6. Blackbeard the pirate proved a difficult man to kill
The tales of Edward Teach, sometimes named Thatch, were many in his lifetime and remain many today, with fact and fiction often intertwined. That he was greatly feared during his career is indisputable, given credence by the fact that he held an entire city (Charleston, South Carolina) hostage for a period of time, using the threat of his own fearsome reputation to cow the community leaders into submission. He was ferocious in battle, offering no quarter to those who opposed him, and added to his frightening image by wearing slow-burning fuses around his beard, which wreathed his face in glowing sparks and black smoke. A powerfully built man, who carried six pistols and a heavy cutlass, he projected an intimidating image to any who dared to stand in his way.
In his final battle, against Lieutenant Robert Maynard and his hand-picked crews, Blackbeard was separated from his own men and surrounded by adversaries. Although his heavier cutlass easily broke Maynard’s lighter rapier, the pirate sustained wounds inflicted by gunfire and bladed weapons. Blackbeard fell to the bloodied deck of the ship several times, only to rise again and continue to fight. When he finally lay still long enough to be approached he was beheaded. An examination of the pirate’s body revealed twenty wounds from blades and that the pirate had sustained no fewer than five bullet wounds, as well as bludgeoning injuries. The corpse was unceremoniously thrown overboard and Blackbeard’s head was suspended from the bowsprit to provide proof that Maynard’s men had in truth killed the pirate, and were thus entitled to a reward.