For 200 years the Caribbean suffered a hurricane. The hurricane drew its power from two forces -- very great wealth, and very little law. The hurricane came in the form of pirates. Ships laden with gold, silver and other precious wealth of the Americas feared the sight of the black flag. However, often the flag was of another nation. Enemies paid pirates to work for them. The pirates would prey on the ships of other nations, and the paying nation would leave them alone. So began Edward Teach -- Blackbeard. Working under the British flag as a privateer in 1701, he found the British merchant ships tempting targets, and became a full-blown pirate in 1716. From his base in North Carolina, he terrorized and blackmailed the American coast and the Caribbean Isles. At his height he had four ships and 300 men. In 1718, the British had enough. They dispatched Alexander Spotswood to destroy the pirates. Spotswood's fleet defeated Blackbeard in a hard fought battle, and stuck his head on the prow of a warship as a warning to others? |
