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Blackbeard often fought with, or simply showed himself wearing, multiple swords, knives, and pistols, and was notorious for weaving hemp and lighted matches into his enormous black beard during battle. This image, which he cultivated, has made him the premier image of the seafaring pirate.
Little is known about his early life, though it is believed he was born in Bristol, England in 1680. His career began as a seaman on privateers sailing out of Jamaica during the War of the Spanish SuccessionThe War of the Spanish Succession ( 1702 1713) was a European war; the North American portion of this war was Queen Anne's War. The war was fought over the European balance of power; the Spanish King Charles II had willed his kingdom to Philip V, a grands ( 1701Events January 18 Frederick I becomes King of Prussia. May 23 After being convicted of murdering William Moore and for piracy, Captain William Kidd is hanged in London. July 24 Detroit, Michigan founded. September 16 Prince James Francis Edward Stuart bec- 1713Events April 11 War of the Spanish Succession: Treaty of Utrecht June 23 French residents of Acadia given one year to declare allegiance to Britain or leave Nova Scotia Canada first Orrery built by George Graham Ongoing events Great Northern War ( 1700- 1), and later served aboard a Jamaican ship commanded by the pirate, Benjamin HornigoldCaptain Benjamin Hornigold a pirate, was active for a short time only, 1716 1717. His ship was the starting point for many of the more famous pirates. Captain Hornigold left New Providence Island in the Bahamas with Edward Teach (aka Blackbeard) among his, whom he met at New ProvidenceThis article is about the island in the Bahamas. For other usages, see New Providence (disambiguation). New Providence is the most populous island in the Bahamas. While the first European visitors to the Bahama Islands were Bermudan salt rakers gathering in 1716. He was eventually made a captain while serving under Hornigold when, near the island of Martinique, they captured the French slave ship La Concorde out of Nantes, on November 28, 1717. According to the French governor of the island, "Edoard Titche" commanded two boats of English pirates, one of 12 and the other of 8 guns, with 250 men. La Concorde was a prize: a 300-ton frigate armed with 40 cannons, which had ranged the west coast of Africa, taking English, Dutch and Portuguese ships. Teach renamed it Queen Anne's Revenge.
Hornigold now retired, taking advantage of an amnesty extended to privateers.
In the following two years Teach acquired a fearsome reputation for cruelty after repeatedly preying on shipping and coastal settlements of the West Indies and the Atlantic coast of North America. A running duel with the British 30-gunned man-of-war HMS Scarborough added to his notoriety.
He would raid merchant ships, coming up on them in major channels and forcing them to allow him and his crew to board their ship. Teach and his men would take all of the valuables, food, liquor, and weapons from the ship and if there was no resistance, let the merchant ship go. On ships which resisted, all aboard were killed.
Teach kept headquarters in both the Bahamas and the Carolinas. He lived on the island of Nassau where he was named the Magistrate of the "Privateers Republic". The governor of North Carolina, Charles Eden , received booty from Teach in return for unofficial protection and gave him an official pardon. He was forced to leave Nassau by Royal Governor Woodes Rogers when the island was raided and all pirate occupants were either killed or driven out.
Despite this setback, Teach went back to piracy after a few weeks. As his violent raids increased, the governor of North Carolina lost patience and sent troops to hunt him down. Teach was later cornered by the English war ship HMS Pearl off the coast of Ocracoke, North Carolina. He was shot and stabbed more than 25 times before he died and was decapitated by Robert Maynard , the captain of the Pearl. His head was then placed as a trophy on the bowsprit of their ship.
Legend has romanticized Blackbeard. Many popular contemporary engravings show him with the smoking lit ends of his pigtails and the pistols stuck in his bandoliers, and he has been the subject of book, movies, and documentaries. His ship was discovered near Beaufort, North Carolina in 1996, and is now part of a major tourist attraction.
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