- Summary
Book Title: Blackbeard: Eighteenth- Century Pirate of the Spanish Main and Carolina Coast
Edward Teach better known as “Blackbeard” was born in Bristol, England around 1680. He started out his career as a privateer working for the government legally plundering enemy ships. The early 1700s was known as that Golden Age of Piracy and this is the time period when Blackbeard sailed that sea as a pirate. In 1760 Blackbeard helped his captain Benjamin Hornigold capture a ship full of booty and as a reward was allowed to keep some of it. Blackbeard grew tired of being a privateer so he took command of the Concord a French slave ship that they captured and changed its name to the Queen Anne’s Revenge. Blackbeard’s crew quickly grew to have three ships and over 400 men on his crew. Between 1716 and 1718 Blackbeard tortured the high sea and captured many ships along the North Carolina, South Carolina, and Virginia coast.
Blackbeard had long black hair and a long black beard. This is where the nickname Blackbeard came from. He was known for tying pieces of slow-burning fuse into his beard to make it look like his head was smoking. In 1718 Blackbeard and his crew set up a blockade along the port and Charleston and would not let any ship in or out until a ransom had been paid. Blackbeard took the treasure that he had gained at Charleston and put it on one of his smaller ships without telling his crew so that he could have all of it. He then ran the Queen Anne’s Revenge aground and made it look like an accident. Blackbeard took a few of his closest men and escaped on the smaller boat.
Being a pirate was illegal so many of the pirates had deals with the governors of colonies or other wealthy people in which the pirates traded out some of the booty they captured in order for these people not to get them in trouble. Blackbeard received a pardon from Governor Eden from North Carolina in 1718, but this did not stop Blackbeard from his piracy work. He continued being a pirate and the Governor of Virginia offered money to anyone who could capture him. He was found and captured by Lieutenant Robert Maynard who tricked him into coming aboard his ship. Maynard and Blackbeard then fought until Maynard finally shot and killed Blackbeard. In 1996 remains of a ship was discovered off of the North Carolina coast and it is believed to be the remains of the Queen Anne’s Revenge.
We choose to use this book because Blackbeard is a very well known pirate in North Carolina. Due to the fact that the remains of his ship are believed to be found in the Graveyard of the Atlantic makes this pirate more relatable to many North Carolinians than the other pirates. We have heard the different legends of Blackbeard growing up and by reading this book and studying more about his life we thought that we could clear up some of the misconceptions we have about the life and work of Blackbeard. Blackbeard is a very interesting character and had some crazy things that he did during his years as a pirate. We think that he would be a great pirate to go over while studying pirates and North Carolina history.
- Vocabulary
Book Title: Blackbeard: Eighteenth- Century Pirate of the Spanish Main and Carolina Coast
1. Privateer-A pirate whom is licensed by the government to attack enemy ships with force.
2. Plundering- Robbing by force an enemy ship.
3. Booty- Prizes stolen by force from other ships.
4. Pieces of eight-Gold coins that were used during the Golden Age of Piracy.
5. Pardon- The excusing of an offense by a government or law official.
6. Ransom- The demand of pay for the release of someone or something that is being held against its will.
7. Aground- When something has moved onto the shore or the bottom of a body of water.
8. Betrayed-To have turned against someone or something that one was once loyal too.
9. Marooned- When someone has been left on a deserted island with no hope of escape.
10. Hull-The main body of the ship is the “hull”.
Works Cited:
Weintraub, Aileen. Blackbeard: Eighteenth-century Pirate of the Spanish Main and Carolina Coast. New York: PowerKids Press, 2002. Print.
- Sketch to Stretch
- Data Retrieval Chart
Key Questions Book of Pirates Websites
When did the pirate live? | 1680 - Nov. 1718 | Born in Bristol around 1680- Attack on November 22, 1718 |
Where and how did the pirate’s life begin? | Blackbeard worked as a privateer for Benjamin Hornigold and in 1716 he helped captured ships full of booty for him. | 1716 Blackbeard joined Benjamin Hornigold’s crew |
What were the pirate’s favorite weapons? | Cutlass, a sword, cannons | Swords, pistols, knives |
How did the pirate look and dress? | Blackbeard had long and dark hair and a beard. He would braid his beard and tie it with ribbons. | Blackbeard had a long rich dark beard that he grew to cover most of his face, wore a captain hat and a crimson coat |
How did the pirate act and treat others? | He is known as a mean man. He betrayed other crew members. Blackbeard’s crew had to always work hard keeping the ship in good condition. | Blackbeard had a reputation as a ruthless pirate. He terrorized sailors and ambushed passenger and cargo ships. The crew of the ships would surrender without a fight after laying eyes on the pirate. |
What was the pirate’s life like? | Blackbeard spent his time along the coast of North Carolina, South Carolina, and Virginia raiding ships. He stole gold, silver, pieces of eight, gold pieces, weapons, medicine, food and rum. He worked closely with Governor Eden. | Blackbeard “spent his time as a pirate ransacking and pillaging unsuspecting ships off the banks of North Carolina.” |
Why is the pirate legendary? | Blackbeard had a plan to cheat his crew out of the booty he had on his ship. HE ran the ship aground and made it look like an accident. He betrayed 25 crew members and left them behind only taking his favorite members with him. Everyone thought the treasure was lost. His death marked the beginning of the end of the Golden Age of Piracy. | |
What became of the pirate? | Lieutenant Robert Maynard killed Blackbeard. | Maynard attacked Blackbeard’s ship in a shallow inlet. Maynard tricked Blackbeard and they ambushed Blackbeard and his crew. Blackbeard’s crew was either killed or taken prisoner. Blackbeard’s heard was cut off. |
- Internet Workshop
Spend about 30 minutes on the website and then come back as a class and let everyone share what they discovered with the website.
1. What did you like about this website?
2. What voyage were you interesting in finding more information about?
3. Did the Videos and Audio help you understand Blackbeard’s voyages better?
- Closing Activity
