The True & Complete Memoirs of the Pyrate Captain Extraordinaire!
The Illustrious Captain, John ‘Bartholomew’ Roberts
The Most Successful Pyrate of ALL Time!
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The True & Complete Memoirs of the Pyrate Captain Extraordinaire! The Illustrious Captain, John ‘Bartholomew’ Roberts The Most Successful Pyrate of ALL Time! Credit, Debit or E-check --- Make payments with PayPal - it's fast, free and secure!. |
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 Davies was raised on a ship, eventually becoming chief mate of a slaver. Circa 1718 he was captured by Edward England off the coast of Africa. Davies was a pleasant man & as such, easily gained favor with England who gave the seized ship to Davies who in turn proposed to sell it in Brazil. The crew wanted to keep the ship & they sailed to Barbados. Upon their arrival they were arrested. Davies spent three months in jail & after he was released he decided to become a pirate, boasting the simple boasting that if need be that he be branded as such then that shall be what he shall become. Davies went to the Bahamas in hopes of mustering a crew only to find that Woodes Rogers had preceded him. Davies was put on a ship loaded with cargo and Roger's men. At Martinique, Davies raised a mutiny & afterwards chosen captain. Davies & his crew only numbered 35 men but they were quite capable, taking two larger French ships north of Hispaniola. Davies captured the second ship by making the first captured look like a pirate ship by forcing the prisoners to brandish swords upon the deck. The second ship, believing to be out numbered, gave up without incident. Moving along, Davies sailed to the Cape Verde Islands where the Portuguese governor at Saint Nicholas believing Davies’ ship, the Buck, was an English privateer, welcomed Davies & his crew. Next he sailed to Maio Island where he plundered many ships & increased the size of his crew. They decided to keep one of their plundered ships, the Saint James which carried twenty-six guns. On the Gambia River, Davies went to the Royal African Company. Dressed like dandies & playing the roles of fops, Davies & two of his crew managed to decieve the governer & got themselves invited to dinner & looted him of £2,000 in gold. Davies next had a short stint as admiral over the pirate captains La Bouche and Thomas Cocklyn. Their venture only lasted a short time, since they couldn't agree on a course of action. After parting company, Davies seized 4 large English and Dutch ships loaded with ivory, gold dust & slaves. Davies exchanged the Buck for a 32 gun ship which was renamed the Rover. Next Davies captured 3 British slave ships. An officer aboard one of the slavers, Bartholomew Roberts, decided to join Davies who sailed for Principe Island. Along the way they took a Dutch prize & £15,000 & had to abandon the badly damaged Saint James. At Principe Island, Davies told the Portuguese governor he was a pirate hunter & seized a French ship which had come into the harbor claiming they had been trading with pirates. Davies was planning to leave the next day when tragedy struck. No one knows why for certain, but Davies was ambushed en route to the governor's palace. Being a strong man he took 5 bullets before he dropped drawing his guns and firing both before he was finished off by having his throat cut. Davies’ death was avenged by his crew, lead by Bartholomew Roberts who was elected to succeed him and the ship's Quarter-Master, Walter Kennedy. They burnt the fort and shelled the town. For a detailed account of Davies' life after the meeting of Bartholomew Roberts visit my parent page which are the memoirs of Captain Roberts.  Click Here to sail back to V’lé’s ‘Buccaneers, Privateers & Swashbucklers’ DON'T leave this site before visiting: The Illustrious & Uncomparable Captain Bartholomew Roberts THE most successful pirate of ALL time! |