Image Caption: An 18th-century depiction of Henry Every, with the Fancy shown engaging its prey in the background (Image Source: Wikipedia)
Here is another non-Fleet-related yet interesting story that was recently referred to us by one of our members. It is the tale of Henry Every who committed one of the greatest acts of piracy ever recorded and, apparently, got away with it. As far as we know he never had anything to do with pilfering the treasures of the 1715 Fleet as his big crime occurred 20 years before the Fleet sank. His story can be found by accessing the link below.
It is well known that pirates poached the wreck sites of the 1715 Fleet. One such person was Henry Jennings, an 18th-century English privateer turned pirate. He, along with several hundred men, ambushed the Spanish salvage camp that was established to recover treasure lost when the Fleet of 1715 sank in a hurricane. In 1716 Jennings and several hundred men raided the camp and made off with thousands of salvaged Spanish reales. During his tenure, he sailed with other pirates including “Black Sam” Bellamy. Bellamy also has a direct connection to the 1715 Fleet. His story, as well as his affiliation with Henry Jennings, can be found by accessing our Treasure of the Month for January 2019 HERE.
Although piracy certainly existed well before the loss of the 1715 Fleet, there are some who contend that the 1715 Fleet disaster introduced the “Golden Age of Piracy”. And well it might have, as many famous pirates plied the ocean creating havoc along the shipping lanes during this time. Eventually, most were hunted down and executed. But, in the meantime, we hope that you will enjoy the story of Henry Every and his mysterious disappearance (or did he return under another assumed name)?
Ben Costello
President, 1715 Fleet Society
Notorious Pirate Hid In American Colonies In 1600s
Thursday, December 8 2022 by WILLIAM J. KOLE Associated Press
WARWICK, R.I. (AP) — One tarnished silver coin at a time, the ground is yielding new evidence that in the late 1600s, one of the world’s most ruthless pirates wandered the American colonies with impunity.
Newly surfaced documents also strengthen the case that English buccaneer Henry Every — the target of the first worldwide manhunt — hid out in New England before sailing for Ireland and vanishing into the wind.
“At this point, the amount of evidence is overwhelming and indisputable,” historian and metal detectorist Jim Bailey, who’s devoted years to solving the mystery, told The Associated Press. “Every was undoubtedly on the run in the colonies.”
To read the full article on K-LOVE, please click HERE.
