Henry Morgan (1635?-1688)- English navigator, “Sky admiral”, later vice-governor of the island of Jamaica, who actively pursued English colonial policy.
He was born in Wales into a landowning family. But, having no inclination to continue his father’s business, according to legend, he hired himself as a cabin boy on a ship sailing to Barbados, where he was allegedly sold into slavery for three years to pay for the crossing of the Atlantic.
In any case, this is what is written in Exquemelin’s book “Pirates of America,” but Henry Morgan himself always denied this fact. Energetic and tight-fisted, in three or four campaigns he accumulated a small capital and, together with several comrades, bought a ship. Morgan was chosen as captain, and his first independent trip to the shores of Spanish America brought him the glory of a successful leader, after which other pirate ships began to join him. This made it possible to move from the robbery of single ships at sea to more profitable operations to capture cities, which provided a significant increase in the treasures obtained.
Having assembled a flotilla of twelve ships with a crew of British and French totaling up to seven hundred people, ready for anything, Morgan attacked the city of El Puerto del Principe on the island of Cuba and, despite the desperate resistance of the Spaniards, who were well acquainted with the customs of pirates, captured his. The pirates plundered the city and, in addition, took a ransom of five hundred head of cattle.
After several successful raids on small towns, but which provided little income for the pirate fraternity, Morgan decided to take possession of the large, rich city of Maracaibo. The further development of events formed the basis of one of the chapters of the book Rafael Sabatini"Captain Blood's Odyssey." The population, warned by the defector, left the city in advance and carried away and hid all property and valuables. Having captured the city, the pirates immediately went to the surrounding forests in search of prey and residents, realizing that they could not get far from the city. They captured the townspeople and subjected them all to terrible torture, seeking information about hidden valuables. Some were simply tortured and beaten; others were tortured by St. Andrew, that is, they drove burning wicks between their fingers and toes; the third had a rope tied around their necks so that their eyes popped out of their foreheads and became “like chicken eggs”; the fourth had their feet put into the fire, having previously smeared them with lard, so that the people immediately burst into flames; fifths were hung by their genitals and repeatedly beaten with sabers, etc.
After spending five weeks in Gibraltar, the pirates decided to leave the city, but it turned out that three Spanish warships were waiting for them at the exit from the lagoon into the sea, and the Maracaibo fortress was fortified and had a well-armed garrison.
To break through, the pirates resorted to a trick - they released a fire-ship, which connected with the ship of the squadron commander and exploded, destroying the Spanish ship. Seeing this, the captain of the second ship rushed under the cover of the fort and ran aground, and the pirates boarded the third. After this, Morgan created the appearance of attacking the fort from land, forcing the Spaniards to drag cannons from the coastline, and at night he ordered the anchors to be raised and, with a favorable ebb of tide, slipped past the fort with almost no losses.
The pirates quickly squandered their stolen goods, and, convinced of this, Morgan decided to organize a new campaign. On January 18, 1671, he set out for Panama. Morgan had thirty-six ships and thirty-two canoes, containing twelve hundred men. This time they did not take any food supplies with them, hoping to get some on the way. On the tenth day they approached Panama and rushed to storm the city. The battle was fierce, and the pirates suffered heavy losses, but despite this, by the evening they captured the city, exterminating all those resisting. By order of Morgan, the pirates set fire to the sacked city, and since most of the two thousand houses were wooden, Panama turned into a heap of ash.
Morgan divided the pirates into two groups, one of which went into the surrounding forests to catch the inhabitants of the city, and the other, on ships and canoes, went to sea to intercept ships heading to Panama with cargo.
Both groups zealously got down to business, and in a few days several hundred prisoners of different sexes, conditions and ages were captured in the forests, and many ships with gold, silver, food supplies and various goods were boarded.
Having stayed in Panama for three weeks and conscientiously plundered everything that was possible on water and land, Morgan left the city on February 24, 1671 with his army, leading fifty mules loaded with silver and many captives to be sold into slavery.
All historical chronicles say that Morgan, who lived in Panama at the time of her robbery in the governor's palace, of course, did not deprive himself of female society. But one of the most beautiful women in the city (no one mentions her name), whom he kept captive in the palace, rejected him. Neither promises nor threats had any effect on her, and everyone was surprised to see a spectacle, unprecedented for those times, that he did not dare to take her by force. And on the way back to Chagres, Morgan returned her freedom without any reward and even gave her security to escort the Spaniard home. In a dark era, this chivalrous act seems like a bright romantic flower.
Soon after returning to Jamaica, Morgan was arrested. The fact is that on the eve of the expedition's departure to Panama in 1670, the Treaty of Madrid was signed in Europe between England and Spain. Governor Thomas Modyford sent a courier to Morgan with this news and with an order to cancel the expedition, but the courier was late: on December 16, 1670, Morgan left the shores of Haiti on his most famous campaign. Modyford informed his patron, Lord Arlington, about this, and also notified that he had sent another ship to search for Morgan and expressed the hope that the second courier would be able to intercept Morgan and prevent his filibusters from committing hostile actions against the Spaniards.
Henry Morgan (born January 24, 1635 - died August 25, 1688) is one of the most famous English pirates from the island of Jamaica, who in 1668-1671. was the universally recognized king of the pirates of the Caribbean. He became famous for the seizures and robberies of the cities of Puerto Principe (modern Camagüey) in Cuba, Puerto Bello on the Isthmus of Panama, Maracaibo and Gibraltar in Venezuela and Panama.
Origin
Its origins and appearance in the West Indies are still shrouded in mystery. Exquemelin claimed that Morgan ended up there as an indentured servant, having been sold on a Barbados plantation. But British researchers do not agree with this, and this was denied by Morgan himself, who stated that he had never been anyone's servant except His Majesty.
Henry appears to have been the nephew of the Lieutenant Governor of Jamaica, Sir Edward Morgan. After 1665, Henry Morgan married his cousin Mary Elizabeth Morgan, the second daughter and fourth child of Sir Edward and his wife, who in turn was the daughter of the Saxon nobleman Johann Georg, Baron von Poelnitz, and the Dutchwoman Anna Petronella van Hell.
The first mention of Morgan. Plunder of cities
The governor of Jamaica, Sir Thomas Modyford, first mentioned Morgan in August 1665 in a report to the Duke of Albemarle, when he wrote about a detachment of Jamaican filibusters that sailed from late 1663 with a letter of marque from Lord Windsor. The detachment numbered approximately 150 people, led by captains David Maarten, Jacob Fakman (Jacob Jackman), Henry Morgan, Freeman and John Morris.
The British archive preserves Modyford's detailed report on this expedition, compiled on September 20, 1665, based on the testimony of three captains - Morris, Fakman and Morgan. This report indicated that their detachment first operated in Mexico, where they robbed the Spanish city of Villa Hermosa, then arrived in the Gulf of Honduras and there captured the city of Trujillo. From there, the filibusters went to the coast of Nicaragua, entered the river. San Juan and, penetrating Lake Nicargua, plundered the city of Granada. 1665, summer - loaded with booty, they returned safely to Port Royal.
1668 January - The Council of Jamaica approved the governor's proposal to issue Captain Morgan a special assignment "to gather English privateers and capture prisoners of the Spanish nation, through which he could learn about the enemy's intentions to invade Jamaica." This order essentially authorized the pirate actions of the Jamaican filibusters against the subjects of the Spanish crown.
Having gathered a flotilla of 12 ships with a crew of 700 people off the southern coast of Cuba, Morgan decided to attack the city of Puerto Principe (modern Camagüey), which is located in the interior of Cuba. Having defeated a Spanish detachment on the approaches to Puerto Principe, Morgan and his men burst into the city. According to Spanish sources, Puerto Principe was captured by pirates on Good Thursday, March 29, 1668, at dawn; At the same time, about 100 soldiers and militia were killed in the battle. Having captured the city, the filibusters drove all the Spaniards and their slaves into two churches - La Merced and San Francisco - and they themselves went to plunder abandoned houses. During the pogrom, the city archive with documents and valuable church books were burned or perhaps stolen.
Morgan interrogates prisoners
When there was nothing and no one to rob, the pirates decided to leave. But before leaving, Morgan demanded a ransom from the Spaniards - 500 head of cattle. He took with him six of the noblest inhabitants as hostages and left the city on April 1. The proceeds from this expedition amounted to 50 thousand piastres in gold, silver and various goods.
1668, June - With only 460 men under his command, Morgan attacked the city of Puerto Bello. Having plundered this flourishing city and taking a ransom from the townspeople - 100 thousand piastres - Morgan loaded money, treasures, valuable goods, captured cannons and food onto the ships, after which he set off for the Jardines de la Reina islands. There the filibusters divided the spoils. According to the Spanish ambassador in London, "the share of each soldier was 600 (ounces), or 80 pounds in half-crown ounces, from which it is possible to imagine how much could go to the officers, the governor and their proxies."
By the beginning of the autumn of 1668, the pirates who took part in the campaign against Puerto Bello had squandered their stolen wealth in Port Royal and were determined to undertake a new expedition to the shores of America. Their next victim was supposed to be Cartagena, but due to the loss of the flagship frigate Oxford, which exploded during a party near the island of Vash, Morgan changed his original plan and decided to attack the cities of Maracaibo and Gibraltar in Venezuela. Repeating the “feat” of François Ohlone, he completely destroyed these cities, and when leaving, he defeated the Spanish Armada de Barlovento, which blocked his path. The writer Rafael Sabatini later masterfully portrayed these events in his novel “The Odyssey of Captain Blood.”
Admiral and Commander-in-Chief Henry Morgan
Returning to Port Royal, the pirates, as always, quickly squandered the money they had earned during the campaign and were ready to set off on a new expedition. 1670, June 29 - after receiving a report of a raid by Spanish corsairs on the Jamaican coast, an emergency meeting of the Council of Jamaica was convened in Spanish Town. The council decided to "grant a commission of marque to Admiral Henry Morgan to be admiral and commander-in-chief of all warships attached to this harbor, and all officers, soldiers and sailors attached to them." In addition, Morgan was allowed to attack Spanish ships, storm fortresses and capture cities.
According to the “True Account of the Expedition of Admiral Henry Morgan against the Spaniards in the West Indies in the Year 1670,” written on the basis of the admiral’s own report, on September 2 he arrived at the island of Vash, the designated rendezvous point for all filibusters of the Caribbean. Edward Collier, commander of the frigate Satisfaction, was elected rear admiral of the fleet. A few days later, Morgan dispatched Collier to the coast of New Granada with a flotilla of six ships carrying 400 men. This detachment was to obtain food and information from the Spaniards “about the impending Spanish invasion of Jamaica.”
Collier returned to Vash Island in November with two Spanish prizes and 38 prisoners.
“Morgan’s ships were ready,” says Exquemelin, “they weren’t waiting for anyone else... Now the entire flotilla consisted of 37 ships and several small barges.”
Trek to Panama
Henry Morgan: 17th century engraving
Early December - Morgan gathered his captains aboard the flagship frigate Satisfaction. At the military council, the officers decided to make a campaign against Panama, of which they notified the admiral in writing. The text of this decision was sent to Modyford. The governor received it when he already knew about peace with Spain. And yet, according to the testimony of John Peake (Morgan's secretary), the governor did not cancel this expedition.
On the way to the Isthmus of Panama, a flotilla of pirates captured the island of Santa Catalina (modern Providencia), where they found several guides who knew how to get through the isthmus to Panama. Morgan then selected 470 volunteers and sent them aboard 4 ships and 1 barge to capture the fort of San Lorenzo de Chagres. This fortification covered the entrance to the mouth of the river. Chagres, where the pirates planned to begin their journey across the isthmus. The vanguard was led by Flotilla Vice Admiral Joseph Bradley, who boarded the frigate Mayflower. The fort was taken after a fierce battle, which cost the lives of many pirates, including Bradley.
Meanwhile, Morgan, who was on the Santa Catalina, ordered the anchors to be weighed. Having entered the open sea, the pirate flotilla headed for the fortress of San Lorenzo. Having repaired the captured fort, Morgan decided to immediately prepare for a campaign across the isthmus. On January 8 (according to Morgan - “on Monday the 9th”) a detachment of 1200 to 1400 people set out on an unprecedented campaign across the Isthmus of Panama. Because this campaign and the fierce battle under the walls of Panama, which took place on January 18, 1671, have been described more than once by different authors, we will omit the story about it and see what happened after that.
When the filibusters entered Panama, the entire city was already in flames. Exquemelin claimed that pirates set him on fire. His information is refuted by the author of the “True Report...”, who wrote that upon entering the city, “we were forced to throw all our strength into extinguishing the fire that engulfed the houses of our enemies, which they themselves set on fire, so as not to give us the opportunity to rob them; but all our efforts were in vain, for by midnight the whole city was burned, except for part of the suburbs, which, thanks to great efforts, we managed to save, including two churches and about 300 houses.
The filibusters stood all night in the outskirts of Panama, and at dawn they re-entered the city - or rather, what was left of it. The wounded were taken to the church of one of the monasteries, around which arsenals were built and a gun battery was installed.
After staying in Panama for three weeks and “faithfully plundering everything that came to his hand on water and land,” Morgan ordered preparations to leave. 1671, February 14 - the filibusters left the city, leading 175 mules loaded with broken and chased silver, as well as hostages - 500 or 600 men, women, children and slaves.
The booty that Morgan took in Panama could have been worth 6 million escudos. Morgan himself estimated the entire loot at 30 thousand pounds sterling. According to the chief surgeon of the expedition, Richard Brown, the silver and other valuable loot cost about 70 thousand pounds sterling, not counting other rich goods, but people were deceived, each received only 10 pounds, not counting the black slaves. Be that as it may, the most ambitious campaign of the West Indies filibusters brought them a relatively modest income.
Returning to Port Royal, Morgan compiled a report on the Panamanian expedition on April 20, which was presented to the Governor and Council of Jamaica. On May 31, a meeting of the Jamaican Council was held in Spanish Town, whose members publicly thanked the admiral.
In Spain, the news of the fall of Panama made a stunning impression. The English ambassador William Godolphin wrote that the Queen Regent was “so upset, sobbing bitterly and rushing about in rage, that those who were next to her were afraid that this would shorten her life.” The Anglo-Spanish treaty, signed on July 8, 1670, was in jeopardy. Godolphin tried to reassure the Spanish ministers, assuring that his government had nothing to do with the “Panamanian action.” The government of Charles II placed all the blame for the burning of Panama on the governor of Jamaica. The new governor of the island, Sir Thomas Lynch, received an order to arrest Modyford and send him to England for trial. In November, the disgraced governor was placed in prison, where, however, he was kept in complete comfort.
Lieutenant Governor of Jamaica
1672, April - Morgan was sent to England on board the frigate Wellcome. No charges were brought against him, because it was believed that he was carrying out instructions from the official authorities. As for the former Jamaican governor, the court treated him favorably: it was not possible to “prove” his guilt. The case of the “Panamanian action” eventually turned into a farce and ended with Charles II appointing Modyford as chief justice of Jamaica, and knighting Morgan (in November 1674) and sending him there as lieutenant governor. In making such an unusual decision, the monarch took into account “his loyalty, prudence and courage, as well as his long acquaintance with this colony.”
For 14 years, Morgan served as lieutenant governor of Jamaica, all the time conflicting with the governors appointed there. He was reproached for secret deals with pirates and behavior unworthy of a royal officer. In the end, the former king of the filibusters drank himself to death and became seriously ill. The famous doctor and collector, founder of the British Museum Hans Sloane, who lived in Jamaica in those years, was invited to examine the sick ex-filibuster. He found Morgan “thin, with a sallow complexion, yellowish eyes, and a prominent or bulging belly.” The patient complained of lack of appetite, weakness, nausea and diarrhea. Sloan decided that the culprit was “drinking and [loose] nightlife.”
Death of Sir Henry Morgan
Morgan died in Port Royal on August 25, 1688. The next day his body was brought to the Port Royal government building, then to St. Catherine's Church, and from there to the Palisados cemetery, where he was interred. The ships in the harbor fired an artillery salute in his honor.
Thus, the former king of the filibusters of Jamaica was given admiral's honors.
They say that the family of the American tycoon John Pierpont Morgan later entered the name of the famous Jamaican filibuster into their pedigree and were very proud of this fact.
Wales 22x20px Wales
Biography
After serving his sentence, Morgan received his freedom and moved to Jamaica, where he joined a pirate gang. Over several campaigns, he accumulated a small capital and, with several comrades, bought a ship. Morgan was unanimously chosen as captain and his first independent campaign brought him the glory of a successful leader, after which other pirate ships began to join him. This made it possible to move from attacks by single ships at sea to more profitable operations to capture cities, which provided a significant increase in income. In 1665, he took part in attacks on the cities of Trujillo (in Honduras) and Grenada (in Nicaragua). Among the cities captured and plundered by Morgan were Puerto del Principe (modern Camagüey) in Cuba (1668), Puerto Bello (modern Portobello) on the Isthmus of Panama (1668), Maracaibo and Gibraltar (in Venezuela) (1669), Panama (1671), as well as the island of Santa Catalina (modern Providencia, Colombia) (1670).
Trek to Panama
In 1670, Morgan decided to organize a new campaign. He had 35 ships with almost 2,000 pirates on board. Having captured the Spanish fortress of San Lorenzo de Chagres on the Caribbean coast of the Isthmus of Panama, the filibusters set out for Panama on January 18, 1671. On the tenth day they approached Panama and, under its walls, entered into battle with the Spanish army. The Panama garrison numbered about 2,500 men, including cavalry units. By evening the city was taken, and all those who resisted were exterminated.
Having stayed in Panama for three weeks and plundered everything that was possible on water and land, Morgan left the city on February 24, 1671 with his army, leading 157 mules loaded with silver and many prisoners to be sold into slavery.
On Morgan's orders, the pirates set the sacked city on fire, and since most of the 2,000 houses were made of wood, Panama was reduced to a pile of ash.
Lieutenant Governor of Jamaica
Soon after returning to Jamaica, Morgan was arrested (during his campaign, England and Spain concluded a peace treaty) and, together with the recalled governor Thomas Modyford, who actively contributed to his predatory campaigns, was sent to England. Everyone thought that the royal court would hang the pirate on the gallows for all his sins, but the court could not forget the services rendered to him. After a mock trial, a decision was made: "Guilty has not been proven". Morgan was sent back to Jamaica to serve as Lieutenant Governor and Commander-in-Chief of its navy.
Morgan died of cirrhosis of the liver in 1688 and was solemnly buried in Port Royal in St. Catherine's Church. Four years later, on June 7, 1692, a powerful earthquake occurred and Sir Henry Morgan's grave sank into the depths of the sea.
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Literature
- Gubarev, Victor. Pirates of the Caribbean: Lives of Famous Captains. - M.: Eksmo, Yauza, 2009.
- Gubarev, Victor. Jamaican filibusters: the era of the "great marches". - M.: Veche, 2011.
- Gubarev, Victor. Henry Morgan. - M.: Young Guard, 2014.
- Ekskvemelin, A.O. Pirates of America. - M.: Mysl, 1968.
- John Ernst Steinbeck."The Golden Cup": Biography of Sir Henry Morgan, filibuster, with some references to history. (eng. Cup of Gold) (1929)
- Vicente Riva Palacio. Pirates of the Gulf of Mexico. - M: Scythians. 1991.
Links
- - original version of the article.
- (English)
Excerpt characterizing Morgan, Henry
I was very sorry that she interrupted this magically flowing narrative!.. But kind, emotional Stella apparently was not able to calmly withstand such stunning news...Isidora only smiled brightly at her... and we saw another, but even more stunning, picture...
In a marvelous marble hall, a fragile black-haired girl was spinning... With the ease of a fairy fairy, she danced some kind of bizarre dance that only she understood, at times suddenly jumping up a little and... hovering in the air. And then, having made an intricate feast and smoothly flown several steps, she came back again, and everything began from the beginning... It was so amazing and so beautiful that Stella and I took our breath away!..
And Isidora just smiled sweetly and calmly continued her interrupted story.
– My mother was a hereditary Sage. She was born in Florence - a proud, free city... in which there was only as much of its famous “freedom” as the Medici, although fabulously rich, but (unfortunately!) not omnipotent, hated by the church, could protect it. And my poor mother, like her predecessors, had to hide her Gift, since she came from a very rich and very influential family, in which it was more than undesirable to “shine” with such knowledge. Therefore, she, just like her mother, grandmother and great-grandmother, had to hide her amazing “talents” from prying eyes and ears (and more often than not, even from friends!), otherwise, if the fathers of her future suitors found out about it, she would remain unmarried forever, which in her family would be considered the greatest disgrace. Mom was very strong, a truly gifted healer. And while still very young, she secretly treated almost the entire city for ailments, including the great Medici, who preferred her to their famous Greek doctors. However, very soon the “glory” about my mother’s “stormy successes” reached the ears of her father, my grandfather, who, of course, did not have a very positive attitude towards this kind of “underground” activity. And they tried to get my poor mother married as soon as possible, in order to wash away the “brewing shame” of her entire frightened family...
Whether it was an accident, or someone somehow helped, but my mother was very lucky - she was married to a wonderful man, a Venetian magnate, who... himself was a very strong sorcerer... and whom you see with us now.. .
With shining, moist eyes, Isidora looked at her amazing father, and it was clear how much and selflessly she loved him. She was a proud daughter, with dignity carrying her pure, bright feeling through the centuries, and even there, far away, in her new worlds, she did not hide or be ashamed of it. And only then did I realize how much I wanted to become like her!.. And in her power of love, and in her power as a Sage, and in everything else that this extraordinary bright woman carried within herself...
And she calmly continued to talk, as if not noticing either our “overflowing” emotions or the “puppy” delight of our souls that accompanied her wonderful story.
– That’s when my mother heard about Venice... My father spent hours telling her about the freedom and beauty of this city, about its palaces and canals, about secret gardens and huge libraries, about bridges and gondolas, and much, much more. And my impressionable mother, without even seeing this wonderful city, fell in love with it with all her heart... She couldn’t wait to see this city with her own eyes! And very soon her dream came true... Her father brought her to a magnificent palace, full of faithful and silent servants, from whom there was no need to hide. And, starting from that day, mom could spend hours doing her favorite thing, without fear of being misunderstood or, even worse, insulted. Her life became pleasant and secure. They were a truly happy married couple, who gave birth to a girl exactly one year later. They called her Isidora... It was me.
I was a very happy child. And, as far as I can remember, the world has always seemed beautiful to me... I grew up surrounded by warmth and affection, among kind and attentive people who loved me very much. Mom soon noticed that I had a powerful Gift, much stronger than her own. She began to teach me everything that she knew and that her grandmother taught her. And later my father also became involved in my “witch” upbringing.
I am telling you all this, dear ones, not because I want to tell you the story of my happy life, but so that you can better understand what will follow a little later... Otherwise, you will not feel all the horror and pain of what me and my family had to endure .
When I turned seventeen, rumors about me spread far beyond the borders of my hometown, and there was no end to those who wanted to hear their fate. I was very tired. No matter how gifted I was, the daily stress was exhausting, and in the evenings I literally collapsed... My father always objected to such “violence,” but my mother (she herself was once unable to fully use her gift) believed that I am in perfect order, and that I must honestly practice my talent.
The most brutal pirates who have ever set sail sailed the Caribbean Sea - pirates thirsting for adventure and blood, lured by the glitter of gold and treasures. And one of them was Henry Morgan, whose name terrified the whole new world. With each new discovery, the mystery of his life takes an increasingly strange turn. Why a Welsh farmer turned sea raider and then became a Royal Navy admiral and governor. This story is about the most famous pirate in the world.
Henry Morgan's early life contains many controversial issues. Historians believe he was born in 1635 in South Wales. Further traces of him were found several miles away in the old manor house of the Morgan family. He was the eldest son of an aristocratic family, but he was more interested in fighting than farming, since he was more comfortable with spears than with books. Henry Morgan was a product of the times in which he lived, having grown up during the English Civil War.
young Henry Morgan
His two uncles were officers in the English army, fighting on opposite sides, so young Henry studied military tactics. These abilities helped him in the future to gain a unique reputation as a pirate. However, how he became a Pirate of the Caribbean has always been considered a controversial issue. In 1655, a 20-year-old Henry Morgan was a member of the military expedition that took Jamaica from the Spaniards. Their goal was to capture the thriving Spanish trade full of American gold and silver. Due to its central location at sea and its wealth, Jamaica, ruled by the British, soon became a victim of raids by all sorts of pirates and cutthroats.
Rumors say that he left the British army and joined a group of pirates known as the Brethren of the Harbor Coast of Port Royal. A den of brothels, gambling establishments and taverns. Port Royal was known as the city of sins. From there, a motley gang of criminals spread chaos throughout the Caribbean, but for 10 years nothing was heard from Henry Morgan.
However, after 10 years Henry Morgan reappears with a gang that has come to plunder and burn Spanish cities in Mexico. He was successful in this gang, as they chose him as their leader - the king of the pirates.
By the age of 29, Henry Morgan was successful - he already had his own ship and his own secret island, Ile A Vache, located in the archipelago of the Haitian islands. This island was the perfect refuge. It contained a lot of food and drinking water from the lake lying in the depths of the island, thanks to which the pirate Henry Morgan could replenish the supplies of his ships. The island was considered a refuge, but its main function was as a meeting place. Here Henry Morgan gathered the most prominent pirates of the Caribbean under his command.
attack on the fortress of Porta Bella
The day came July 11, 1668, which turned the history of world piracy upside down. Henry Morgan and his small group of pirates stormed into the heart of the Spanish empire, attacking its base of Porta Bella, located on the coast of Panama and considered the most impregnable fortress in the Caribbean.
It was a vital entrepôt for Spanish ships carrying the wealth of South America to Europe, and naturally tempting the likes of Henry Morgan, but no one had ever taken the city before.
Three garrisoned fortresses surrounded the harbor. Sixty cannons were always ready to repel any conquerors. An attempt to take this city was tantamount to suicide, but Henry Morgan used cunning tactics that set him apart from the ranks of pirates of those times - a daring operation that amazed the Spaniards. With a small flotilla and a couple of hundred men, Captain Henry Morgan landed on a deserted island 150 miles from the target. He then sent his men out in small canoes, sailing only at night. Having reached the city of Porta Bella in four days, the pirates, under the cover of darkness, landed on the shores of its sleeping fortress and attacked, taking the Spaniards by surprise. Even before dawn Henry Morgan turned the city into a nightmare. Pirates attacked everything that moved. Henry Morgan used any method to take the city. He called on the city's defenders to surrender, otherwise there would be no mercy.
With this daring attack pirate Henry Morgan earned a reputation as a thunderstorm in the Caribbean, as the Spaniards considered the fortress impregnable. Morgan's men left, loading their sailing ships with gold and silver. Thus ended the most successful and most brutal pirate attack of all time.
By the way, it’s worth dwelling on the attitude of Morgan’s people, because there was no division or quarrel between them. The wounded received additional compensation, the rest received an equal share of the treasure. This allows you to understand how he acted Henry Morgan. His attacks were simply pirate tricks. The fact is that in the British archives there is a document called a letter of marque, which gives Henry Morgan the right to act against the Spaniards. In a word, the British government itself issued sanctions for the looting. In addition, the British governor of Jamaica supported Captain Morgan's attack on the Spanish cities for one simple reason: to be the governor of Jamaica in the 17th century means to be surrounded by enemies, so the best way to defend your island is to attack. So the British government made a deal with the pirates by hiring them, giving them letters of marque or otherwise licenses to kill.
The state sponsored piracy, and this was the only way to protect the British colony. Henry Morgan had official permission to attack Spanish cities on the condition that the British crown would receive part of the loot. This arrangement suited everyone. Henry Morgan made rapid progress in Jamaica. On the one hand he was supported by the governor, who needed his support, on the other by the Brothers of the Coast, who admired his courage and talents with a sword, pike and musket. The son of a simple farmer from Wales made a spectacular career for himself, but this is nothing compared to what happened next.
The King of England wanted to annoy the Spaniards and found an original way - he made Henry Morgan admiral of Jamaica. So the pirate leader became Admiral Henry Morgan. The title changed, but the methods remained the same - he continued to launch attacks on the Spaniards from his pirate base in Ile A Vache.
There were also incidents in the pirate's life, one of which occurred on his island, shortly after Henry Morgan became an admiral. It was January 1669. After a few months of the successful capture of Porta Bella, Captain Henry Morgan gathered the pirates at a council of war on his island. He planned an attack on another Spanish city. Recently another new beautiful ship joined his pirate flotilla. HMS Oxford" - a frigate with 34 guns. sent the royal navy and the pirate council agreed with Morgan's proposal. The joyful pirate invited everyone to stay for dinner. After the captains' meeting, everyone drank quite well, and someone went into the ship's powder magazine. Suddenly the frigate burst into flames and an explosion sounded. The ship was broken into pieces. More than 250 people died and only ten managed to survive, one of whom was Henry Morgan, who escaped with minor injuries. So " HMS Oxford"stood in Jamaica for only three months.
frigate HMS Oxford
The loss of the frigate did not stop the pirate admiral and he carried out his plans. In June 1670, the Spanish attacked Jamaica in an attempt to capture the island. This was exactly what Henry Morgan needed in order to carry out his most terrible plan with official support.
Henry Morgan was opening a new chapter in the history of maritime piracy, as his goal was to cut the veins of the Spanish Empire by taking the city of Panama - the Pacific gateway to the Spanish treasures of America. Admiral Henry Morgan gathered all his people on the island of Ile A Vache. This was a crew of the great pirates of the Caribbean themselves. In December 1670, a flotilla of 30 armed ships and 2,000 pirates landed on the shores of Panama, led by Henry Morgan, who arrived there on his new ship, the frigate " HMS Satisfaction».
First, the pirates had to take the well-defended fortress of Port San Lorenzo. Towers located at the mouth of the Chagres River protected the route leading to Panama. No one has ever captured this fortress. As in the case of Porta Bella, Henry Morgan ordered an attack from the shore and hit the fortress with a surprise attack. Captain Henry Morgan himself should appear on the frigate " HMS Satisfaction" Later. At first everything went according to the attack plan. His men pass the outposts and rush further, but the Spaniards were already waiting for them. Some spy warned about the attack in time. The battle turned out to be difficult and the losses on both sides were numerous. However, the pirates were victorious and raised the British flag over the fortress. This was the signal for Admiral Morgan and the remaining ships of the flotilla. hastily weighed anchor and set course for the harbor. However, the frigate " HMS Satisfaction"somehow approached the only reef in this harbor and crashed into it. Others also sit on the underwater rock. Four of the best frigates were shipwrecked. No one died, but it is considered the most bizarre shipwreck in the Caribbean. So Captain Henry Morgan lost his second flagship.
Henry Morgan remained unshaken and began his main part of the mission - an 80-mile march through difficult territory with the goal of capturing Panama. In a canoe he sails down the river with 1,600 armed pirates. They then make their way through the jungle on foot. And then it turned out that Henry Morgan had made a serious mistake in his calculations, believing that his people would be able to rob along the way, so he did not order to take enough food. From that moment on, the pirates' worst enemy was the terrain - impassable jungle, mountains, mosquitoes and lack of food. The exhausted people begin to rebel, but Henry Morgan relies on his charisma to save the day. He managed to convince everyone to move on. In addition, a new enemy appeared along the way - the Indians who hit the pirates with poison arrows. As a result, Henry Morgan lost 800 people. Soon the pirates come to the savannah and after a long nine days they reach Panama - the pearl of the Spanish colonial crown. But between the city and the pirates stood an army of 2,000 infantry and 500 cavalry, which was three times larger than Henry Morgan's army. The clash between the two armies did not last long, losing only 500 people, the Spaniards begged for mercy. Admiral Morgan won an incredible victory - it was the fight of his life. But the residents, in a desire to annoy the pirates, started a fire in the city. When the exhausted army entered the city, they discovered that there was no wealth in Panama. Having collected the remains of the loot, the pirates went to their ships. On the way back, Morgan's men begin to riot. Many of them believed that the admiral had deceived them. Noticing something was wrong, Henry Morgan loads significant loot onto his ship and sets off for Port Royal, leaving behind an enraged crowd of pirates. Upon returning home, everything turns against Admiral Morgan. The capture of Panama caused an international incident. Henry Morgan attracted too much attention.
In 1672, an order came to Port Royal from King Charles II, which stated that the Governor of Jamaica and Admiral Henry Morgan were ordered to be tried for crimes against another state, since England and Spain had recently signed a peace agreement. Henry Morgan was brought to London and placed under house arrest, which was a far cry from imprisonment.
The Caribbean storm was treated like a gentleman. High society revered him as a national hero. Everyone wanted to meet the man who shook the power of Spain. Soon the great pirate of the Caribbean receives even more approval. Three years later, the King of England, wanting to annoy the Spaniards for not treating them properly, released Henry Morgan from arrest, and at the same time made him a knight. He then appointed him governor of Jamaica, where he sent him with great honor.
Arriving in Jamaica in January 1676, Admiral Sir Henry Morgan faces a new challenge. Now the biggest threat to the island's merchant fleet was not the raids of the Spaniards, but the pirates.
How ironic that the British government ordered Henry Morgan to ruthlessly pursue pirates. But Admiral Sir Henry Morgan remains loyal to the pirates who served him early in his career. He never betrayed any of his comrades. Rich thanks to his past deeds, he began to live in a new way - the owner of a sugar plantation. Henry Morgan built a luxurious villa, but in 1680 the former pirate king became bored with the life of a bureaucrat, so he drank every night in the taverns of Port Royal.
At the end of August 1688, the British fleet celebrated the passing of a national hero with a salute in his honor. Admiral sir Henry Morgan died like a hero. In his last will, Morgan asked God to forgive his sins and bequeathed his pirate wealth to St. Peter's Church in Port Royal, where the treasures he looted are still kept.
Well, of course! How could it be possible not to recognize this “knight of fortune,” the ruler of the filibuster sea, distinguished not only by his extremely repulsive appearance and evil disposition, but also by his bad “wet” reputation even among pirates. For Morgan to kill a comrade or burn down a plundered city along with its inhabitants, it was as easy as for us, tired after long filming and sweaty from the tropical heat, to throw a glass of good rum down our throats... Speaking of drinking. Our guide in Cartagena quickly said something to the smiling Creole woman, and as if by magic, strong glass glasses appeared on the table. “Remember: if you want the same thing again - Cap-ten Mor-gan Black Label,” our guide said syllable by syllable. “I advise ladies to drink it with juice or cocoa.” The Jamaican rum went down my throat in a hot wave... “And they say that Morgan died a complete alcoholic,” one of us said. A short shadow from a truck passing by the windows came across the portrait of the great pirate.
But it’s true, that’s how it happened. But before that... The son of a wealthy farmer from Monmouth County, from a young age, was distinguished by an obstinate and quarrelsome disposition. At the age of 20, when he had already stopped turning a blind eye to the young man’s amusements, his patience finally snapped, and on May 3, 1655, Henry, in the company of green seekers of glory like himself and sea wolves who had seen everything, stepped onto the deck of an English ship, heading for West Indies. However, he had nothing to pay for the passage, and the cabin boy was sold to Barbados for debts. Seven long years of slavery not only made him a professional sugar cane harvester, but also taught him the law of the jungle - eat it yourself, or... Since then, this “or” has been felt the hard way not only by the victims of his robberies. The wild fellow, having tasted need, went to make up for lost time for “real manly affairs” in a multilingual gang of sea tramps. Beginning in 1662, he learned the art of filibustering in practice in Jamaica and off the coast of Honduras, burning property belonging to the Spaniards and filling his pockets with confiscated silver. Very quickly, strong fists and scandalous fame allowed him to put together a squad of thugs around his determined person, and already at the age of 29, Morgan, nicknamed Red, commanded his own ship under the grin of the Jolly Roger. He made his career quickly. In addition to the well-deserved authority among the bandits, his uncle, Colonel Edward Morgan, who was appointed in 1644 as vice-governor of Jamaica, an English colony with the notorious reputation of a large pirate base, where the rabble of all nationalities squandered their loot on women and booze, while repairing their ships and replenishing food supplies. The official authorities did not even formally try to “scold” the weather-beaten vagabonds: since the time of Elizabeth, the first part of British foreign policy was to cause as much trouble as possible to the Spanish colonies on the American continent, and there is nothing to say about the confiscation of looted gold. The Spanish caravels were like clams filled with treasure, and the pirates knew how to open them professionally, lining their pockets and replenishing the royal treasury in London. Henry Morgan was simply tireless in this role: becoming the head of an entire robber flotilla, he captured several scows loaded with precious logwood off the Mexican coast; the Spanish settlement of Rio Garta was ravaged right on market day, seizing all the goods; and then reached Granada, placing his army on Indian pies. After two years of such vigorous activity, children began to be frightened by his name, but Morgan suddenly slowed down, settled in Jamaica and even got married. Have you really calmed down? No matter how it is. It’s just that his uncle’s influence was not enough to elevate him to the rank of unrecognized pirate admiral, and his main rival, Edward Mansfelt, had to be eliminated in some other way. In 1668, he suddenly died from acute poisoning, and Morgan again went to sea.
Is it worth listing all his exploits? Perhaps it would be presumptuous to pose such a task. But the three most striking deeds of the “greatest scoundrel of the era of scoundrels” are worth mentioning. Morgan was the first of the Caribbean pirates to understand that the capture of large, well-defended settlements on the coast promises much larger prey than fishing at sea. “Where the Spaniards resist, there is something to profit from. The most fortified cities are the richest,” he argued, planning his future landings. And, one cannot but admit, he proved himself to be a good commander.
Having gutted the town of Moroccaibo, the satisfied pirates were about to return to the Jamaican base, but their path to the open sea was blocked by Spanish warships. Morgan was offered the opportunity, in exchange for prisoners (ransom was also a profitable item) and the return of the loot, to go home. But the corsairs themselves turned to the leader with a demand to send the Spaniards to hell. By order of Morgan, they filled their largest ship from hold to deck with gunpowder, picturesquely placed stuffed animals in cocked hats and with sabers near the masts, installed painted blocks instead of cannons, raised an English flag on the mainsail and launched this creation towards the Spaniards. It was twilight, so they saw in the boldly approaching ship a desire to board. As the ships approached, an explosion of sulfur and tar lit up the sea like daylight. Panic allowed the pirates to actually board the second Spanish warship, and they sank the third, so as not to fall to the sea bandits. Such a strategy could not but arouse admiration. And there was even one Spanish grandee, who was inspired by respect for the enemy with the daring idea of challenging him to a knightly duel. Captain Manuel Pardal widely notified the entire Caribbean public that he was ready to cross his spirited noble sword with Henry Morgan. Whether the insidious pirate laughed at this, history is silent, but fate soon brought the opponents together at the mouth of the Chagres River, where the pirates took a liking to the tasty fortress of San Lorenzo. There is no doubt that the Spaniard drew his sword. But they found him after meeting with a pirate with a bullet through his neck.
However, this episode seems like a nice anecdote against the backdrop of the treachery shown by Morgan in taking another point on the Spanish Gold Coast. In May 1668, having anchored his ships and transferred his thugs to canoes, he suddenly attacked Portobelo by land. Having believed the intelligence data and managed to lock the city, its defenders, led by the commandant, resisted with the despair of the doomed. After several bloody but unsuccessful assault attempts, the pirate caught nuns in a nearby monastery and forced them to carry him up the stairs to the warriors. When they managed not only to climb up, but also to break through the wall of Portobello, the “human shield” was simply cut. But even after the frantic robbery, the troubles for the city residents did not end: for two weeks the pirates drank half to death in local taverns, stole churches stone by stone and had fun with the surviving female sex. They left only after the governor of Panama scraped together a ransom of 100 thousand piastres. However, the official, having fulfilled his duty, could not resist asking a naive question - how did the filibusters manage to take the outpost without a proper siege and guns? Even more stupid on his part was to ask Morgan to send him a sample of the “secret weapon” that ensured such success. The pirate, by the same courier, sent him a pistol with several bullets and a promise to personally show him how to use it. In about a year.
You can't say anything, this time Morgan kept his word. He knew that Panama was like a large transit warehouse for jewelry and gold from Peru, plundered by the Spaniards, and its cathedral had a huge amount of unique utensils. However, the local garrison was considered almost the strongest. Secretly, Morgan sent his recruiters to the hottest places, knowing that his name would serve as the best advertisement, and the pirates did not need to know about the specific goal, so that information about the campaign would not reach Spanish intelligence. All the strong-fisted ragamuffins of the Caribbean, white settlers and even wild bull riders responded to the call. In addition to these lost souls, Morgan had at his disposal a mighty fleet of 37 ships, the largest of which carried 8 sails and 32 cannons. However, in this enterprise it was risky for the sea robber to rely only on his extraordinary luck. And he came up with a deceptive maneuver: to come not from the sea, where they could have expected him, but from land. Having selected about one and a half thousand “normal heroes” capable of making a detour through the jungle lightly without food, but with ammunition, on January 18, 1671, he set off. Meanwhile, the Spaniards nevertheless found out about his daring plan and used scorched earth tactics: in the village gardens on the isthmus, even unripe fruits were torn off, and every now and then the Indians jumped on the bandits. But bewitched by the dream of prey, the corsairs continued their hungry march through the jungle. Leather belts and bags were crushed into noodles, mashed with stones and boiled with roots and leaves in swamp water, and the pangs of hunger and indigestion were alleviated by the unrestrained use of tobacco. There was no other consolation: Morgan, who knew firsthand the tastes of his army, banned the use of alcohol, lying that all of it was deliberately poisoned by the Spaniards. After 9 days, luck fell on them: they came across a herd of cows on the way. However, for fear that smoke and fire would reveal their location, fires were also prohibited - beef was consumed raw. Having barely refreshed themselves, the ragged and exhausted pirates came out to the edge of the forest and saw what a luxurious welcome the Spaniards had prepared for them. Against the backdrop of the towers of Panama, cavalry pranced, polished cuirasses shone, and blacks unnerved a herd of wild bulls, preparing to give the newcomers a fun bullfight. But in Red Morgan lived an excellent commander. Having lined up his brutal men in a diamond formation in the wild forest, which did not allow them to be attacked from the rear and flanks, he gave the command “fire!” Kneeling down on one knee, the pirates opened heavy fire, each shooter having ten guns in reserve, which were reloaded inside the diamond. The Spaniards were literally mowed down, only 50 horsemen escaped. The bulls were simply scared away with screams and flags, and they rushed to trample their own. Even the cannons from the walls of Panama did not stop the furious assault that followed. Then everything went as expected - robbery, fires, on the fire of which the pirates melted gold from luxurious clothes into bullion. But the promised treasures, evacuated by the residents ahead of time, could not be found. Morgan tortured prisoners, regardless of age and skin color: he put them feet first in the fire, squeezed their heads until their eyes rolled out of their sockets, tore them in half, hanging stones from their feet. All this seemed not enough. A conspiracy was brewing among the corsairs. Then the great pirate ordered to return, loading all the loot onto 175 mules. Already in the harbor, he announced: “We will share honestly,” and carried out a general search, turning out his pockets and pulling off his boots to be convincing. It worked. And the day before the appointed division, he loaded the lion’s share, worth 500 thousand reais, onto his flagship and sailed away, abandoning his comrades to the mercy of fate.
A surprise awaited Morgan in Jamaica: since he attacked Panama exactly a week after the conclusion of the peace treaty between Spain and England, they demanded that the bandit be punished. Sent under escort to London, he expected the worst. However, instead of trial, Charles II knighted him and sent him back with the rank of chief judge, ordering him to fight piracy mercilessly. (Morgan had been lucky before: once, during a military council on the high seas on his flagship, one of the sailors drunkenly fired into a white light and fell into the powder compartment. The ship flew into the air, everyone on board died, only Red himself survived and the captains sitting with him at the table.)
But the aged Sir Henry Morgan, who was removed from the governorship of Jamaica some time later for incurable embezzlement, apparently was simply tired. He even began to encourage his former colleagues to take advantage of the royal amnesty and retrain as peaceful planters. Doctor Hans Sloan diagnosed this fat man with a bluish complexion with tuberculosis and cirrhosis of the liver as a result of excessive drinking. Henry Morgan, who died on August 25, 1688, was buried in Jamaica with all the honors due to a high-ranking nobleman. But is this how the corsair should have ended his journey? Of course, not so... Four years later, during an earthquake, a huge voracious wave washed away the cemetery along with his grave. The sea took what was rightfully due to it, and took with it the secret of Morgan's treasure, which the flock of sobbing household members could not reveal.
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Where are they now, pirate treasures? Searchers are tirelessly searching for the same flagship that blew up after a drunken shooting, scouring Cocos Island in the equatorial Pacific Ocean and the Cayman Islands northwest of Jamaica, where the pirate often holed up in caves, even raised his schooner "Merchant" from the bottom of the Caribbean Jamaica". So far it's no use. Not fifteen - many more people lick in vain at the dead man's chest. Yo-ho-ho...
The incessant surf of the ocean covered in eerie legends still makes noise, and the red-haired pirate continues to grin mysteriously from a portrait in a tavern in Colombian Cartagena, while someone pours the scalding rum named after him down his throat.
