5. Commanding the Caribbean’s Most Powerful Pirate Ship
In 1717, Benjamin Hornigold was riding high, commanding the Carribbean’s most powerful ship, a 30 gun sloop named the Ranger. It allowed him to prey on shipping with impunity. His first mate was Blackbeard, and his protégées and acquaintances included other future notorious pirates such as Black Sam Bellamy and Stede Bonnet.
Hornigold operated mainly around the Bahamas, and his base of operations was Nassau, a notorious pirates’ nest. Hornigold and a bitter rival, Henry Jennings, transformed Nassau into a de facto Pirates’ Republic, governed by its own code of conduct and regulations. The depredations and havoc issuing from there finally forced the British authorities to send a governor, with a Royal Navy squadron, to restore order in the Bahamas and end the scourge of piracy.