24. Hiding in Blood and Guts
Early in his career, Francois L’Olonnais was shipwrecked off Yucatan. Most of the crew survived to reach shore, only for all of them to get killed soon thereafter when Spanish soldiers found and fell upon them. L’Olonnais survived by covering himself in blood and viscera, and hiding among the dead. Later, he snuck into a nearby town which was celebrating the killing of the pirates, and arranged for an escape back to Tortuga.
He resumed his depredations against Spain, and in 1666 assembled a fleet of 8 ships and 440 pirates to attack Maracaibo in modern Venezuela. En route, he came across and looted a Spanish treasure ship, which yielded 260,000 Spanish dollars, in addition to gemstones and cocoa beans. It was a prelude to the most monstrous act of his career.