Scottish Pirates Introduction-What Is a Pirate? Spùinneadair-Mara (Spoo-Nuder Mara) in Gaelic Means Plunderer, Spoiler, Or Robber on the Sea
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The SAMS Lyceum of Martial and Societal Antediluvian Chronicles An addendum to The SAMS Sporran – April 2020 Scottish Pirates Introduction-What is a pirate? Spùinneadair-mara (spoo-nuder mara) in Gaelic means plunderer, spoiler, or robber on the sea. Or more specifically, a pirate.There are two words most associated with these unscrupulous adventurers of the high seas: one is pirate, the other is buccaneer. The word pirate comes down to us from Latin pirata, which the Romans took from the from Greek word peiratēs, from peirein ‘to attempt or attack’. The Romans applied it to any ship that attacked a Roman vessel on Mare Nostrum (Our Sea - their term for the Mediterrean Sea.) The word buccaneer originated in the West Indies. The boucaniers were the native inhabitants of the West Indies who had developed a method of preserving meat by roasting it on a barbecue and curing it with smoke. The finished strips of meat were also known as boucan. Today we refer to this form of meat as jerky. Since there was no refrigeration of ships of that time. So many pirates ate jerky or boucan. Hence the name buccaneer began to be applied to them also. Besides, buccaneer sounds alot better than jerkyneer. There were a number of minor pirates of Scottish descent. Mostly they had very short careers or crewed under another captain. A Scotch buccaneer; John Alexander was sailing on a ship captained by a Captain Sharp. He and his captain were returning to their ship in a dory full of their captured prize or booty when it overturned. John joined Davy Jones in his locker. Two more unfortunate swashbucklers, William Bowman and Robert Spratlin were part of a pirate raiding party led By Captain Henry Morgan that plundered Panama. They both died crossing a river in the Isthmus of Darien. Unfortunately poor William Bowman was carrying a satchel containing 400 pieces of eight when he was carried away by the swift current. Another lesser known Scottish buccaneer was James Browne. In 1677, he commanded a mixed crew of English, Dutch, and French pirates. They took a Dutch ship trading in African slaves off the coast of Cartagena. He sailed his ship to the West Indies where he hoped to sell the slaves to the plantation owners in Jamaica. He didn’t make it. They were captured. The crew were pardoned, but Browne was ordered to be executed. The captain appealed using the Act of Privateers as his defense. Initially the Governor refused to grant a stay. However, he relented and sent the provost-marshall with an order to stop the execution. He arrived a half an hour too late. Clan MacNeil of Barra For many generations the clan had made a living first by plundering wrecked ships. Then deliberately wrecking them by setting fires as primitive lighthouses to lure unsuspecting boats on to rocks and pillaging them before they foundered. Gradually they resorted to outright piracy, especially English ships. One clan laird was particularly successful, Ruairi Og. He hid in sheltered coves until he sighted a prize. Then he would suddenly swoop down on the merchant vessel and take it as a prize. Not even the stormiest weather kept him from attacking unsuspecting ships. Legend says he melted down some of the captured gold to make horseshoes for his six black horses, and the other captured booty filled his wine cellars and provided sumptuous meals for his table. He was eventually captured and taken to Edinburg. When King James asked him why he attacked English ships, Ruairi said he did it to avenge the cruel treatment Mary Queen of Scots, James’ mother, had suffered at the hands of the English. The king granted him a pardon and spared his life, but seized his lands. Sir Andrew Barton (1456-1511) Andrew Barton was a Scottish sailor from Leith, who served as High Admiral of the Kingdom of Scotland. Andrew became notorious in England and Portugal as a ‘pirate. His life as a ‘pirate’began after his father’s ship The Yellow Carvel was plundered by the Portuguese. The king of Scotland James IV granted him a letter of marque to avenge his father’s loss. A letter of marque allowed a private sailor to legally plunder any ship of a designated country, in this case Portugal. He established a reputation for being one of the ablest sea officers of his time. He began attacking very richly laden Portuguese ships returning from India and Africa. Later, he was asked to attack and clear Flemish pirates marauding the Scottish coasts. He was also asked to assist Denmark against Lubeck. He even began to capture Dutch ships, causing Margaret, the duchess of Savoy, governess of the Netherlands, to complain to James IV. Through all this activity he had amassed great wealth and his daring and skill appear to have won for him the special favour of the Scottish king, and he was knighted as Sir Andrew Barton, and was given The Jenny Pirwyn to accompany his ship The Lion. Although he never attacked English ships his activities caused English merchants to lose a great amount of money. Henry VIII charged two English captains Sir Thomas and Sir Edward Howard to capture Sir Andrew Barton. They found him and a desperate battle ensued. Contemporary English and Scottish accounts both agree that Andrew died of wounds received in the fight. During the battle Sir Andrew Barton’s leg was broken by a gunshot. However, he continued to encouraged his sailors by beating a drum allegedly saying; ‘Fight on my good men, I am hurt but I am not slaine. I’ll lay me down and bleed awhile, Then I’ll rise and fight againe.’ Eventually he was shot through the heart by an archer and the Scots ended their resistance. He died from his wounds. King James IV demanded redress from King Henry, who replied that the 'fate of pirates was never an object of dispute among princes,' implying that the capture of Portuguese ships was a clear act of piracy. Henry freed Barton’s sailors, supplying them with money sufficient to take them home. But this act of clemency failed to satisfy the Scottish king, and the dispute was finally fought out at The Battle of Flodden Field. The king and a large portion of the nobility lost their lives in the battle, causing an era of political instability for the Scottish nation. There was a time of terrible confusion in Scotland. The governing dynasty at every level and in every area of life was largely eliminated. The harvest was temporarily abandoned as Scotland gave itself up to grief. In memory of that battle a song The Lament or Flowers o’ The Forest was written to commemorate them. “Red Legs” Greaves (1649- @1692) If there is an exception to the pirate myth it has to be Red Legs Greaves. Little is known about Red Legs Greaves’ early life including his christian name. What is known is that he was born in Barbados to Scottish parents. They had been convicted of treason for their participation in Wars of the Three Kingdoms and sold into slavery, as were many Royalists and Covenanters in Scotland. He is thought to have been born in 1649. He was also known to wear a kilt. His nom de guerre Red Legs does not refer to the class of poor whites that lived in colonial Barbados, some of whom took to wearing the kilt for everyday attire, the hot Caribbean sun would burn their legs. hence the term red legs. It refers instead to the myth that his legs were red from wading through the blood of his enemies. His parents and their master died a short time after one another, and as an orphan, he was sold to another man who was claimed to have been violent and to have often beaten Greaves as a teenager. It was during this time, he decided to escape slavery and successfully managed to swim across Carlisle Bay, stowing away on a ship preparing to leave Barbados. The ship he stowed away on turned out to be a pirate vessel captained by Captain Thomas Hawkins. Apparently this Captain Hawkins was known throughout the Caribbean as an unusually cruel pirate, often torturing captives, especially women, and rarely showing mercy to the crews of ships he attacked. Although feared by his crew, he was respected and very successful in capturing rich prizes. After being discovered on board, Greaves was given the option of joining Davy Jones and his Locker or signing with the crew “offering the articles of Piracy (see following paragraph) on a platter along with a pistol”. Greaves showed promise and quickly gained a reputation as a capable and efficient sailor. He soon grew to resent and hate Captain Hawkins, both for being forced into his crew as for his distaste for brutality towards captured prisoners. One legend has him fighting a duel with the cruel captain, over the torture of a prisoner. It is more probable that Hawkins attacked Greaves for failing to obey his orders. What Is known is that Greaves killed Hawkins and was elected by the crew to succeed Hawkins as captain. As captain Greaves rewrote the Ship’s Articles, specifically prohibiting the mistreatment of prisoners and allowing the surrender of merchant captains during battle. Contrary to popular myth most pirate ships operated in a very democratic manner - with written rules. They also divided their ill gotten gains equally, except the captain who got a larger share. They also never buried their treasure. They spent it.