KNOW The pirate flags (and you, which one would you choose?).
THE PERFECT GIFT!
Give or treat yourself to a subscription to the print + digital Journal of Sailing and for only 69 euros a year you get the magazine at home plus read it on your PC, smartphone and tablet. With a sea of advantages.
Did you know that you can hoist the shipowner flag on board and that you can choose colors and designs? The most famous, in maritime history, is undoubtedly the Jolly Roger, the pirate flag.
What not everyone knows is that there is more than just the classic crossbones skull. Each pirate had his own flag, which constituted a kind of “psychological warfare.” Each flag had a different and very specific meaning: the black flag without any symbol, for example, meant “no privies are made.” And, surprise, it was actually the red flag that sailors feared most, because it indicated that the conquest would take place without any mercy.
THE FLAGS OF THE FAMOUS PIRATES
Some pirate flags told real stories, such as Christopher Moody’s: against a blood-red background, there was a winged hourglass, signifying that time was up for the enemies, an arm wielding a sword, and a skull with crossbones signifying the enemies’ imminent death. Here are some of the most famous ones.
CHRISTOPHER CONDENT – THE WISE
Originally a privateer in the service of England, in 1714 he decided to become a pirate. In 1718 he decided to head to the South African coast to plunder coastal towns. He looted an English East India Company ship and found there a cargo of spices, silks and £150,000 in gold and silver. He then moved to France, where he died around 1770 a free man.
EMANUEL WYNNE – THE FORERUNNER
He was born in France around 1650; he began his pirate career around the turn of the century off the Carolina coast by assaulting English merchant ships. He then moved to the Caribbean where he made more profits. He was the first to wave, in the early 1700s, the Jolly Roger. His consisted of a skull with crossbones resting on an hourglass, signifying that time was up for enemies.
EDWARD TEACH “BARBANERA” – THE FIERCE
He had a reputation as one of the fiercest pirates, and his exploits (real and legendary) are largely responsible for the stereotype of the “bad pirate.” His ways terrified the victims and the crew itself; he is said to have used to shoot his gun at his men’s legs to maintain discipline. During the actions he wore a band around his shoulders with three pairs of guns in their holsters.
THOMAS TEW – THE ENRICHED
He was an active pirate from 1690. In Madagascar Tew quickly acquired much wealth and became the owner of a plot of land where he raised 300 cattle. One day one of Tew’s pirates ran toward the sloop being chased by a group of armed Portuguese. Tew decided to flee but was involved in a naval battle where he died.
CHRISTOPHER MOODY – THE CRYPTIC
He was an English pirate. His flag was blood red with three designs side by side: a winged hourglass signifying that time was up for the enemies, an arm wielding a sword, and a skull with crossbones signifying the enemies’ imminent death. He was hanged in Cape Coast Castle, in present-day Ghana, around 1718.
EDWARD ENGLAND – THE MERCIFUL
He did not kill prisoners unless necessary. His crew mutinied when they refused to kill sailors on a trading ship. He was abandoned in Mauritius along with two pirates; they survived and with a raft reached Madagascar. England returned to England and lived in hardship here until his death in 1721.
BARTHOLOMEW ROBERTS – THE LEGENDARY
Great not only in achievements but also in death. It was a cannon shot to the throat that killed him while he was fighting the captain of the warship Swallow. His comrades managed to fulfill their captain’s wishes and, before his body was captured, they managed to throw him overboard. In his career he had captured 456 vessels.
DISCOVER ALL CRUISE, ADVENTURE & CHARTER NEWS
NAVIGATE INFORMED!
To stay up-to-date on all the news from the world of sailing, selected by our editorial staff, sign up for the Sailing Newspaper newsletter! It is semplicissimo, just enter your email below, accept the Privacy Policy and click the “Sign me up” button. You will then receive on your email, twice a week, the best sailing news! It’s free and you can unsubscribe at any time, no obligation!
Share:
Check out the latest issue
Are you already a subscriber?
Ultimi annunci
Our social
Sign up for our Newsletter
We give you a gift
Sailing, its stories, all boats, accessories. Sign up now for our free newsletter and receive the best news selected by the Sailing Newspaper editorial staff each week. Plus we give you one month of GdV digitally on PC, Tablet, Smartphone. Enter your email below, agree to the Privacy Policy and click the “sign me up” button. You will receive a code to activate your month of GdV for free!
You may also be interested in.
Tuscany to taste (even on a sailboat)
Thanks to its natural, artistic and gastronomic uniqueness, Tuscany is world-famous as a tourist destination that can also be discovered by boat Tuscany is a great tourist stage opening onto the Tyrrhenian Sea with more than 600 kilometers of coastline
Good wind GM Fercioni, the sailor who brought tattooing to Italy
Gian Maurizio Fercioni passed away at the age of 80, leaving behind a lifelong trail of ink and sea stories. For the tattoo world he was an absolute reference point: the “daddy” of Italian tattooing, but before that he was
“I who don’t sail love sailing and I’ll tell you why.”
Francesco Vicario, an expert journalist on royal dynasties for “Gente” and keen observer of worldly life, confesses what sailing is to him. That sailing he has often recounted and crossed several times in his career. It resulted in a splendid
Nightmare cruises: what’s happening to the Boataround platform?
A growing number of sailors have suffered negative experiences with the online charter agency Boataround, with undelivered boats, withheld payments, and missing refunds. Similarities with the Zizoo case and the importance of relying on reliable operators when renting a boat.
