Pirates 9: Blood Family

Orick and Ishak, became pirates for the Ottoman Empire. Being Muslim, they had grown tired of the harassment and raids from the hospitallers, a Christian military order, and other Christian crusaders. When the Spanish crowns had taken nearly all land previously under Muslim rule, the decision to join bands of privateers or pirates for higher was easy. The last stronghold, Granada fell in January of four two, causing Jewish and Muslim

settlers to flee to avoid persecution. Aside from raiding ships oric fairy Jewish and Muslim people to North Africa, where he hoped that they would find safety. The people he transported called him Baba Orik. Europeans thought they said Barbarossa, and the name stuck. By fifteen o four, he and Kazir operated from the island of Jerba. The brothers asked for Abu Abdala Mohammed the Fourth's permission to use the port at Latoulette. The ruler agreed in exchange for one

third of their plunder. They captured a Sicilian warship full of Spanish soldiers on their way to Naples, a Spanish colony at the time. In fifteen o five, the brothers expanded their raids to Spanish and Portuguese shipping operations. Ishak joined his brothers in fifteen o nine. After several battles and raids, the Barbarossa brothers earned a reputation as fierce warriors,

taking twenty three ships in a single month. When the Sultan of the Ottoman Empire died in fifteen fifteen, the trio led the new regime and headed back to North Africa. They continued their fights against the Spanish and also fought against other Europeans looking to claim coastal territories. The Spanish continued to lose land share and fled to Pennan Island off the coast of Algiers. Many wrote to Spain's King, Charles the Fifth, asking for help removing the Barbarossa brothers

from North Africa. So the king sent forces to take back Algiers. Although the brothers fought valiantly, Oric and Ishak both died in battle. Spain reclaimed the land in fifteen eighteen. Kazir continued with his brother's mission. His large following of pirates called him hey Redden, which meant goodness of the faith. It took him another five years to accomplish his brother's work. In fifteen twenty three, he and his men drove out

the hospitallers that harassed and raided Muslim ships. Hey Reddin Barbarossa continued his raids against the Spanish for years to come. He retired from piracy in fifteen forty five, leaving his son to carry on the family business. But family isn't relegated to just genetics and blood. Sometimes it's the people who enter our lives in any random encounter who change everything. We build on the relationship and it weathers a lifetime.

The bond and connection become so powerful we forge new families. We often envisioned pirates as ruthless individuals, lone wolves who turn their backs on family for a chance at treasure and adventure. And while that might be true for a few, there are countless stories of those who discovered that love ran deeper than the very seas they sailed. I'm Aaron Manky and welcome two pirates. When Sam Bellamy left his beloved Mary to seek his fortune, we know he didn't

do it alone. And William Kidd managed to have a wife and family while being a pirate. Kid hunted close to home, which allowed him to returned frequently and helped raise his children. The riches he plundered afforded the family a lavish lifestyle in a mansion on what we now know as Wall Street. Other pirates weren't as fortunate as Kid, though. Captains often forbid women aboard ships, believing in the superstition that they brought bad luck. At the very least, they

considered women a distraction his crew couldn't afford. Not all captains, though some brought their wives or mistresses aboard. In the British Navy, for example, captain's wives often cared for the young sailors acting as nurses or mothers to the men, and of course there were women pirates. Often they hid their femininity to join a crew. These women had little to lose, after all, without a husband or family to help support them, many took to a life at sea

in disguise. Others had no intention of hiding who they were. Most pirates, however, were men, and those without families, or at least family ties, spent years at sea. While they visited brothels at port, they usually didn't bond with the women they spent time and money on. Instead, they built a bond with their fellow crewmen. In the world of piracy, this type of bond was called mate lettage. For some, the relationship was intimate and sexual. For others, it was

purely a fraternal bond. In both cases, though the men often built relationships far stronger than those with their wives or family back home. Pirates took to the act of mate lettage as seriously as any other legal contract too. If one of the men died, the surviving sailor inherited the prizes and belongings his partner owned. When Francois Lalonious attacked Venezuela in sixteen sixty six. His crew suffered heavy casualties, but he honored the mate lettage between his men and

gave his crewmen their deceased partner's share of the bounty. Generally, a younger man entered into a legal contract with an older crewmatee the allegiance could be advantageous, especially with officers on board. For example, privateer commander George Shelvock lobbied for

his partner's promotion from ship boy to first mate. However, the men complained about the new first mate's inability to perform his duties, leading to speculation of how he'd gone from pouring their wine to becoming an officer in just a matter of days. Robert Culifford served with Captain Kidd in the late sixteen eighties. Kid eventually became captain and Culifford staged a mutiny against him. Needless to say, the two parted ways on less than favorable terms. Culifford went

on to sail with John Swan. The two formed a romantic partnership during their time in prison together in sixteen two and sixteen ninety six. After they regained their freedom, the men lived together on St. Mary Island, just off the coast of Madagascar. The relationship ended when Culifford made amend's with kid and left to continue raids in the Indian Ocean. Swan did not resume piracy and relocated to Madagascar. When the men decided to take a part in for piracy,

the men met once again. There would be no reigniting their relationship, though Swan left for Barbados and the two never crossed paths again, and in a matte lettage between Francis Hood and John Bebis, the agreement state of the survivor would become the other's beneficiary in the case of death. Nearing the end of his pirating career, Bartholomew Roberts worked

his way down to the west coast of Africa. He and George Wilson, a young surgeon aboard one of his ships, engaged in an intense and profoundly intimate relationship, even pledging a suicide pact together in the event of capture. I suppose my point is this true to their rebel nature. Pirates made families and created bonds in ways that pushed the boundaries of their social climate. But when it comes to family and bonds created at sea, there was one

trio in particular who were practically legendary. Given her escapades as a pirate, it comes as no surprise, and Cormick's entire life was nothing short of scandalous. Her father, William, was a successful lawyer, and his wife came from an affluent family. Ann's mother, Mary Brennan, served as the couple's hired help. In the seventeenth century, society had two acceptable courses for women who became pregnant by their married employer, give the child away and fire the maid, or raised

the child and fire the maid. William, however, did neither. Instead, the Cormicks divorced, and William earned a generous allowance from his ex wife, well until she found out that he had moved in with his mistress and their child without funds, and with his reputation ruined, he relocated his new family to Charleston, which back then was called Charles Town. There,

William established a successful trading business. He made enough to buy a plantation and afford an equality education designed to teach her how to marry well and fit into upper class society. Ann's mother caught typhoid and died just after Anne turned thirteen. The family dynamics changed after that, and father and daughter rarely saw I to ie by all account, and had a temper once she set a fire on

the plantation. Stories circulate that she may have also stabbed a servant and beat a would be rapist so severely that he required hospitalization. William betrothed his young and troublesome daughter to a wealthy merchant and refused, choosing to run off and marry James Bonnie, a poor sailor and occasional pirate. William allegedly disowned his daughter for the disobedience. In seventeen eighteen, the newly weds moved to Nassau, exposing and to the

pirate life in all its glory. That same year, Governor Woods Rogers arrived and James began working with him as an informant. And disapproved of her husband's new career, and spent her time in the local pubs with the very pirates that her husband sought to turn in. Reportedly and seduced many pirates, but of all the men who caught her eye, one in particular was her favorite. Accounts say

that sparks flew when she met Captain Jack Rackham. Most knew him simply as Calico Jack for the colorful clothing that had become his calling card. He had been one of the pirates who had taken the governor's pardon. He fell deeply in love with Anne and wanted her to leave James and sail away with him. He had gladly returned piracy if she joined him. Calico Jack even offered James money to divorce her. The offer didn't sit well with James, though, and he threatened to beat the pirates

if he ever came near his wife again. But it would take more than a beating or mere threat to keep Calico Jack in an apart. The affair continued, and in seventeen twenty, and agreed to leave Nassau, choosing to live a life at sea with a pirate, then stay with a man who hunted them, and began her pirate life helping Jack raid merchant vessels off the coast of Jamaica.

They weren't picky about the nationality of the ships they attacked, and not only created ingenious plans for raids, but she also fought alongside the rest of the crew on board and lived very much like a woman during raids, though she dressed like the men, with her red hair pulled back and tucked under a hat, she wielded a sword and carried pistols in a sash. She could fight and

swear as well as any man on the ship. Some of the crew have voiced their displeasure with Ann's presence, despite her worth, women on boats were bad luck after all, and in this instance the superstition proved true for one of the crew and stabbed a man who voiced his displeasure right through the heart. Not one of the crew objected after that. Raid after raid, and stood by Jack's side,

and word of a female pirate reached the colonies. By the summer of seventeen twenty, the Boston Gazette warned the readers that Anne Bonnie and the crew aboard the William were incredibly violent, as you might imagine. News of her escapades reached Nassau as well. Woods Rogers took note of his friend James's humiliation and declared Anne and Calico Jack enemies of Britain. But at that time the governor and his informant were unaware of a third notorious pirate aboard

the William. In fact, even Calico Jack had no idea of the interlopers existence. Sources vary on how Mary Reid became part of the Williams crew. We know that Mary Reid's mother married a sailor and the two had a son. When the sailor disappeared at sea, he left his wife and child without a means to support themselves. The sailor's family had some money and at least a place to stay. Things took a turn there, however. She became pregnant during a brief love affair and went to live with friends

until she gave birth. Tragedy struck when Mary's brother died, leaving her mother with a problem. She disguised Mary as the son for a while, effectively fooling her late husband's family. The plan worked, and the mother in law was none the wiser. Mary's grandmother left everything to them when she died. The inheritance didn't last though. To earn money, Mary continued dressing as a boy to secure work. At thirteen, she found work on a British man o war. During her service,

she fell in love with the Flemish soldier. The two married and moved to the Netherlands and bought an inn. Mary soon became a widow, though she returned to disguising herself as a man and working on merchant ships, eventually finding her way to the West Indies. Pirates attacked the ship and gave the crew a choice become one of them or die. Mary, who went by the name Mark Reid, chose piracy. When Wood's rogers offered a pardon, she accepted

it and then became a privateer. Life as a privateer didn't suit her, though, and so in seventeen twenty she joined the crew aboard the William. Anne befriended the new pirates and, as the story goes, tried to seduce him. Mary had little choice except to let Anne in on her secret. Instead of turning her in, Anne kept quiet, and their friendship only deepened. The two became inseparable, and Calico Jack noticed the bond. In a fit of jealousy, he threatened to cut Mark's throat. Anne stepped in and

told him the truth. Mark was actually Mary. Now there were two women on board the William. On raids, they fought side by side, cursing and swinging a sword or firing pistols, as well as any of the other crew. The women's ferocity in battle became legendary. All that summer, the crew raided ships earning them a sizeable profit. A short time afterward, they came across the schooner. The crew screamed and waved their weapons to intimidate their victims into

a quick surrender. When the other crew refused, though, Calico Jack ordered an attack. Ann and Mary led the crew as they boarded the schooner. The raid knighted the pirates fifty rolls of tobacco. Two days later, they released the schooner's crew barely scathed. The crew felt invincible with so many profitable raids, and a celebration was in order. The festivities began on October twenty two. By nightfall, most of the crew became so intoxicated that standing upright proved the challenge.

And and Mary, however, remained sober. The idea that the entire might be too drunk to stand watch and defend the ship made them nervous. Over the past several months, their raids meant that they had a high bounty on their heads. While the rest of the crew retired below to sleep off the alcohol, the women stood watch on deck. Around midnight, a sloop sailed toward them, And and Mary recognized the ship as one of the Governor's vessels. They

shouted for the crew below. Although drunk, Caligo Jack and a few others managed to make it to the deck. The captain aboard the sloop fired at the William, damaging it. Outgunned, outmanned, and taking damage. Calico Jack surrendered, and and Mary, though refused to do the same. Covering each other's backs and firing off the governor's men, They managed to injure quite a few of them before ultimately being overpowered. After their

guilty verdicts, the crew awaited sentencing behind bars. One by one, the men were hanged, and and Mary, both pregnant at the time, had a stay of execution until they gave birth. Mary died of a fever, probably during child birth. What happened to Anne is still a mystery. Some say that she died on the island, while others claim that her father came to her rescue. But one rumor, and probably the most popular of the bunch, is that Anne managed to escape and went on to find yet another family

within the colonies. There she settled down, married and had children, and lived out the rest of her days. Tortuga's governor, Jean Levasseur, had a problem shared with every New World colony in North and South America. The lack of women throughout many colonies. Early years, the most initial expeditions and settlements consisted of men and boys. New worlds could be dangerous, and the men thought fragile women should stay behind until

the colony proved safe. They believe women couldn't survive in a harsh new environment, at least no respectable women. Of course, they couldn't grow a population without them, though. Between sixteen sixty three and sixteen seventy three, King Louis the fourteenth put out a call for women who might be willing to relocate to the colonies. He referred to those who accepted the offer as fielduis or the King's daughters. Sponsorship

included clothing, travel, recruitment fees, and a small allowance. All told, the money wasn't much. Poor women and orphaned girls were the most likely to apply. Years later, Bessieur followed the same path as King Louis, but not for the same reasons. Growing the population didn't matter as much to the governor as ridding the island of pirates. Blatant display of mate lettage. Tortuga openly welcomed pirates, most of which belonged to the

Brethren of the coast. Pirates offered protection from Spain in exchange for a percentage of their bounty and the use of the port. The French and Spanish had fought over the island for years, primarily due to the port's location. The French found Tortuga invaluable in gaining a foothold in Hispaniola. Buccaneers and those pirates belonging to the Brea They're another coast weren't fond of the Spanish, which made the deal

beneficial for the French and the pirates. Though the offer extended to the buccaneers, best Your opened the warm welcome to pirates from any nation. Knowing that pirates spent most of their time at sea, he figured the type of women needed wouldn't be someone looking to settle down and raised children. Best Your requested that France sent him two thousand women willing to work in the sex trade. The

women arrived and quickly set up shop. Surely, Vasseur thought to himself, the men's affections and bonds with each other would end now that they had an abundance of available women, and to an extent, the plan worked. Some of the pirates even married the women, creating a traditional family unit. But then Vasser learned those pirates had opened their marriage

to include their partners from their time at sea. Each woman enjoyed the love and affection along with all the other marital benefits with both men, and those men continued to enjoy each other as well, just as they had before. They had in fact formed a polyamorous relationship, which meant that Vasseur's attempt to quell their matallettage had backfired rather spectacularly. If you came into today's episode thinking of pirates as loveless adventurers who needed no one but the sea, I

hope our journey today helped you learn some new valuable lessons. Clearly, even pirates need love, and family was often at the core of their life at sea, which is why it was easy to track down one more tale of pirate love. My crewmate Ali Steed is ready to tell you all about it right after this brief sponsor break. Well, we've

mainly focused on romantic relationships. Bonds between pirates were frequently platonic and brotherly, such was the case with Paul's Grave Williams and Sam Bellamy, who we heard about in an earlier episode, mostly focusing on Bellamy's history. The two seemed an odd parrot. First. Williams came from a wealthy and very influential Boston family. They owned a mansion and several

other estates in Newport, Rhode Island, and Block Island. His father worked as a prominent lawyer and successful merchant, while his mother came from a wealthy Harvard trained physicians family. Her lineage could be traced back to the Plantagenets, a dynasty that ruled England before the Wars of the Roses. Williams was just eleven when his father died, hardly penniless, most of life went on as usual. His mother even remarried a family friend two years later, and they moved

to Block Island permanently. Robert Guthrie, Williams's new stepfather, had ties to smugglers and money launderers within the New England's black market. His sister even went on to marry a friend of Captain Kidd and occasionally brought home various contraband Their lifestyle allowed Williams to gain valuable insight into moving

and selling stolen goods while collecting the highest profit. Williams lived with his wife, Elizabeth and their three children, ranging from ages eight to seventeen, in a lovely home in Newburyport. He had done well for himself, and yet he wanted more. In contrast, the younger Bellamy was a poor sailor without a wife or any other family to speak of. Though there were stark differences between them, the men shared a strong desire for success and wealth for their own reasons.

Of course, Ever, the businessman Williams carefully plotted out a scheme to meet his lofty goals. He could front the money now. All he needed was a partner who knew the seas. Bellamy's tenacity, charm, and intelligence ticked all the boxes. The two started off hunting for gold from a wrecked Spanish vessel off the Florida coast that had been carrying unimaginable treasure. While Bellamy and Williams didn't find the riches they initially sought, they embarked on a journey worth much more.

Along the way, the two formed a close bond as strong as any brothers. The men went on to raid other ships. As we've already learned, Williams may have had the business sense and the money to front their adventure, but Bellamy took it to the next level, raiding small ships and eventually forging an alliance with the formidable captain Benjamin Hornegold. The older Williams followed Bellamy's lead in just about everything, including stripping naked with the other crew members

and waving their weapons at targeted ships. When Bellamy became the captain, Williams became his trusted quartermaster, and when Bellamy moved on to larger vessels, he made Williams a captain and gave him his first ship. The two made every decision together. After taking in one of the most successful bounties of their career, they decided to return home briefly. Williams would sell off their bounty and see his family, while Bellamy would wed marry the girl he'd left behind

to earn his fortune. With the Marian and the wide a loaded with treasure, the men sat together one last time. They agreed to meet on Block Island if they became separated during their journey. Of course, as we know, the two men lost sight of each other pretty quickly. Williams arrived days later, unaware of his partner and friend's demise off the cape. When Bellamy didn't show. With the predetermined to look cation, Williams headed to Block Island as planned.

While there, he visited his sisters and mother, and he likely sent for his wife and children in Newburyport. A month passed before he heard the news of his friend's death. Williams arrived at the location where the Wida went down. Maybe he'd come to salvage what he could from their spectacular hall, but perhaps he had made the journey to say goodbye to his pirate brother before leaving for Nassau once more. Months later, the Marian shambled into the harbor,

looking worse for where. Fellow pirates gathered around the port, waiting for Bellamy and Williams to appear. They were inseparable after all, but only Williams emerged. He related the story of the Wida and his friend's demise, and how the only two survivors of the wreckage were sat in jail awaiting sentencing. Bellamy had been well liked and the news hit the pirates hard. However, Williams hadn't just come to

inform them of his friend's death. He had also come to warn them the governors of New England had ships hunting Pirates up and down their coastlines. Williams's return to Nassau made him a wanted man. Now he could no longer return to New England. He had made his choice on which family to return to Paul's grave. Williams never saw his sisters, mother, wife, or children again. Pirates was executive produced by Aaron Manky and narrated by Aaron Manky

and Alexandra Steid. Writing for this season was provided by Michelle Mudo, with research by Alexandra Steed and Sam Alberty. Production assistance was provided by Josh Than, Jesse Funk, Alex Williams, and Matt Frederick. To learn more about this and other shows from Grimm and Mild and I Heart Radio, visit grim and Mild dot com