Blackbeard; A Tale of Villainy and Murder in Colonial America

Raleigh, NC: Coastal Plains Publishing Company, 1998. Presumed First Edition, First printing. Hardcover. Very good/Very good. Stephen Chesley. xi, [1], 299, [1] pages. Frontispiece is a map. Additional Map. Inscribed by the author on the title page. Inscription reads To Doug, Colonial Williamsburg October 19, 2002 Margaret Hoffman. For two years until his untimely death in 1718, the notorious pirate Blackbeard wreaked havoc on Atlantic coastal shipping. This narrative, based on a true story, tells a tale of political intrigue, villainy and romance. Hoffman has worked for the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, the Winston-Salem Journal, taught writing in several colleges and held positions in publishing and public relations. She took four years to write the book. Blackbeard's 40-gun flagship, The Queen Anne's Revenge, was one of the most powerful vessels in American waters. The sunken ship was discovered on Nov. 21, 1996. Blackbeard's death brought to an end the "Golden Age of Piracy." Archives in every Atlantic port mention Blackbeard. But no place is more closely linked to Blackbeard than historic Bath on Pamlico Sound in North Carolina. It was there that he was rumored to have been in cahoots with Gov. Charles Eden. Hoffman said Blackbeard fought in one of the bloodiest seas battles in American history, which happened when Lt. Robert Maynor was sent by the Royal Governor of Virginia to capture him at Ocracoke Inlet. According to Hoffman's research: "Even five pistol shots and 20 severe cuts failed to stop the pirate, who was finally brought to his death by the powerful blow of an English seaman's sword. Blackbeard's head hung for many years from a pole at the mouth of the Hampton River still known today as Blackbeard's Point." Edward Teach (alternatively spelled Edward Thatch, c. 1680 - 22 November 1718), better known as Blackbeard, was an English pirate who operated around the West Indies and the eastern coast of Britain's North American colonies. Little is known about his early life, but he may have been a sailor on privateer ships during Queen Anne's War before he settled on the Bahamian island of New Providence, a base for Captain Benjamin Hornigold, whose crew Teach joined around 1716. Hornigold placed him in command of a sloop that he had captured, and the two engaged in numerous acts of piracy. Their numbers were boosted by the addition to their fleet of two more ships, one of which was commanded by Stede Bonnet; but Hornigold retired from piracy toward the end of 1717, taking two vessels with him.
Teach captured a French slave ship known as La Concorde, renamed her Queen Anne's Revenge, equipped her with 40 guns, and crewed her with over 300 men. He became a renowned pirate. His nickname derived from his thick black beard and fearsome appearance; he was reported to have tied lit fuses (slow matches) under his hat to frighten his enemies. He formed an alliance of pirates and blockaded the port of Charles Town, South Carolina, ransoming the port's inhabitants. He then ran Queen Anne's Revenge aground on a sandbar near Beaufort, North Carolina. He parted company with Stede Bonnet and settled in Bath, North Carolina, also known as Bath Town, where he accepted a royal pardon. However, he was soon back at sea, where he attracted the attention of Alexander Spotswood, the Governor of Virginia. Spotswood arranged for a party of soldiers and sailors to capture him; on 22 November 1718 following a ferocious battle Teach and several of his crew were killed by a small force of sailors led by Lieutenant Robert Maynard. Teach was a shrewd and calculating leader who spurned the use of violence, relying instead on his fearsome image to elicit the response that he desired from those whom he robbed. He was romanticized after his death and became the inspiration for an archetypal pirate in works of fiction across many genres.