300th Anniversary of the Demise of Blackbeard
Thanksgiving Day just happened to mark the 300th anniversary of one of the most historical “battles” to have ever occurred in North Carolina. While certainly not of the same magnitude of Guilford Courthouse or Bentonville, the ultimate demise of Blackbeard the Pirate came to pass in Ocracoke Inlet on November 22nd of 1718.
Given the perpetual interest regarding pirates in general (and Blackbeard in particular), the Richmond Observer offers a series of articles chronicling the life and times of arguably the most recognized (if not indeed the most nefarious) pirate of all time. This is the ninth segment.
Blackbeard Part IX: Choose Your Battles Wisely
Blackbeard insolently boarded what he probably thought to be an abandoned ship. However, the “Jane” was not only fully stocked with crew members, but it had twice the number of men that the pirate had brought onto the deck. Maynard had hidden his crew in the hold below deck, and when they quickly emerged to confront Blackbeard, it was obvious that Teach had been sorely outwitted by the British officer.
Blackbeard himself had contributed to his own surprise. Upon approach, he had tossed grenades of “powder and shot-filled bottles” across the deck of the “Jane,” reducing visibility to a minimum. As the smoke cleared, Maynard and a small contingent of his men were sighted at the stern and promptly fired upon. But upon hearing the shots and a signal from Maynard, the crew members immediately burst from their hiding place, providing Blackbeard with a sizable force with which he now had to contend.
Surprised by this maneuver, the pirates retreated but did not run. Hand-to-hand combat ensued as Teach rallied his men. The two factions engaged each other across the deck, already slippery with blood from the wounds inflicted by the “Adventure’s” earlier cannonade broadside.
Almost as if orchestrated, Blackbeard and Maynard squared off against one another. Each fired a shot from their flintlock pistols, then resorted to swords to continue the fight. Maynard’s cutlass was severed by the pirate’s weapon, but Blackbeard was by now alone and isolated at the bow of the ship. Superior numbers and training proved to be too much for the other pirates as the “Jane’s” sailors gradually took the upper hand and now effectively surrounded the renegade buccaneer.
As Maynard attempted to fire another pistol at Teach, a Scotsman of the Jane’s crew slashed Blackbeard across the neck with a broadsword. Though the pirate, almost Rasputin-like, had already been hit by five shots and cut several times by swords, it was this broadsword wound that proved to be the fatal blow. Seeing their leader fall, the remaining pirates surrendered and were taken prisoner as the crew from the “Ranger” took control of the “Adventure.” The battle was done and Blackbeard was dead.
