Page 77 - The British Big Four

ith no functioning government in the to exchange needed supplies for pirate t the same time, the constant warfare
had led the Great Powers to develop
W ABahamas, English privateers operated plunder. As mentioned above, the activities
from Nassau as their base, in what has been of pirates provoked frequent and brutal re- larger standing armies and bigger navies

called a “privateers’ republic,” which lasted taliatory attacks by the French and Spanish. to meet the demands of global colonial

for eleven years. The raiders attacked French A t the start of the 18th century, Europe warfare. By 1700 the European states had
and Spanish ships, while French and Spanish remained riven by warfare and con- enough troops and ships at their disposal to
forces burned Nassau several times. The War begin better protecting the important colo-

of the Spanish Succession ended in 1714, stant diplomatic intrigue. France was still nies in the West Indies and in the Americas

but some privateers were slow to get the the dominant power but now had to con- without relying on the aid of privateers. This

news, or reluctant to accept it, and slipped tend with a new rival, England (Great Brit- spelled the doom of privateering and the

into piracy. One estimate puts at least 1,000 ain after 1707) which emerged as a great easy (and nicely legal) life it provided for the

pirates in the Bahamas in 1713, outnumber- power at sea and land during the War of the buccaneer. Though Spain remained a weak

ing the 200 families of more permanent set- Spanish Succession. But the depredations of power for the rest of the colonial period,

tlers. At least 20 pirate captains used Nassau the pirates and buccaneers in the Americas pirates in large numbers generally disap-

or other places in the Bahamas as a home in the latter half of the 17th century and of peared after 1730, chased from the seas by

port during this period, including Henry similar mercenaries in Germany during the a new British Royal Navy squadron based at

Jennings, Edward Teach (Blackbeard), Ben- Thirty Years War had taught the rulers and Port Royal, Jamaica and a smaller group of

jamin Hornigold and Stede Bonnet. Many military leaders of Europe that those who Spanish privateers sailing from the Span-

settler families moved from New Providence fought for profit rather than for King and ish Main known as the Costa Garda (Coast

to Eleuthera or Abaco to escape harassment Country could often ruin the local economy Guard in English). With regular military forc-

from the pirates. On the other hand, resi- of the region they plundered, in this case es now on-station in the West Indies, letters

dents of Harbor Island were happy to serve the entire Caribbean. of marque were harder and harder to obtain.

as middlemen for the pirates, as merchants

from New England and Virginia came there