Captain Every

Couldn't anybody help with the information about the war of 1686-1697 (King William's War) in the Caribbean region? I've read only about the attack of the British privateers on Marie Galante in December 1689 in which Kidd took place. Are there any web sources which provides more information?

In the Russian Imperial Navy they beleived that scratching the mast will bring good wind. I wonder if it was got by Russian sailors from abroad, being originally England or Dutch superstition?

Well, I do agree but not in the whole... Speaking of decorations, we should place ourselves to the GAoP people positions, not today's. If we now have not any racial prejudicies (well, some do have still, don't they?), it's not the matter considering XVII-XVIII centuries. What was better for them, not for us, to look decorative (or fierce) or to look like savages??? That's the question to me! Is there something in documental sources considering this problem? As for the ability to endure pain... I don't think it sounds convincing... The life in the GAoP provided a great deal of opportunities to prove it without tattooing oneself! Speaking of risk, maybe we should suppose the brothels mentioned above were arranged for sailors' chance to show they don't afraid infections? I still beleive they searched for something more there!

And what do you think about Lucy Lethbridge's "True Stories of Pirates"? It seems to be a popular one, but I was a kind of surprised (and enjoyed it of course) to find some documents quotations in the chapter about Every. Or maybe it's because of the sad fact that pirates' books are rare in Russia?

"You ought to follow your main decision during the battle. It can be worse than the others, but being realized persistently it will give you a victory, while hesitations will lead to defeat". General Slaschov (he was Russian Counter-Revolutionary General, 1885-1929, and wrote this just before the Communists have killed him)

First of all thanks a lot for the link, I haven't read this book before and was pleased a lot to found the origin of some illustrations which I've met in the Internet withought any word about their origin. But looking through the chapter about Every/Avery, rather briefly of course, I've came to the conclusion that Ellms repeated the most of "General History" chapter "On Captain Avery and his Crew". Isn't it the same with the other stories which have corresponding ones in "General History"? Besides, I must admit that my English is rather bad (I'm from Russia), so I could miss something important Certainly I'll read it much more attentively, especially Every's story, for I'm trying now to construct a site devoted to him, which I think will be the first one in Russian.

There is a number of tables of the richest prizes captured by various pirates during various periods in J.Rogozinski's "Dictionary of Pirates" (Wordsworth Editions 1997). There are some figures: Caribbean and South America's Pacific Coast, 1628-1686: (the greatest) P.Hein commanding 31 vessels and 2300 men - 11-14 million Dutch guilders, F.L'Ollonnais with 8 ships and 660 men - 260000 pesos=65000 pounds, H.Morgan with 10 small ships and 500 men - 250000 pesos=62500 pounds, etc.; Indian Ocean and Red Sea, 1690-1722: (the greatest) J.Taylor and O.La Bouche - 875000 pounds, being 3600 pounds per share, H.Every and his squadron - 325000 pounds, being 1000 pounds plus jewels per man from Every's "Fancy" (who took most of the loot), E.Condent - 150000 pounds, being 2000 pounds per share, etc. These are the maximum, the minimum being nothing at all, and a death in the first battle, so it's hard to calculate a mean sum There are more figures in the book, so I'll put them here too if you wish.

I think there is another question connected with: how did pirates (or any other sailors) looked upon natives, who really used to tatoo themselves. That is, if sailors treated the native tribes as savages, potential slaves etc., which rather looks like truth, I think, then why the formers should want to decorate themselves in the native way? One shouldn't be inclined to look the same as a slave, should he? And as for Dampier, if he'd tried to make money by showing in England the tatooed "native prince" he bought, then tatooing, it seems to me, wasn't common and rather ought to be considered something strange (though the tatooes of the "prince" certainly were exotic and uncommon ones in any case).

Captain Every's man-of-war was named "Fancy", being originally "Charles", the privateer of the Spanish Expedition. It's sometimes said that it was "Charles II", but I never managed to understand if it was true. Every's pirate squadron (1695) consisted of: W.Want's "Dolphin", J.Farrell's "Portsmouth Adventure", W.May's "Pearl" ans T.Tew's "Amity", and one which name I don't know (do anybody?).

Captain Every's man-of-war was named "Fancy", being originally "Charles", the privateer of the Spanish Expedition. It's sometimes said that it was "Charles II", but I never managed to understand if it was true. Every's pirate squadron (1695) consisted of: W.Want's "Dolphin", J.Farrell's "Portsmouth Adventure", W.May's "Pearl" ans T.Tew's "Amity", and one which name I don't know (do anybody?).