:29,280 Speaker 1: in mind for his son, but Misson had decided on 64 00:03:29,360 --> 00:03:32,360 Speaker 1: a life at sea, so Misson's father set him up 65 00:03:32,360 --> 00:03:35,440 Speaker 1: with letters of recommendation all of the items he might need, 66 00:03:35,600 --> 00:03:38,920 Speaker 1: and then arranged for a volunteer stent aboard the Victoire, 67 00:03:39,000 --> 00:03:42,840 Speaker 1: which was a ship commanded by a relative named Monsieur Forbett. 68 00:03:43,600 --> 00:03:47,040 Speaker 1: The young Misson aboard the Victoire departed the port at 69 00:03:47,080 --> 00:03:51,880 Speaker 1: Marseilles and ventured into the Mediterranean. Misson learned about navigation 70 00:03:52,120 --> 00:03:54,480 Speaker 1: and life at sea, and he spent his early time 71 00:03:54,480 --> 00:03:56,960 Speaker 1: on the Victoire learning all that he could from the 72 00:03:57,000 --> 00:04:00,760 Speaker 1: more experienced men aboard. According to the story, he just 73 00:04:00,880 --> 00:04:04,400 Speaker 1: was constantly asking them questions uh. And he loved being 74 00:04:04,400 --> 00:04:07,360 Speaker 1: a sailor, and he was well regarded because of his 75 00:04:07,480 --> 00:04:11,240 Speaker 1: really well mannered demeanor. But when the Victoires set into 76 00:04:11,280 --> 00:04:16,000 Speaker 1: Ports and Naples, Misson's life course changed. He got permission 77 00:04:16,080 --> 00:04:18,560 Speaker 1: from the captain to go ashore and to travel inland 78 00:04:18,640 --> 00:04:22,080 Speaker 1: to Rome. But what he found there was really disheartening. 79 00:04:22,400 --> 00:04:25,240 Speaker 1: He was really chagrined at all the licentiousness and the 80 00:04:25,360 --> 00:04:28,719 Speaker 1: indulgence of the papal court. He really lost his faith, 81 00:04:28,839 --> 00:04:32,000 Speaker 1: deciding that quote all religion was no more than a 82 00:04:32,120 --> 00:04:35,479 Speaker 1: curb upon the minds of the weaker, which the wiser 83 00:04:35,520 --> 00:04:40,120 Speaker 1: sort yield to an appearance only. And while in Rome, Misson, 84 00:04:40,279 --> 00:04:43,880 Speaker 1: who was pretty devout at that point, went to confession, 85 00:04:44,120 --> 00:04:47,159 Speaker 1: and in doing so he meant a quote lewd priest 86 00:04:47,320 --> 00:04:50,680 Speaker 1: by the name of Carraccioli, who was Dominican, and while 87 00:04:50,720 --> 00:04:52,840 Speaker 1: making the acquaintance of a man of the church who 88 00:04:52,920 --> 00:04:57,440 Speaker 1: was not exactly a pillar of piety, solidified Mission's perceptions 89 00:04:57,480 --> 00:05:01,039 Speaker 1: that the church was corrupt. He and Carraccio le became friends, 90 00:05:01,120 --> 00:05:03,560 Speaker 1: and they actually would remain companions for the rest of 91 00:05:03,600 --> 00:05:06,800 Speaker 1: their lives. Carraccioli told me son that a life in 92 00:05:06,800 --> 00:05:09,280 Speaker 1: the church was a pretty good gig and came with 93 00:05:09,360 --> 00:05:13,400 Speaker 1: friends and opportunities, and quote the ecclesiastical state was governed 94 00:05:13,440 --> 00:05:17,159 Speaker 1: with the same policy as were secular principalities and kingdoms, 95 00:05:17,760 --> 00:05:21,760 Speaker 1: that what was beneficial, not what was meritorious and virtuous, 96 00:05:21,800 --> 00:05:25,920 Speaker 1: would be alone regarded. He likened the papacy to a 97 00:05:25,960 --> 00:05:29,120 Speaker 1: monarchy to explain the situation to my son, and he 98 00:05:29,320 --> 00:05:32,920 Speaker 1: explained his own contempt at the whole structure, saying, quote, 99 00:05:32,960 --> 00:05:35,919 Speaker 1: for my part, I am quite tired of the farce 100 00:05:36,040 --> 00:05:39,000 Speaker 1: and will lay hold on the first opportunity to throw 101 00:05:39,160 --> 00:05:43,000 Speaker 1: off this masquerading habit. The priest went on to say 102 00:05:43,000 --> 00:05:45,000 Speaker 1: that he was worried that by the time he stayed 103 00:05:45,040 --> 00:05:47,159 Speaker 1: in the church long enough to make a tidy living 104 00:05:47,240 --> 00:05:49,520 Speaker 1: so that he could leave, that he would be too 105 00:05:49,520 --> 00:05:52,680 Speaker 1: old to enjoy any of it. So Misson proposed that 106 00:05:52,720 --> 00:05:55,719 Speaker 1: the priest joined him on the seas, and so the 107 00:05:55,760 --> 00:05:58,720 Speaker 1: two men traveled together to Livorno, Italy to meet back 108 00:05:58,800 --> 00:06:03,120 Speaker 1: up with the Victoire, and with Misson's recommendation, Carraccioli was 109 00:06:03,200 --> 00:06:07,400 Speaker 1: welcomed onto the crew. Almost immediately, Carraccioli got a taste 110 00:06:07,400 --> 00:06:10,960 Speaker 1: of the dangers of sailing life. The Victoire was engaged 111 00:06:11,000 --> 00:06:14,000 Speaker 1: in a long and brutal battle with two other ships. 112 00:06:14,520 --> 00:06:17,839 Speaker 1: Craccioli was shot in the leg in this conflict, and 113 00:06:17,880 --> 00:06:21,240 Speaker 1: it was a massive struggle, but ultimately the vict war one. 114 00:06:21,640 --> 00:06:25,040 Speaker 1: There wasn't much of value to take from the bested opponents, 115 00:06:25,120 --> 00:06:29,440 Speaker 1: but an estimated fifteen Christian slaves were freed in the process. 116 00:06:30,080 --> 00:06:33,120 Speaker 1: After the battle, the battle, damage to Victoire headed back 117 00:06:33,160 --> 00:06:36,760 Speaker 1: into Marseilles for repair, and Misson used the downtime to 118 00:06:36,839 --> 00:06:40,200 Speaker 1: visit his family, bringing karacci Only along with him. He 119 00:06:40,279 --> 00:06:43,799 Speaker 1: also brought with him word from the captain that Musson 120 00:06:43,920 --> 00:06:47,560 Speaker 1: had conducted himself admirably at sea. Yeah, he had a 121 00:06:47,640 --> 00:06:49,440 Speaker 1: nice little letter to show his parents that he was 122 00:06:49,480 --> 00:06:53,760 Speaker 1: doing a good job. After a month of rest, the 123 00:06:53,800 --> 00:06:56,400 Speaker 1: captain of the Victoire sent word to Misson and his 124 00:06:56,480 --> 00:06:59,240 Speaker 1: friend that they were to set sail again, leaving from 125 00:06:59,240 --> 00:07:02,480 Speaker 1: Marseilles to go to Rochelle to pick up merchantmen and 126 00:07:02,520 --> 00:07:05,520 Speaker 1: sail for the West Indies. And as the crew waited 127 00:07:05,520 --> 00:07:07,880 Speaker 1: at Rochelle for the next phase of the journey, the 128 00:07:07,920 --> 00:07:10,200 Speaker 1: merchant ships that they were to join with weren't ready 129 00:07:10,240 --> 00:07:13,800 Speaker 1: to set sail. Misson and Carraccioli decided to take work 130 00:07:13,800 --> 00:07:16,560 Speaker 1: on another vessel in the meantime because he did not 131 00:07:16,680 --> 00:07:19,200 Speaker 1: like to be idle at all. They got into some 132 00:07:19,240 --> 00:07:21,880 Speaker 1: adventures along the way, but the more important part of 133 00:07:21,880 --> 00:07:25,400 Speaker 1: their escapades, as related in the general History, was their 134 00:07:25,400 --> 00:07:30,160 Speaker 1: ongoing discussion of religion and God. Through these discussions, Misson 135 00:07:30,400 --> 00:07:34,280 Speaker 1: was adopting a deist philosophy and continuing to just turn 136 00:07:34,280 --> 00:07:37,760 Speaker 1: away from all organized religion. There's a chunk of text 137 00:07:37,840 --> 00:07:40,920 Speaker 1: that several paragraphs long, in which the writer seems to 138 00:07:40,920 --> 00:07:43,560 Speaker 1: be sorting out his own thoughts on the matter of 139 00:07:43,640 --> 00:07:47,960 Speaker 1: God and the soul. Cracciola continued to speak on religion 140 00:07:48,160 --> 00:07:51,040 Speaker 1: both with Misson and with the other sailors on their journeys, 141 00:07:51,320 --> 00:07:56,280 Speaker 1: and as such he became something of a religious leader simultaneously, 142 00:07:56,400 --> 00:07:59,960 Speaker 1: because both Caraccioli and Misson had become a highly skilled sailor. 143 00:08:00,000 --> 00:08:02,160 Speaker 1: There's a lot of the men they traveled with we're 144 00:08:02,160 --> 00:08:05,480 Speaker 1: really looking up to both of them. Yeah, there's a 145 00:08:05,560 --> 00:08:08,400 Speaker 1: sort of wonderful irony that Carraccioli wants to leave the 146 00:08:08,480 --> 00:08:11,400 Speaker 1: church because he thinks the organized religion is not for 147 00:08:11,480 --> 00:08:13,920 Speaker 1: him either, and then he sort of becomes a religious 148 00:08:14,000 --> 00:08:19,880 Speaker 1: leader after that. It's kind of a fascinating twist. So 149 00:08:19,960 --> 00:08:22,960 Speaker 1: on a cruise to Martinique, the Victoire was engaged in 150 00:08:23,040 --> 00:08:25,680 Speaker 1: battle by an english man of war with forty guns 151 00:08:25,760 --> 00:08:29,280 Speaker 1: called the wind Chelsea. The early battle took a serious 152 00:08:29,320 --> 00:08:33,400 Speaker 1: toll on the leadership of the Victoire. The captain, second captain, 153 00:08:33,480 --> 00:08:37,640 Speaker 1: and three lieutenants were all killed very early on. So 154 00:08:37,760 --> 00:08:41,360 Speaker 1: short on officers, Misson and Carraccioli, who had always been 155 00:08:41,440 --> 00:08:44,560 Speaker 1: quick to step up when needed, began giving orders and 156 00:08:44,679 --> 00:08:48,800 Speaker 1: leading the remaining Victoire crew. They were victorious, but this 157 00:08:48,880 --> 00:08:52,200 Speaker 1: was actually by accident because for reasons unknown, the wind 158 00:08:52,280 --> 00:08:56,240 Speaker 1: Chelsea exploded, killing all of its crew, save one lieutenant 159 00:08:56,480 --> 00:09:00,080 Speaker 1: who died two days later aboard the Victoire that to 160 00:09:00,120 --> 00:09:03,679 Speaker 1: the conflict with the wind Chelsea. Caraccioli saluted Misson as 161 00:09:03,760 --> 00:09:06,480 Speaker 1: captain and told him that he must make a choice 162 00:09:06,840 --> 00:09:09,240 Speaker 1: to return support and be at the mercy of other 163 00:09:09,280 --> 00:09:12,600 Speaker 1: men's decisions, or to take the Victoire as his own 164 00:09:12,920 --> 00:09:17,040 Speaker 1: and make his fortune. Misson opted for freedom, but stated 165 00:09:17,040 --> 00:09:19,960 Speaker 1: to the assembled crew that quote a great number of 166 00:09:20,000 --> 00:09:22,760 Speaker 1: them had resolved with him upon a life of liberty, 167 00:09:23,120 --> 00:09:25,480 Speaker 1: and had done him the honor to create him chief. 168 00:09:26,120 --> 00:09:29,000 Speaker 1: That he designed to force no man, and be guilty 169 00:09:29,040 --> 00:09:32,520 Speaker 1: of that injustice he blamed in others. Therefore, if any 170 00:09:32,600 --> 00:09:35,760 Speaker 1: were reversed to the following his fortune, which he promised 171 00:09:35,760 --> 00:09:38,400 Speaker 1: should be the same to all he desired, they would 172 00:09:38,400 --> 00:09:41,440 Speaker 1: declare themselves and he would set them ashore, whence they 173 00:09:41,520 --> 00:09:45,760 Speaker 1: might return with conveniency. They could basically opt out of 174 00:09:45,760 --> 00:09:48,960 Speaker 1: this sort of life of piracy, but his offer was 175 00:09:49,000 --> 00:09:53,760 Speaker 1: instead met with shouts of vive la capita Misson, which 176 00:09:53,800 --> 00:09:58,640 Speaker 1: is also the origin story of most of pirate crews. Yes, 177 00:09:58,720 --> 00:10:00,640 Speaker 1: I'm gonna be cool you guys is. You don't have 178 00:10:00,720 --> 00:10:02,880 Speaker 1: to come with me, but if you want to let's go. 179 00:10:03,360 --> 00:10:09,280 Speaker 1: Let's all go. We're going to talk about Misson's life 180 00:10:09,320 --> 00:10:11,880 Speaker 1: and leadership, but first we will pause for a quick 181 00:10:11,880 --> 00:10:22,200 Speaker 1: sponsor break. So Misson immediately set the tone of his 182 00:10:22,320 --> 00:10:24,880 Speaker 1: leadership by giving the crew the power to select their 183 00:10:24,920 --> 00:10:28,840 Speaker 1: own officers. Then their next destination was agreed upon as 184 00:10:28,880 --> 00:10:32,400 Speaker 1: a group. Misson suggested the coast of Spain. All of 185 00:10:32,440 --> 00:10:35,040 Speaker 1: the men were going to accord with that course. Then 186 00:10:35,080 --> 00:10:37,120 Speaker 1: they had to decide on their colors. And at this 187 00:10:37,200 --> 00:10:40,280 Speaker 1: point Carraccioli was quick to clarify that they were in 188 00:10:40,320 --> 00:10:43,720 Speaker 1: fact not pirates quote, but men who were resolved to 189 00:10:43,760 --> 00:10:47,040 Speaker 1: assert that liberty which God and Nature gave them, and 190 00:10:47,120 --> 00:10:50,360 Speaker 1: own no subjection to any farther than was for the 191 00:10:50,440 --> 00:10:53,320 Speaker 1: common good of all. So he advised that they fly 192 00:10:53,520 --> 00:10:58,400 Speaker 1: under a white flag quote with liberty painted on the fly. Next, 193 00:10:58,520 --> 00:11:00,720 Speaker 1: the belongings of all the office ors who were slain 194 00:11:00,800 --> 00:11:02,560 Speaker 1: in the fight with the wind Chelsea were brought on 195 00:11:02,600 --> 00:11:04,840 Speaker 1: the deck, and the money on board was put into 196 00:11:04,840 --> 00:11:07,600 Speaker 1: a chest which was declared to belong equally to all 197 00:11:07,600 --> 00:11:10,920 Speaker 1: the men. The lieutenants were asked to make an assessment 198 00:11:10,960 --> 00:11:13,200 Speaker 1: of the men on board and determine who had immediate 199 00:11:13,240 --> 00:11:16,160 Speaker 1: need of clothes that they could be prioritized to receive 200 00:11:16,280 --> 00:11:19,679 Speaker 1: the clothes of the deceased men. Mason followed this up 201 00:11:19,720 --> 00:11:22,520 Speaker 1: with a speech that the men should all show one 202 00:11:22,520 --> 00:11:26,040 Speaker 1: another brotherly love and cast aside any grudges they had, 203 00:11:26,280 --> 00:11:28,720 Speaker 1: and that they should see one another as equals. Quote 204 00:11:28,840 --> 00:11:33,840 Speaker 1: for when equity was trodden underfoot, misery, confusion, and mutual 205 00:11:33,960 --> 00:11:39,480 Speaker 1: distrust naturally followed. It sounds so idyllic. Everybody loved one another, 206 00:11:39,600 --> 00:11:42,920 Speaker 1: We're all in this together. But it was not all 207 00:11:43,040 --> 00:11:46,440 Speaker 1: hippie love from me song as. He also declared war 208 00:11:46,600 --> 00:11:49,400 Speaker 1: on any ports that would deny them entry and any 209 00:11:49,480 --> 00:11:52,079 Speaker 1: who would not give them what they needed. He was 210 00:11:52,160 --> 00:11:54,800 Speaker 1: basically saying, so, we know we're not pirates, but other 211 00:11:54,800 --> 00:11:56,840 Speaker 1: people might not get that, and if they treat us 212 00:11:56,880 --> 00:12:00,000 Speaker 1: like we're pirates, we're gonna have to get piratical. Uh. 213 00:12:00,480 --> 00:12:04,359 Speaker 1: He did also admonish his men to always treat prisoners 214 00:12:04,679 --> 00:12:08,480 Speaker 1: humanely and generously for the sakes of their immortal souls. 215 00:12:09,040 --> 00:12:11,920 Speaker 1: The Victoire and its crew then did some plundering in 216 00:12:11,960 --> 00:12:15,480 Speaker 1: the most polite way possible. They took sugar and rum 217 00:12:15,520 --> 00:12:17,760 Speaker 1: from a ship without violence and then let it go. 218 00:12:18,679 --> 00:12:21,160 Speaker 1: They made fake runs at privateers with no intent to 219 00:12:21,160 --> 00:12:23,480 Speaker 1: actually engage them, betting that the ship would try to 220 00:12:23,520 --> 00:12:26,280 Speaker 1: take them, which meant that they could then defend themselves. 221 00:12:27,080 --> 00:12:29,640 Speaker 1: At one point, Missan told a privateer captain that he 222 00:12:29,640 --> 00:12:32,560 Speaker 1: would plunder nothing from the captured ship, but that they 223 00:12:32,600 --> 00:12:34,800 Speaker 1: would strip it of guns, and the privateers had to 224 00:12:34,800 --> 00:12:38,360 Speaker 1: promise not to engage in piracy for six months. They 225 00:12:38,360 --> 00:12:40,640 Speaker 1: made their way around the globe for a while, and 226 00:12:40,679 --> 00:12:44,079 Speaker 1: eventually Misson had two ships under his command. He had 227 00:12:44,080 --> 00:12:47,200 Speaker 1: taken a ship whose crew was so charmed that they 228 00:12:47,200 --> 00:12:49,920 Speaker 1: all opted to join with him, and at this point 229 00:12:49,960 --> 00:12:52,880 Speaker 1: Correctioli was named captain of the second ship, which was 230 00:12:52,960 --> 00:12:55,640 Speaker 1: named the Biju, and the two vessels made their way 231 00:12:55,679 --> 00:12:58,880 Speaker 1: around the Cape of Good Hope and then on to Madagascar. 232 00:12:59,600 --> 00:13:02,560 Speaker 1: Miss allied himself to the royal family of an island 233 00:13:02,679 --> 00:13:06,360 Speaker 1: near Madagascar and a conflict with a neighboring kingdom. He 234 00:13:06,440 --> 00:13:09,640 Speaker 1: also married into the royal family, and so did Carraccioli. 235 00:13:10,240 --> 00:13:12,720 Speaker 1: Men of the crew married nod royal women of the 236 00:13:12,760 --> 00:13:16,240 Speaker 1: island of Johanna, which is modern day An Juan, and 237 00:13:16,320 --> 00:13:18,960 Speaker 1: Misson and his men helped to defend people of the 238 00:13:19,040 --> 00:13:23,280 Speaker 1: island against invaders. Yeah there was actually an invasion by 239 00:13:23,400 --> 00:13:27,199 Speaker 1: the queen's brother that they defended against uh and they 240 00:13:27,200 --> 00:13:30,120 Speaker 1: were always the good guys in this story. So not 241 00:13:30,240 --> 00:13:33,360 Speaker 1: long after those events, Missol made his way to nearby 242 00:13:33,440 --> 00:13:36,480 Speaker 1: northern Madagascar, and he scoped out an area of land 243 00:13:36,480 --> 00:13:39,200 Speaker 1: that appealed to him, and then he went ashore, and 244 00:13:39,240 --> 00:13:42,560 Speaker 1: he found good soil there and available fresh water, and 245 00:13:42,600 --> 00:13:45,360 Speaker 1: he decided that he wanted to settle a town there 246 00:13:46,120 --> 00:13:48,680 Speaker 1: in this place that he envisioned would have docks, and 247 00:13:48,720 --> 00:13:51,400 Speaker 1: it would be an asylum, a place for aging men 248 00:13:51,400 --> 00:13:53,480 Speaker 1: of the sea to live out the remainder of their 249 00:13:53,520 --> 00:13:57,720 Speaker 1: lives in peace, and he would call it Libertalia. Missol 250 00:13:57,800 --> 00:14:00,400 Speaker 1: waited for his entire crew to agree to his lands 251 00:14:00,440 --> 00:14:03,160 Speaker 1: before he actually began the project. All of the men 252 00:14:03,240 --> 00:14:05,920 Speaker 1: agreed to the plan, and they immediately set to work 253 00:14:06,080 --> 00:14:08,839 Speaker 1: on his designs, and within ten days they had cleared 254 00:14:08,840 --> 00:14:11,920 Speaker 1: a hundred and fifty large trees from the area. He 255 00:14:12,080 --> 00:14:16,000 Speaker 1: requested that the royal family of Johanna loan him three 256 00:14:16,080 --> 00:14:19,240 Speaker 1: hundred men to help with the project and return for 257 00:14:19,280 --> 00:14:21,800 Speaker 1: the assistance that had been provided in their defense. And 258 00:14:21,880 --> 00:14:24,920 Speaker 1: after a great deal of debate among the leaders of 259 00:14:24,960 --> 00:14:28,440 Speaker 1: that island, some of whom feared that enabling the settlement 260 00:14:28,440 --> 00:14:31,320 Speaker 1: could lead to their own enslavement down the road. The 261 00:14:31,400 --> 00:14:35,320 Speaker 1: three hundred men were loaned for labor. Yeah, a lot 262 00:14:35,360 --> 00:14:38,480 Speaker 1: of that discussion centered around, wait, we're going to help 263 00:14:38,520 --> 00:14:42,120 Speaker 1: them build a place from which they could actually come 264 00:14:42,160 --> 00:14:47,080 Speaker 1: after us. Uh. And it was like, well maybe, but 265 00:14:47,200 --> 00:14:49,560 Speaker 1: that's better than saying no to them and having them 266 00:14:49,560 --> 00:14:51,840 Speaker 1: come after us now, right Like, this way we at 267 00:14:51,920 --> 00:14:54,360 Speaker 1: least have a chance that will still all be friends. 268 00:14:55,600 --> 00:14:58,120 Speaker 1: And Libertilia was set on a harbor, and the first 269 00:14:58,160 --> 00:15:01,120 Speaker 1: structures that were built were armed forts on either side 270 00:15:01,120 --> 00:15:04,200 Speaker 1: of it, and then homes and shops were built in 271 00:15:04,200 --> 00:15:07,760 Speaker 1: the town slowly began to take shape. Efforts were made 272 00:15:07,800 --> 00:15:11,480 Speaker 1: to make friends with the native peoples of Madagascar. Of course, 273 00:15:11,560 --> 00:15:13,320 Speaker 1: that is one of those things that is also always 274 00:15:13,320 --> 00:15:17,160 Speaker 1: framed from a very European perspective, So take that as 275 00:15:17,160 --> 00:15:19,560 Speaker 1: a note if you go looking for this story. Uh. 276 00:15:19,560 --> 00:15:22,520 Speaker 1: And Libertalia was on its way to becoming the peaceful 277 00:15:22,520 --> 00:15:25,480 Speaker 1: settlement that Misson had envisioned when he first ventured onto 278 00:15:25,480 --> 00:15:29,320 Speaker 1: the land. Libertalia was anti slavery. This is something that 279 00:15:29,360 --> 00:15:32,800 Speaker 1: comes up throughout this account. Misson and his men liberated 280 00:15:32,840 --> 00:15:36,240 Speaker 1: slave ships whenever they came across them, and on occasions 281 00:15:36,280 --> 00:15:39,120 Speaker 1: when slaves were offered to them as barter, they would 282 00:15:39,120 --> 00:15:42,800 Speaker 1: always accept them and then immediately set them free. Misson 283 00:15:43,000 --> 00:15:45,640 Speaker 1: wanted the people who chose to settle in Libertalia to 284 00:15:45,680 --> 00:15:48,480 Speaker 1: be called Liberty. The idea was that it was open 285 00:15:48,520 --> 00:15:51,800 Speaker 1: to all and that it transcended any prior nationality and 286 00:15:51,880 --> 00:15:56,480 Speaker 1: signaled a community of equals. Libertalia wasn't Misson's only focused 287 00:15:56,560 --> 00:15:59,600 Speaker 1: during this formative time, though. He still took the Vics 288 00:15:59,640 --> 00:16:02,600 Speaker 1: what the Victoire out to challenge ships and take their goods, 289 00:16:02,880 --> 00:16:04,640 Speaker 1: and he met with a mix of good and bad 290 00:16:04,720 --> 00:16:08,080 Speaker 1: luck on the sea, and one skirmish with a Portuguese ship. 291 00:16:08,120 --> 00:16:10,040 Speaker 1: He was able to take a large sum of money, 292 00:16:10,120 --> 00:16:13,240 Speaker 1: which was about two thousand pounds, but he also lost 293 00:16:13,320 --> 00:16:16,080 Speaker 1: fifty six men in the process, making it the greatest 294 00:16:16,160 --> 00:16:18,800 Speaker 1: loss of life that he experienced in this kind of conflict. 295 00:16:19,480 --> 00:16:22,440 Speaker 1: But he made his way home to the developing town 296 00:16:22,480 --> 00:16:27,160 Speaker 1: of Libertalia, and from its rudimentary beginnings, the land was 297 00:16:27,200 --> 00:16:29,680 Speaker 1: worked to grow food and the town was able to 298 00:16:29,720 --> 00:16:32,560 Speaker 1: barter with other villages. They ended up with several hundred 299 00:16:32,600 --> 00:16:35,880 Speaker 1: head of cattle, but in addition to growing its footprint 300 00:16:36,040 --> 00:16:40,360 Speaker 1: and its own crops. Libertalia also grew in population because 301 00:16:40,360 --> 00:16:44,040 Speaker 1: other people came to live there, including the English privateer 302 00:16:44,240 --> 00:16:48,240 Speaker 1: Captain Thomas Too. Missole had first encountered Two when the 303 00:16:48,280 --> 00:16:51,560 Speaker 1: latter sloop appeared in the waters off the coast of Madagascar. 304 00:16:51,920 --> 00:16:54,960 Speaker 1: It appeared there might have been a potential idea that 305 00:16:55,000 --> 00:16:58,440 Speaker 1: they were going to take this new town, but eventually 306 00:16:58,600 --> 00:17:01,200 Speaker 1: things led to Two and his in joining the colony 307 00:17:01,280 --> 00:17:04,720 Speaker 1: at Libertalia. If his name sounds familiar, he was part 308 00:17:04,720 --> 00:17:08,200 Speaker 1: of our episode about Henry every and the raid on 309 00:17:08,240 --> 00:17:11,640 Speaker 1: the Mughal fleet. He pops up in a lot of places. 310 00:17:11,720 --> 00:17:15,240 Speaker 1: He was a very busy world traveler. He was Misson 311 00:17:15,400 --> 00:17:17,800 Speaker 1: and two didn't always see things in the same light. Though. 312 00:17:18,280 --> 00:17:21,960 Speaker 1: Even when Two first arrived in Libertalia, Misson was also 313 00:17:22,080 --> 00:17:24,240 Speaker 1: coming in with a Portuguese ship that he had taken. 314 00:17:24,840 --> 00:17:27,320 Speaker 1: Misson quickly realized that if they were going to keep 315 00:17:27,359 --> 00:17:29,600 Speaker 1: the prisoners they had taken, they would need men to 316 00:17:29,640 --> 00:17:32,159 Speaker 1: be on guard against an uprising, which meant he wouldn't 317 00:17:32,200 --> 00:17:34,639 Speaker 1: have enough men to go back out to sea. And 318 00:17:34,680 --> 00:17:37,399 Speaker 1: while he had established the settlement as a whole base 319 00:17:37,520 --> 00:17:39,680 Speaker 1: and as a place where any mariner could call home. 320 00:17:40,200 --> 00:17:43,200 Speaker 1: He wanted to continue his voyages as long as he could. 321 00:17:43,520 --> 00:17:45,919 Speaker 1: He was still building his settlement and was to be 322 00:17:45,960 --> 00:17:49,720 Speaker 1: clear getting supplies and fortifications and wealth by taking them 323 00:17:49,840 --> 00:17:52,560 Speaker 1: from ships that he bested, even if he was being 324 00:17:52,560 --> 00:17:57,120 Speaker 1: polite about it. Yeah, I don't want to lose sight 325 00:17:57,160 --> 00:18:00,840 Speaker 1: of the fact that he was stealing from people, even 326 00:18:00,880 --> 00:18:03,639 Speaker 1: if he seems like a great magnanimous dude. Yeah, I'm 327 00:18:03,680 --> 00:18:08,680 Speaker 1: gonna build a pirate utopia funded by piracy, but I'm 328 00:18:08,720 --> 00:18:11,360 Speaker 1: not calling it that. You guys, we are not pirates 329 00:18:11,520 --> 00:18:14,000 Speaker 1: unless people treat us like pirates, and then we kind 330 00:18:14,000 --> 00:18:16,160 Speaker 1: of got to be pirates a little bit. Uh. It's 331 00:18:16,200 --> 00:18:19,000 Speaker 1: there's a moral flexibility in the mix of this whole story. 332 00:18:19,880 --> 00:18:22,000 Speaker 1: So he had planned to just let the ship, the 333 00:18:22,040 --> 00:18:24,480 Speaker 1: Portuguese ship that he had taken and its prisoners go. 334 00:18:25,600 --> 00:18:27,639 Speaker 1: He also just didn't want to take on the load 335 00:18:27,760 --> 00:18:29,520 Speaker 1: of having to see to the needs of all those 336 00:18:29,560 --> 00:18:31,920 Speaker 1: captured men. Like to him, this was just way too 337 00:18:31,920 --> 00:18:34,000 Speaker 1: great a burden for any value they were going to 338 00:18:34,080 --> 00:18:37,320 Speaker 1: get out of it. But too and even Carraccioli, we're 339 00:18:37,359 --> 00:18:40,280 Speaker 1: not fans of this idea of letting everybody go. They 340 00:18:40,320 --> 00:18:42,919 Speaker 1: knew that if they set those prisoners free, all of 341 00:18:43,000 --> 00:18:46,920 Speaker 1: Europe would soon know about Libertalia and would invade. A 342 00:18:46,960 --> 00:18:50,240 Speaker 1: Song called a council and explained his position, and the 343 00:18:50,280 --> 00:18:53,119 Speaker 1: men of the council agreed with him. All the prisoners 344 00:18:53,160 --> 00:18:55,879 Speaker 1: were brought before me Song. He told them that he 345 00:18:56,000 --> 00:18:58,919 Speaker 1: knew that they would cause his demise, but that he 346 00:18:58,960 --> 00:19:02,159 Speaker 1: could cause they our deaths if he wished, and that 347 00:19:02,280 --> 00:19:05,199 Speaker 1: he needed them each to swear an oath not to 348 00:19:05,200 --> 00:19:07,920 Speaker 1: work against him. Then he gave each to them back 349 00:19:07,960 --> 00:19:11,240 Speaker 1: any belongings that have been taken from them and set 350 00:19:11,280 --> 00:19:13,560 Speaker 1: them to sail on a ship that was stripped of 351 00:19:13,600 --> 00:19:15,720 Speaker 1: all of its guns. Yeah. I feel like so much 352 00:19:15,720 --> 00:19:17,920 Speaker 1: of his leadership is based on the like we cool. 353 00:19:19,960 --> 00:19:24,119 Speaker 1: Like that's his whole approach. Are are we cool? Uh? 354 00:19:24,320 --> 00:19:27,199 Speaker 1: The next move for Libertalia was actually away from this 355 00:19:27,280 --> 00:19:30,639 Speaker 1: everybody be cool freedom and no rules approach that it 356 00:19:30,680 --> 00:19:33,080 Speaker 1: began with. But we will talk about that after we 357 00:19:33,119 --> 00:19:43,000 Speaker 1: first hear from one of our sponsors. While the idea 358 00:19:43,160 --> 00:19:47,040 Speaker 1: of a utopia always sounds great in theory, in practice 359 00:19:47,119 --> 00:19:49,600 Speaker 1: it is really hard to throw a bunch of humans 360 00:19:49,600 --> 00:19:52,600 Speaker 1: together tell them they all equally share in the land 361 00:19:52,640 --> 00:19:54,600 Speaker 1: and in in the work and have the whole thing chug 362 00:19:54,640 --> 00:19:58,280 Speaker 1: along without any conflict. They are humans, after all, And 363 00:19:58,320 --> 00:20:01,960 Speaker 1: while things seem to work with Misson's original group, after 364 00:20:02,040 --> 00:20:05,760 Speaker 1: two and his men became part of Libertalia, conflicts started 365 00:20:05,800 --> 00:20:10,440 Speaker 1: to arise. On one occasion, Libertalia was invaded by Portuguese sloops. 366 00:20:10,720 --> 00:20:13,679 Speaker 1: The battle played out and Missan's men were victorious, and 367 00:20:13,720 --> 00:20:17,000 Speaker 1: they treated the defeated men who survived with kindness and 368 00:20:17,040 --> 00:20:20,280 Speaker 1: hospitality until they saw two of the men who had 369 00:20:20,280 --> 00:20:23,080 Speaker 1: been set free under oath not to bring any trouble 370 00:20:23,119 --> 00:20:26,120 Speaker 1: into the settlement. These two men were tried for perjury, 371 00:20:26,320 --> 00:20:29,560 Speaker 1: found guilty, and executed, and this caused some men to 372 00:20:29,680 --> 00:20:34,800 Speaker 1: question Missan's leadership. While Missan and Caraccioli saw this execution 373 00:20:34,960 --> 00:20:37,560 Speaker 1: as a matter of self preservation of their way of life, 374 00:20:37,960 --> 00:20:40,359 Speaker 1: some of the men saw it as a contradiction of 375 00:20:40,359 --> 00:20:45,000 Speaker 1: everything they've been told about Libertalia and about its values. Eventually, 376 00:20:45,080 --> 00:20:48,119 Speaker 1: Carraccioli was able to convince everyone of the necessity of 377 00:20:48,160 --> 00:20:52,680 Speaker 1: the execution, but it took a lot of effort and rhetoric. Yeah, 378 00:20:52,720 --> 00:20:56,160 Speaker 1: he sounds, based on this account like he was really 379 00:20:56,240 --> 00:20:59,959 Speaker 1: quite a good public speaker, but he was often convincing 380 00:21:00,160 --> 00:21:02,639 Speaker 1: all of the men of of what should be done. 381 00:21:03,359 --> 00:21:05,760 Speaker 1: But then not long after this, there was an argument 382 00:21:05,840 --> 00:21:09,320 Speaker 1: between twos men and Misson's The nature of this argument 383 00:21:09,359 --> 00:21:12,240 Speaker 1: is a little unclear, although the account says that twos 384 00:21:12,280 --> 00:21:15,520 Speaker 1: men started it. Uh two thought that the matter should 385 00:21:15,520 --> 00:21:18,639 Speaker 1: be solved with swords, but Misson and Carraccioli wanted to 386 00:21:18,720 --> 00:21:21,639 Speaker 1: negotiate some sort of accord. They did not want to 387 00:21:21,680 --> 00:21:24,560 Speaker 1: set up their new little utopia as a place where 388 00:21:24,600 --> 00:21:28,399 Speaker 1: you settled your disagreements by potentially killing each other. And 389 00:21:28,440 --> 00:21:30,479 Speaker 1: while they sorted out the matter at hand, and they 390 00:21:30,480 --> 00:21:33,520 Speaker 1: figured out how to settle this particular argument, all three 391 00:21:33,520 --> 00:21:36,720 Speaker 1: of the captains came to the conclusion that it was 392 00:21:36,760 --> 00:21:41,000 Speaker 1: actually time for Libertalia to have some actual laws. So 393 00:21:41,160 --> 00:21:44,960 Speaker 1: everyone the entire colony was gathered so that the three 394 00:21:45,000 --> 00:21:48,560 Speaker 1: commanders could explain this plan. They had to have some 395 00:21:48,640 --> 00:21:54,000 Speaker 1: sort of government, and Misson Caraccioli into proposed a democratic 396 00:21:54,040 --> 00:21:56,760 Speaker 1: system with laws made by the people. The men were 397 00:21:56,800 --> 00:21:59,920 Speaker 1: to divide themselves into groups of ten, and from each 398 00:22:00,280 --> 00:22:03,080 Speaker 1: one representative was to be chosen who would assist in 399 00:22:03,160 --> 00:22:05,400 Speaker 1: setting up the laws and the government of the settlement. 400 00:22:06,000 --> 00:22:09,479 Speaker 1: Property and land were to be divided evenly, but then 401 00:22:09,520 --> 00:22:11,879 Speaker 1: it would be owned by each man. It would no 402 00:22:11,960 --> 00:22:15,639 Speaker 1: longer be a system of collective ownership. On the first 403 00:22:15,720 --> 00:22:19,280 Speaker 1: day that the newly selected lawmakers met, Carraccioli made a 404 00:22:19,320 --> 00:22:22,119 Speaker 1: speech and proposed that there should be a lord conservator 405 00:22:22,240 --> 00:22:25,280 Speaker 1: basically a president that would be elected and would serve 406 00:22:25,400 --> 00:22:28,160 Speaker 1: for terms of three years, so he could be re elected, 407 00:22:28,359 --> 00:22:31,640 Speaker 1: but every three years they would revisit that and all agreed, 408 00:22:31,720 --> 00:22:35,920 Speaker 1: and of course Misson was immediately made conservator, and two 409 00:22:36,080 --> 00:22:39,960 Speaker 1: was named as Conservator Admiral, and Carraccioli was Secretary of State. 410 00:22:40,440 --> 00:22:43,439 Speaker 1: And for ten full days, this new governing body worked 411 00:22:43,440 --> 00:22:47,320 Speaker 1: to set up the laws of Libertalia. They began, under 412 00:22:47,400 --> 00:22:51,920 Speaker 1: Caraccioli's office to even develop a new language for Libertalia 413 00:22:52,000 --> 00:22:55,119 Speaker 1: that incorporated the various native languages of the many people 414 00:22:55,160 --> 00:22:58,879 Speaker 1: who had settled there. They carefully balanced the manpower that 415 00:22:58,960 --> 00:23:01,760 Speaker 1: was needed to maintain animals and their crops against their 416 00:23:01,800 --> 00:23:06,040 Speaker 1: needs for naval reinforcements. Yeah too, was like, let's build 417 00:23:06,040 --> 00:23:08,040 Speaker 1: our navy, and they were like, hey, somebody's got to 418 00:23:08,080 --> 00:23:13,040 Speaker 1: feed the cows. Uh. So they kind of were figuring out, uh, 419 00:23:13,080 --> 00:23:16,680 Speaker 1: some pretty advanced kind of balancing systems about what their 420 00:23:16,680 --> 00:23:20,400 Speaker 1: society can handle. Uh An Admiral too then set out 421 00:23:20,400 --> 00:23:23,080 Speaker 1: to gather more members of the colony, hoping to meet 422 00:23:23,160 --> 00:23:25,639 Speaker 1: with ships at sea and offer to take volunteers to 423 00:23:25,680 --> 00:23:30,119 Speaker 1: bolster Libertalia's numbers. He also went and visited places he 424 00:23:30,200 --> 00:23:34,000 Speaker 1: knew and sort of told people about it, and as 425 00:23:34,040 --> 00:23:37,160 Speaker 1: part of his canvassing for new citizens, which he first 426 00:23:37,200 --> 00:23:39,920 Speaker 1: began by finding a settlement of his former men who 427 00:23:39,960 --> 00:23:42,359 Speaker 1: had not joined up with Libertalia but had started their 428 00:23:42,359 --> 00:23:46,880 Speaker 1: own camp. He spoke really passionately about Libertalia and its 429 00:23:46,880 --> 00:23:51,040 Speaker 1: government built around fairness and equality, but also he was 430 00:23:51,080 --> 00:23:53,679 Speaker 1: clear to say that the settlement was also willing to 431 00:23:53,720 --> 00:23:56,639 Speaker 1: work with other governments, saying, quote, if you will go 432 00:23:56,800 --> 00:24:00,040 Speaker 1: to America or Europe and show the advantage which a 433 00:24:00,280 --> 00:24:03,800 Speaker 1: crew to the English by fixing a colony here out 434 00:24:03,840 --> 00:24:06,000 Speaker 1: of the love we bear our country and to wipe 435 00:24:06,000 --> 00:24:09,680 Speaker 1: away the odious appellation of pirates, with pleasure, we will 436 00:24:09,720 --> 00:24:12,440 Speaker 1: submit to any who shall come with a commission from 437 00:24:12,440 --> 00:24:15,919 Speaker 1: a lawful government. But it is ridiculous to think we 438 00:24:15,960 --> 00:24:20,800 Speaker 1: will become subjects of greater rogues than ourselves. But while 439 00:24:20,880 --> 00:24:24,080 Speaker 1: he was visiting with his friends and potential recruits to 440 00:24:24,160 --> 00:24:28,119 Speaker 1: their small paradise. He was surprised when Misson himself found 441 00:24:28,160 --> 00:24:30,919 Speaker 1: him and told him that everything they had built had 442 00:24:30,960 --> 00:24:34,479 Speaker 1: been lost. Song told to that the Native people's had 443 00:24:34,480 --> 00:24:38,680 Speaker 1: attacked the settlement, killed Corectioli and many others, and that 444 00:24:38,800 --> 00:24:41,000 Speaker 1: only he and forty five other men had managed to 445 00:24:41,160 --> 00:24:45,679 Speaker 1: escape aboard the Bijou. Yeah, this was at a point 446 00:24:45,760 --> 00:24:48,879 Speaker 1: when two was kind of stranded. There had been a 447 00:24:48,920 --> 00:24:53,160 Speaker 1: big storm and the Victoire had actually capsized and many 448 00:24:53,160 --> 00:24:55,080 Speaker 1: of the crew were killed, but they were able to 449 00:24:55,080 --> 00:24:58,679 Speaker 1: to get the ship, and too thought that they should 450 00:24:59,000 --> 00:25:01,400 Speaker 1: head to America and make a fresh start, and there 451 00:25:01,480 --> 00:25:03,600 Speaker 1: was even discussion that, like, hey, we know how to 452 00:25:03,640 --> 00:25:06,560 Speaker 1: do this now, let's make another settlement. But Misson was 453 00:25:06,840 --> 00:25:09,240 Speaker 1: so devastated at having lost all of his work that 454 00:25:09,320 --> 00:25:13,640 Speaker 1: he just had no heart for another attempt. So Misson 455 00:25:13,760 --> 00:25:15,919 Speaker 1: took the Victoire and set out with a plan that 456 00:25:15,960 --> 00:25:19,000 Speaker 1: he would meet to again on the Guinta coast to regroup. 457 00:25:19,560 --> 00:25:22,560 Speaker 1: But that meeting never happened. The Victoire sank during a 458 00:25:22,640 --> 00:25:25,679 Speaker 1: storm and Misson went down with a ship. So it 459 00:25:25,760 --> 00:25:28,960 Speaker 1: has come up on the show before, but just to recap, 460 00:25:29,320 --> 00:25:31,960 Speaker 1: since the nineteen thirties, the history of the lives and 461 00:25:31,960 --> 00:25:35,760 Speaker 1: bloody exploits of the most noted pirates, sometimes the General 462 00:25:35,800 --> 00:25:37,600 Speaker 1: History of Pirates. You'll see it listed in a number 463 00:25:37,600 --> 00:25:40,800 Speaker 1: of different ways because on some republications that has gotten 464 00:25:40,800 --> 00:25:45,320 Speaker 1: new titles has been attributed to journalist, spy and novelist 465 00:25:45,440 --> 00:25:48,760 Speaker 1: Daniel Dafoe, and that attribution came about through the work 466 00:25:48,800 --> 00:25:51,879 Speaker 1: of John Robert Moore, who was a Defoe biographer, and 467 00:25:51,920 --> 00:25:55,040 Speaker 1: it has been pretty widely accepted as truth at this point. Yeah, 468 00:25:55,040 --> 00:25:58,080 Speaker 1: there are some other candidates that people name, um, including 469 00:25:58,520 --> 00:26:00,840 Speaker 1: Nathaniel Missed, he was a sailor a publisher, but it's 470 00:26:00,840 --> 00:26:03,720 Speaker 1: so frequently associated with Daniel Dafoe that a lot of 471 00:26:03,760 --> 00:26:06,879 Speaker 1: times that is who the author is listed as in 472 00:26:06,920 --> 00:26:12,000 Speaker 1: the library or wherever, with like no little asterisk or anything. Yeah, 473 00:26:12,040 --> 00:26:15,320 Speaker 1: there are definitely versions that don't really even talk about 474 00:26:15,640 --> 00:26:18,960 Speaker 1: how it came to be that it gets that attribution. So, 475 00:26:19,160 --> 00:26:23,080 Speaker 1: remembering that the Foe's most famous works were novels like Robinson, 476 00:26:23,119 --> 00:26:27,120 Speaker 1: Crusoe and mal Flanders with little evidence to back up, 477 00:26:27,640 --> 00:26:31,119 Speaker 1: and he uh to back up, what's it containing it? 478 00:26:31,240 --> 00:26:34,080 Speaker 1: This account in a general History of the Robberies and 479 00:26:34,200 --> 00:26:37,560 Speaker 1: Murderers of the most notorious pirates is pretty much believed 480 00:26:37,600 --> 00:26:40,639 Speaker 1: to be fictional. I mean, it's we've talked about this 481 00:26:40,640 --> 00:26:43,199 Speaker 1: book in a bunch of different episodes, and it's all. 482 00:26:43,880 --> 00:26:48,040 Speaker 1: They all involve people. We know, we're real and we're 483 00:26:48,080 --> 00:26:51,600 Speaker 1: involved in piracy, but the details a lot of times 484 00:26:51,600 --> 00:26:55,680 Speaker 1: are very questionable. And an introduction to the modern printing 485 00:26:55,760 --> 00:26:59,040 Speaker 1: of this work, Maximilian in Novak wrote that the account 486 00:26:59,080 --> 00:27:01,679 Speaker 1: of the crew and the captained that founded the Libertalia 487 00:27:01,720 --> 00:27:04,639 Speaker 1: as one of the quote most remarkable and neglected works 488 00:27:04,640 --> 00:27:08,680 Speaker 1: of fiction among the foes work. But there were, as 489 00:27:08,680 --> 00:27:11,480 Speaker 1: we said Tracy mentioned, there were definitely in many cases 490 00:27:11,800 --> 00:27:15,359 Speaker 1: real people that these stories pulled in, and we don't 491 00:27:15,960 --> 00:27:18,600 Speaker 1: there's not a good way to verify or not. It's 492 00:27:18,600 --> 00:27:20,960 Speaker 1: not like people that were living a privateering life. We're 493 00:27:21,040 --> 00:27:24,160 Speaker 1: keeping great records, which is probably why some of these 494 00:27:24,160 --> 00:27:27,159 Speaker 1: fanciful stories grew to fill the void of people that 495 00:27:27,280 --> 00:27:30,880 Speaker 1: wanted to know about them. But there were a few 496 00:27:30,880 --> 00:27:34,199 Speaker 1: pirate settlements in the seventeenth and eighteenth century, so the 497 00:27:34,240 --> 00:27:38,800 Speaker 1: idea of Libertalia is not entirely outside the bounds of possibility. 498 00:27:38,880 --> 00:27:41,200 Speaker 1: And Madagascar, as Tracy mentioned at the top of the show, 499 00:27:41,600 --> 00:27:45,680 Speaker 1: was a popular destination for pirates looking for at times 500 00:27:45,680 --> 00:27:47,800 Speaker 1: a bit of freedom and peace and sometimes to take 501 00:27:47,800 --> 00:27:50,879 Speaker 1: a break from things, and also to attack other ships. 502 00:27:52,320 --> 00:27:55,920 Speaker 1: Well yeah, I mean, you can't live by rest alone. 503 00:27:57,400 --> 00:28:00,840 Speaker 1: There was a lot of piratical action happening in that area. 504 00:28:01,480 --> 00:28:05,520 Speaker 1: Ranters Bay in Madagascar was founded by pirate John Plantain 505 00:28:05,600 --> 00:28:08,320 Speaker 1: in seventeen twenty, although he had more of a kingdom 506 00:28:08,320 --> 00:28:11,800 Speaker 1: in mind than a democracy. And Eel sam Marie, which 507 00:28:11,840 --> 00:28:14,719 Speaker 1: is four miles east of the island of Madagascar, is 508 00:28:15,440 --> 00:28:18,280 Speaker 1: also believed to have been inhabited by pirates for almost 509 00:28:18,280 --> 00:28:21,119 Speaker 1: a century and a much looser sort of set up 510 00:28:21,280 --> 00:28:25,720 Speaker 1: than Missan's purported settlement. So there's a pirate cemetery on 511 00:28:25,760 --> 00:28:29,199 Speaker 1: that island that continues to be a tourist attraction. And 512 00:28:29,240 --> 00:28:32,120 Speaker 1: in two thousand one, author Kevin Rushby published a book 513 00:28:32,119 --> 00:28:35,760 Speaker 1: called Hunting Pirate Heaven, which was part travelog and part 514 00:28:35,880 --> 00:28:39,920 Speaker 1: investigative journalism. And he himself was basically traveling the roots 515 00:28:39,960 --> 00:28:43,560 Speaker 1: of privateers, seeking out the sites of the various legendary 516 00:28:43,640 --> 00:28:47,120 Speaker 1: utopias that have been part of pirate lore. And he 517 00:28:47,160 --> 00:28:50,080 Speaker 1: didn't find Libertalia, and no one else has any hard 518 00:28:50,160 --> 00:28:53,120 Speaker 1: evidence or record of it. Either that does live on 519 00:28:53,160 --> 00:28:55,160 Speaker 1: in popular culture, though it has shown up in lots 520 00:28:55,200 --> 00:28:58,560 Speaker 1: of books and movies and video games, including Uncharted four 521 00:28:58,960 --> 00:29:01,840 Speaker 1: and Fallout four. I haven't played Uncharted for, but in 522 00:29:01,880 --> 00:29:05,840 Speaker 1: Fallout for it's kind of a cobbled together radar settlement 523 00:29:06,040 --> 00:29:10,200 Speaker 1: off the coast of Massachusetts. Yeah, it's not. It's not 524 00:29:10,240 --> 00:29:14,400 Speaker 1: so much of the utopia hug fest. No, it's definitely 525 00:29:14,400 --> 00:29:16,760 Speaker 1: not a hug fest. If you go there, people shooting you. 526 00:29:19,000 --> 00:29:21,440 Speaker 1: Uh yeah. William Burrows wrote about it at one point. 527 00:29:21,480 --> 00:29:24,280 Speaker 1: It's shown up. It's one of those like handy uh 528 00:29:24,560 --> 00:29:26,840 Speaker 1: kind of touchstones that people pull in when they're talking 529 00:29:26,880 --> 00:29:31,840 Speaker 1: about piracy and privateering to give it a feel of authenticity, 530 00:29:32,040 --> 00:29:34,880 Speaker 1: even though uh that that feel may be based on 531 00:29:34,880 --> 00:29:38,520 Speaker 1: something completely fictional. But it's a fascinating idea. I do 532 00:29:38,920 --> 00:29:43,480 Speaker 1: think it's interesting to examine why someone would want to write, 533 00:29:44,160 --> 00:29:49,200 Speaker 1: presuming its fiction, to write a story that is so um, 534 00:29:49,800 --> 00:29:52,480 Speaker 1: sort of progressive in this idea of all men being 535 00:29:52,520 --> 00:29:56,080 Speaker 1: equal and like so anti slavery. It's an interesting thing 536 00:29:56,120 --> 00:29:58,680 Speaker 1: that that would be framed along with the idea of 537 00:29:59,040 --> 00:30:03,840 Speaker 1: piracy and freedom and from government and we're gonna go 538 00:30:04,000 --> 00:30:07,000 Speaker 1: to this ship into attacking us so that we can 539 00:30:07,040 --> 00:30:10,160 Speaker 1: then fight back and take their stuff. Right. Like I said, 540 00:30:10,160 --> 00:30:13,960 Speaker 1: there's some moral flexibility baked into the whole thing. Uh, 541 00:30:14,000 --> 00:30:16,120 Speaker 1: but that does become an interesting thing to look at, 542 00:30:16,120 --> 00:30:19,600 Speaker 1: like why would that be such an appealing piece of 543 00:30:19,640 --> 00:30:22,080 Speaker 1: fiction at a time that we don't often think of 544 00:30:22,120 --> 00:30:27,440 Speaker 1: as being uh really rooted in all men being equal. 545 00:30:28,000 --> 00:30:30,240 Speaker 1: It's fascinating and it's a fun read. It's a little 546 00:30:30,280 --> 00:30:32,360 Speaker 1: bit tricky to get through it because the language is 547 00:30:32,360 --> 00:30:35,760 Speaker 1: clunky to our modern ear. Uh. There's some you know, 548 00:30:36,840 --> 00:30:41,440 Speaker 1: fast and loose use of capitalization and yeah, some things 549 00:30:41,640 --> 00:30:44,040 Speaker 1: you're like, wait, is that a properness? Oh no, it's not. 550 00:30:44,120 --> 00:30:47,360 Speaker 1: He just likes the word prize. Okay. Uh So yeah, 551 00:30:47,360 --> 00:30:49,440 Speaker 1: there's stuff like that to contend with. But it is 552 00:30:49,440 --> 00:30:52,120 Speaker 1: a really fun read. Yeah. Well, having read chunks of 553 00:30:52,160 --> 00:30:55,720 Speaker 1: the book for research of various episodes of the podcast, 554 00:30:55,800 --> 00:30:58,600 Speaker 1: it does tend to be a fun read, if not 555 00:30:58,680 --> 00:31:04,320 Speaker 1: necessarily an historically accurate one. There's part of me there, 556 00:31:04,320 --> 00:31:06,480 Speaker 1: there is a doofy part of me that wants in 557 00:31:06,560 --> 00:31:09,480 Speaker 1: my heart for some piece of evidence to appear to 558 00:31:09,600 --> 00:31:12,680 Speaker 1: prove that everything in the general history is actually accurate 559 00:31:12,720 --> 00:31:15,360 Speaker 1: and true, because it would be mind blowing if that 560 00:31:15,400 --> 00:31:18,360 Speaker 1: were the case. Like, here is all of my notes, 561 00:31:18,520 --> 00:31:23,160 Speaker 1: like my big file, my binder, full newspaper clippings, et cetera, 562 00:31:23,320 --> 00:31:26,880 Speaker 1: that I used to research this book. Yet No, I 563 00:31:26,920 --> 00:31:31,600 Speaker 1: don't think it would be great. Wouldn't it be hilarious? Uh? 564 00:31:31,640 --> 00:31:34,840 Speaker 1: My listener mail is not about piracy at all. It 565 00:31:35,000 --> 00:31:39,000 Speaker 1: is about legal matters. It is from our listener Greg, 566 00:31:39,040 --> 00:31:42,040 Speaker 1: and it is about our Elizabeth Jennings Graham episode. And 567 00:31:42,080 --> 00:31:44,440 Speaker 1: he writes, Hi, Dear Holly and Tracy. I'm a longtime listener, 568 00:31:44,480 --> 00:31:47,360 Speaker 1: first time writing in. I love the episode about Elizabeth 569 00:31:47,400 --> 00:31:50,320 Speaker 1: Jennings Graham as a practicing attorney in New York City. 570 00:31:50,360 --> 00:31:52,600 Speaker 1: Listening to your podcast as I traveled from court in 571 00:31:52,640 --> 00:31:55,760 Speaker 1: the Bronx to court in Brooklyn, I felt as though 572 00:31:55,840 --> 00:31:58,440 Speaker 1: you were describing my everyday routine, even though the case 573 00:31:58,440 --> 00:32:01,200 Speaker 1: you were describing was a d the years ago. An 574 00:32:01,200 --> 00:32:04,640 Speaker 1: important point of clarification, I know this makes absolutely no sense, 575 00:32:04,680 --> 00:32:07,000 Speaker 1: but the Supreme Court in the New York State unified 576 00:32:07,000 --> 00:32:10,360 Speaker 1: court system is actually the lowest level of general jurisdiction, 577 00:32:10,480 --> 00:32:13,280 Speaker 1: i e. A trial court. The highest court in New York, 578 00:32:13,360 --> 00:32:16,320 Speaker 1: even more confusingly, is called the Court of Appeals. I 579 00:32:16,360 --> 00:32:18,640 Speaker 1: can't tell you how confusing that was in law school 580 00:32:18,840 --> 00:32:21,040 Speaker 1: to have to reconcile that New York is the only 581 00:32:21,120 --> 00:32:23,800 Speaker 1: state where court labels make no sense from the highest 582 00:32:23,800 --> 00:32:26,560 Speaker 1: to lowest. So when the state Supreme Court judge in 583 00:32:26,600 --> 00:32:30,000 Speaker 1: Brooklyn gave the jury instructions you describe, while they were 584 00:32:30,000 --> 00:32:33,080 Speaker 1: surely notable, especially for that time, it was not actually 585 00:32:33,080 --> 00:32:35,800 Speaker 1: the highest court in a state making such a pronouncement, 586 00:32:36,200 --> 00:32:38,680 Speaker 1: the Supreme Court judge in this case being the functional 587 00:32:38,680 --> 00:32:41,680 Speaker 1: equivalent of a trial judge in any other state. The 588 00:32:41,720 --> 00:32:44,160 Speaker 1: pedantic lawyer in me literally had to stop the podcast 589 00:32:44,240 --> 00:32:46,840 Speaker 1: and write this email before I could continue, lest the 590 00:32:46,880 --> 00:32:50,000 Speaker 1: brainage it wrought distract me from the rest of the episode. 591 00:32:50,400 --> 00:32:52,360 Speaker 1: Please keep up with you all you do. I travel 592 00:32:52,400 --> 00:32:55,600 Speaker 1: between courts on public transportation every day, sometimes as much 593 00:32:55,600 --> 00:32:58,240 Speaker 1: as five hours, and your podcasts are a staple of 594 00:32:58,280 --> 00:33:00,840 Speaker 1: ample train time. Thank you so much, Greg, I would 595 00:33:00,880 --> 00:33:03,760 Speaker 1: never have known that. No at this uh Now, I 596 00:33:03,800 --> 00:33:06,040 Speaker 1: will be pedantic and say that we have also gotten 597 00:33:06,080 --> 00:33:09,760 Speaker 1: notes about the court systems layers from other states that 598 00:33:09,800 --> 00:33:12,120 Speaker 1: are not New York that also did not make sense, 599 00:33:12,160 --> 00:33:14,160 Speaker 1: but they didn't make sense in a different way than 600 00:33:14,200 --> 00:33:18,840 Speaker 1: this one. I know it becomes really apparent how much 601 00:33:18,920 --> 00:33:23,720 Speaker 1: there was never a discussion about uniformity. Yes, and I don't. 602 00:33:23,960 --> 00:33:26,920 Speaker 1: I think if they tried to make a uniform labeling 603 00:33:26,920 --> 00:33:30,680 Speaker 1: system now it would create utter chaos. So thank you 604 00:33:30,720 --> 00:33:36,560 Speaker 1: for that point of clarification. And it's a um a 605 00:33:36,640 --> 00:33:41,120 Speaker 1: good thing to have that fixed because I don't want 606 00:33:41,120 --> 00:33:43,520 Speaker 1: to misrepresent. Thank you so much. Greg. If you would 607 00:33:43,560 --> 00:33:44,920 Speaker 1: like to write to us, you can do so at 608 00:33:44,960 --> 00:33:47,240 Speaker 1: history podcast at how stuff works dot com. 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