Original of the most famous pirates of the coasts of America--
Famous exploit of Pierre le Grand.
I have told you in the preceding chapters how I was compelled to
adventure my life among the pirates of America; which sort of men I
name so, because they are not authorized by any sovereign prince: for
the kings of Spain having on several occasions sent their ambassadors
to the kings of England and France, to complain of the molestations
and troubles those pirates often caused on the coasts of America, even
in the calm of peace; it hath always been answered, “that such men did
not commit those acts of hostility and piracy as subjects to their
majesties; and therefore his Catholic Majesty might proceed against
them as he should think fit.” The king of France added, “that he had
no fortress nor castle upon Hispaniola, neither did he receive a
farthing of tribute from thence.” And the king of England adjoined,
“that he had never given any commissions to those of Jamaica, to
commit hostilities against the subjects of his Catholic Majesty.” Nor
did he only give this bare answer, but out of his royal desire to
pleasure the court of Spain, recalled the governor of Jamaica, placing
another in his room; all which could not prevent these pirates from
acting as heretofore. But before I relate their bold actions, I shall
say something of their rise and exercises; as also of the chiefest of
them, and their manner of arming themselves before they put to sea.
The first pirate that was known upon Tortuga was Pierre le Grand, or
Peter the Great. He was born at Dieppe in Normandy. That action which
rendered him famous was his taking the vice-admiral of the Spanish
flota, near the Cape of Tiburon, on the west side of Hispaniola; this
he performed with only one boat, and twenty-eight men. Now till that
time the Spaniards had passed and repassed with all security, through
the channel of Bahama; so that Pierre le Grand setting out to sea by
the Caycos, he took this great ship with all the ease imaginable. The
Spaniards they found aboard they set ashore, and sent the vessel to
France. The manner how this undaunted spirit attempted and took this
large ship I shall give you, out of the journal of the author, in his
own words. “The boat,” says he, “wherein Pierre le Grand was with his
companions, had been at sea a long time without finding any prize
worth his taking; and their provisions beginning to fail, they were in
danger of starving. Being almost reduced to despair, they spied a
great ship of the Spanish flota, separated from the rest; this vessel
they resolved to take, or die in the attempt. Hereupon, they sailed
towards her, to view her strength. And though they judged the vessel
to be superior to theirs, yet their covetousness, and the extremity
they were reduced to, made them venture. Being come so near that they
could not possibly escape, they made an oath to their captain, Pierre
le Grand, to stand by him to the last. ’Tis true, the pirates did
believe they should find the ship unprovided to fight, and thereby the
sooner master her. It was in the dusk of the evening they began to
attack; but before they engaged, they ordered the surgeon of the boat
to bore a hole in the sides of it, that their own vessel sinking under
them, they might be compelled to attack more vigorously, and endeavour
more hastily to board the ship. This was done accordingly, and without
any other arms than a pistol in one hand and a sword in the other,
they immediately climbed up the sides of the ship, and ran altogether
into the great cabin, where they found the captain, with several of
his companions, playing at cards. Here they set a pistol to his
breast, commanding him to deliver up the ship. The Spaniards,
surprised to see the pirates on board their ship, cried ‘Jesus bless
us! are these devils, or what are they?’ Meanwhile some of them took
possession of the gun-room, and seized the arms, killing as many as
made any opposition; whereupon the Spaniards presently surrendered.
That very day the captain of the ship had been told by some of the
seamen that the boat which was in view, cruising, was a boat of
pirates; whom the captain slightly answered, ‘What then, must I be
afraid of such a pitiful thing as that is? No, though she were a ship
as big and as strong as mine is.’ As soon as Pierre le Grand had taken
this rich prize, he detained in his service as many of the common
seamen as he had need of, setting the rest ashore, and then set sail
for France, where he continued, without ever returning to America
again.”
The planters and hunters of Tortuga had no sooner heard of the rich
prize those pirates had taken, but they resolved to follow their
example. Hereupon, many of them left their employments, and
endeavoured to get some small boats, wherein to exercise piracy; but
not being able to purchase, or build them at Tortuga, they resolved to
set forth in their canoes, and seek them elsewhere. With these they
cruised at first upon Cape de Alvarez, where the Spaniards used to
trade from one city to another in small vessels, in which they carry
hides, tobacco, and other commodities, to the Havannah, and to which
the Spaniards from Europe do frequently resort.
Here it was that those pirates at first took a great many boats laden
with the aforesaid commodities; these they used to carry to Tortuga,
and sell the whole purchase to the ships that waited for their return,
or accidentally happened to be there. With the gains of these prizes
they provided themselves with necessaries, wherewith to undertake
other voyages, some of which were made to Campechy, and others toward
New Spain; in both which the Spaniards then drove a great trade. Upon
those coasts they found great numbers of trading vessels, and often
ships of great burden. Two of the biggest of these vessels, and two
great ships which the Spaniards had laden with plate in the port of
Campechy, to go to the Caraccas, they took in less than a month’s
time, and carried to Tortuga; where the people of the whole island,
encouraged by their success, especially seeing in two years the riches
of the country so much increased, they augmented the number of pirates
so fast, that in a little time there were, in that small island and
port, above twenty ships of this sort of people. Hereupon the
Spaniards, not able to bear their robberies any longer, equipped two
large men-of-war, both for the defence of their own coasts, and to
cruise upon the enemies.