William Brand

January 8 - On this day in 1676, there was an inconclusive naval battle between the French, under Abraham Duquesne, versus Dutch and Spanish forces under Michiel de Ruyter.

January 7 - Between this day and the 9th of January in 1675, William Collingwood, one of Cusack’s men, was condemned to hang after all the proceedings held in the Old-Bailey, London. Also on this day in 1680, Cornelius Essex, with Allison, Row and Sharp joined an expedition under command of Captain Coxon in four barques and two sloops, sailing from Jamaica to Puerto Bello. Their passage was frustrated by violent storms but all ships arrived at the destination.

January 6 - On this day in 1658, De Fontenay made an unsuccessful attack on Buenos Aires, with five minor vessels. Also on this day in 1718, Rogers was officially appointed "Captain General and Governor in Chief" by George I. He did not leave immediately for his new bailiwick, but spent several months preparing the expedition, which included seven ships, 100 soldiers, 130 colonists, and supplies ranging from food for the expedition members and ships' crews to religious pamphlets to give to the pirates, whom Rogers believed would respond to spiritual teachings.

January 5 - On this day in 1718, a proclamation was issued announcing clemency for all piratical offenses, provided that those seeking what became known as the "King's Pardon" surrendered not later than September 5, 1718. Colonial governors and deputy governors were authorized to grant the pardon.

January 4 - It is believed that on this day in 1721, William Fenton, one of Walter Kennedy’s men, was executed for piracy, having been sentenced to death at Edinburgh. “There were four pirates hanged at Leith today (...) very hardened. They were a melancholy sight, and there is three to be hanged next Wednesday.”

Nope. I use a heavy duty black primer and paint carefully. Steady hands are good for painting, killing and other extra curricular activities. there was so much weight in canvas and paint when I did that one sided Fort Taylor banner, that we never ran it up the flagpole for fear it would tear out the pins or cleats from the pole.

I paint them reversed out. I paint the black and leave the white. That way I can see the design from both sides. I don't always paint the second side, but I have on a few of them.

I remember how heavy and inflexible that one was as we were attaching it to the pole, but it filled up with wind at once and furled and unfurled like the best of them. I love seeing the different flags flown at Fort Taylor and I'm starting to recognize them by name.

January 3 - On this day in 1703, an order was issued for the arrest of writer Daniel Defoe for his essays against the Church. Also on this day in 1703, Thomas Owen reported the capture of William Snipp at Lydd, and John Burwash and George Fuller described in Mr. Baker’s letter of 6th of the same month as “part of the old gang of those who were ‘owlers’ in the late war" Owling is another word for coastal smuggling. And on this day in 1749, Benning Wentworth issues the first of the New Hampshire Grants, leading to the establishment of Vermont.

January 2 - On this day in 1688, Raveneau de Lussan and a part of his followers, having come from the capture of Tehuantepec and returning from Acapulco to find themselves at Mapala, a port north of El Realejo, deliberated on the route they should take to reach the Antilles. It was agreed to march to Nueva Segovia, a town situated on the Coco River, which empties into the Atlantic. Of this expedition Voltaire said: "The retreat of the ten thousand will always be more celebrated, but is not to be compared to it." Lussan formed four companies, of seventy men each, and made them swear to observe the severest discipline. After praying together, and sinking their boats for fear they might fall into the power of the Spaniards, they began their march, and in ten days, during which they were almost constantly engaged in fighting superior numbers, they reached Nueva Segovia. Also on this day in 1669, Morgan’s flagship Oxford blew herself up during a banquet off Ile-à-Vache, South of St. Domingue on the Southwest coast of Hispaniola. Morgan's surgeon, Richard Browne, wrote in his journal "I was eating my dinner with the rest when the mainmast blew out and fell upon Captains Aylett and Bigford and others and knocked them on the head. I saved myself by getting astride the mizzenmast." Those who sat on his side of the table, including Morgan and Collier, were thrown into the air and found themselves swimming amid shattered timbers and the broken and disjointed bodies of the crew. Browne splashed around until he managed to scramble on to part of the mizzen mast. Soon boats from the rest of the fleet were rowing through the wreckage. Apart from Morgan, Collier, Morris the elder, 2 semen and 4 cabin boys, everybody else, some 250 men in all, perished in this devastating blow. Much to the chagrin of many, Edward Collier lived through the destruction of the Oxford and resumed his piracies in a prize ship he had called Satisfaction and was present at Morgan’s plundering of the town of Rio de la Hacha one year later, still as his vice-admiral. Considered by most to be a very cruel man, he captured the fort and garrison and tortured the prisoners. He led the port wing in the attack on Panama City, in the rank of colonel, in January of 1671, where he chased after and slaughtered the fleeing crowd and killed a chaplain personally, after quarter had been given. He was accused to have cheated, with Morgan, the sailors of their share of the loot, deserting them, sailing off in ships with supplies and plunderage. Despite his infamous lifestyle, Collier lived to a ripe age in Jamaica, leading preparations for defenses against a possible enemy invasion.

January 1 - On this day in 1700, Protestant Western Europe (except England) began using the Gregorian calendar. From a citation at piratesurgeon.com "This being New-Year’s Day [1708], every Officer was wish’d a merry New-Year by our Musick; and I had a large Tub of Punch hot upon the Quarter-Deck, where every Man in the Ship had above a Pint to his share, and drank our Owners and Friends Healths in Great Britain, to a happy new Year, a good Voyage, and a safe Return. We bore down to our Consort, gave them three Huzza’s, wishing them the like." - Woodes Rogers For more about 'New Years" visit the following… http://www.piratesurgeon.com/pages/surgeon_pages/christmas5.html Also on this day in 1720, French Lousianna distributes paper notes of three typeset emissions from the Banque Royale. The notes were hand numbered with written signatures (added by the deputies of the officers named on the notes) except for the 10 livres note which had printed signatures. The backs of this currency were blank. Denominations in this issue were: 10, 100, 1,000 and 10,000 livres Tournois notes. Happy New Year!

December 31 - On this day in 1687, a community of Huguenots arrived at the Cape of Good Hope from the Netherlands. They had escaped to the Netherlands from France in order to flee religious persecution there; examples of these are Pierre Joubert who came from La Motte-d’Aigues for religious reasons. And on this day in 1799, after nationalization had failed over the course of three years, and after being in existence for some 197 years, the VOC (or Dutch East India Company) was allowed to expire. Statistically, the VOC eclipsed all of its rivals in the Asia trade. Between 1602 and 1796 the VOC sent almost a million Europeans to work in the Asia trade on 4,785 ships, and netted for their efforts more than 2.5 million tons of Asian trade goods. By contrast, the rest of Europe combined sent only 882,412 people from 1500 to 1795, and the fleet of the English (later British) East India Company, the VOC's nearest competitor, was a distant second to its total traffic with 2,690 ships and a mere one-fifth the tonnage of goods carried by the VOC. The VOC enjoyed huge profits from its spice monopoly through most of the 17th century.

Another nice addition to your kit. I can't wait to see it at events.

It's been a while since we discussed colors. We need to see some new, fresh designs.

December 30 - On this day in 1702, the Siege of St. Augustine was lifted.

December 29 - On this day in history, 1720, John Clipperton and his crew took on fish, wood and water at Cocos Island, located off the shore of Costa Rica. A shack was set up on the beach there to shelter a large number of scurvy invalids among the crew. This is not pirate related, but some things should be remembered, for on this day in 1890 some 150 Lakota men, women and children were massacred by the US 7th Calvary Regiment near Wounded Knee Creek on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation. Some estimate the actual number was closer to 300.

December 28 - On this day in history, 1814, the British began firing at the American lines at New Orleans, but were repulsed by an artillery crew manned by two of Jean Lafitte's former lieutenants, Renato Beluche and Dominique Youx.

Whenever the subject comes up among dancers, they'll openly, enthusiastically speak about the ancient origins of the dance, but only readily speak of it back to the Victorian age, when it had already begun to evolve into a Western interpretation. Even the most ardent fans like me, know that bellydance enjoys only a speculative history prior to the 1800s. I know about the attributed tribal origins such as the Ouled Naïl of Algiers, and even more about the Ghawazi of Egypt, but apart from the heavily photographed victorian age, we have nothing. Playing my own devil's advocate and introducing it at events, It would be so refreshing if a dance troupe would try to adopt one style or another. Imagine a whole group focusing on the Almeh of Egypt, who were highly educated women in poetry, art, music, dance, humorous performances, and festival entertainment. This was their vocation and it was an openly declared class of women prior to the religious bans of the 1800s. With only the slightest effort, they could portray some of the most amazing performers of history, borrowing on amazing textiles and jewelry, instead of generalized and commercialized coin belts and scarves.

Welcome aboard!

This is EXACTLY the issue !! The public goes to festivals to be ENTERTAINED. If they wanted education, they would go to museums and historic sites. As you say, authentic period garb is kinda drab. Sort of like expecting a crew of modern day construction guys to be interesting to look at. It must be kept in mind that for an event to continue to survive and prosper, it needs to provide what the customers want. The public is far more interested in pirate stereotypes that don't require them to think or ask questions than having to wonder "How come that guy is wearing that funny-looking thrum cap and sitting there hand sewing ?". I have been doing this stuff for a great many years, and have a pretty good feel for what makes an event successful. Often, if you offer a historic presentation without a bit of excitement, your audience will soon wander off bored to watch the belly dancers. Perhaps a bit unfortunate, but true !! This is Captain Twill. We're discussing historical content, not attendance or event viability. I understand why events cross pollenate everything under the sun, but please stay on topic. Dance as entertainment is fine, so since the public at large has been mentioned, why not teach Western dance to the public with accurate instruments, period steps and enthusiastic instructors? There are so many lively dances and tavern tunes that would draw just as well. Spoonfeeding the public stereotypes is counterintuitive. One should never assume what the public is thinking, when asking the public directly is always an option.

December 27 - On this day in 1670, Henry Morgan gained possession of the fortress of San Lorenzo on the Caribbean coast of Panama, killing 300 men of the garrison and leaving 23 alive.

Easier to learn, but that's where it fails. I can't begin to tell you how many drumming circles I've listened to that couldn't play anything but the same rhythm for hours. Ugh. I'll take a bad fiddler over a repetitious drum line any day of the week. But going back to the subject at hand. Bellydancing. I've been to three different events where the event planners used a variation of this very phrase... "And of course we'll have belly dancing." I asked one of them, 'Why, of course?" "Well...because it's period." "I understand why you'd think that was true. Why don't you have a piano?" "Why would we have a piano?" "The piano was developed in the early 1700s. It's period. So is Newcomen's atmospheric steam engine. Do you have a steam engine?" "Well, no." "Edmond Halley invented the diving bell in 1717. That seems more directly related to treasure seeking than an obscure amalgamation of cultural dances from a small corner of the world." "We have bellydancing." "Okay." I don't think this little thread will change the pop culture trends of festivals and attendees. I just wanted to get it out there.

That's what makes you a pirate's pirate. You're a working man's pirate, not a cardboard cut-out.

Aye. I get the overlap. I happens, but it is also allowed to happen, which I find bothersome. For example, the Utah Pirate Festival is a fun little fest and in no way a reenactment of any kind. Not at all. However, I was pleasantly surprised when they invited me out specifically in an effort to raise the historic bar, which they lowered the very next year by placing me right beside the deep fried twinkie vendor and the mermaid tank. This year, we were placed next to the gas powered generators and they introduced space pirates' into the mix. Too many events are turning into a parade.

Belly dancing as we see it performed today is a relatively modern interpretation of ancient cultural and performing arts. The dance forms that modern groups draw from are steeped in rich traditions. That said, why do we see bellydancing at every festival under the sun? Now before anyone thinks I'm attacking bellydancing in any way, shape or form, remember this…. My wife is a dancer. She's performed in both the tribal and cabaret styles for many years and I'm a huge fan of the art for it's cultural and performance value, as well as it's inclusive nature to both genders and all body types. My wife has won numerous awards and I've been the master of ceremonies at several dance gatherings, but even I know that the art form enjoys a vastly wider audience today, then it ever did then. 'Then' being the ages of piracy that we draw upon most, such as the buccaneer and golden age timeframes. So, why do we accept bellydancing so readily at pirate events? I know it's our nature to romanticize anything exotic, but one is more likely to see a belly dance number at any given pirate festival, than a minuet, contredanse or allemande. We have dozens of European dances at our fingertips, and music in droves, but we celebrate an art as uncommon to our hobby as Kabuki theater. Belly dancing did not become popular in the West until the Victorian era when it was first introduced en masse by the Orientalist painters, who romanced the art along with other customs of Egypt, Persia and Turkey. While the ancient dances which predate belly dancing as we know it existed during the Golden Age, they were extremely isolated to un-European parts of the world, and even where they were practiced, they were limited. Even the term 'belly-dancing' is a modern invention, stemming from a mistranslation from the French in the early 1800s, so again, not historic to our hobby. So, romanticizing aside, why do we see no ground billiards to speak of, but bellydancing is everywhere? One is very likely to trip over a doumbek, while the fiddle is found almost nowhere at all. Now, I have heard it argued before that sailors visiting the Middle East might have seen the dance performed, but what dance? Remember, bellydancing today and as it was first introduced in the 1800s, is a romanticized version of specific dances and styles (plural). Even if a sailor had visited the Middle East for the purpose of pirating in those waters, by what name would he reference what he'd seen? Having seen any similar style of dancing, would he know it by name? And how would a sailor's exposure to it there, explain it's purveyance into our hobby when portrayed in the Colonies a full century before it was known in the West? It's one thing to say that a sailor as a pirate or prisoner of the barbary corsairs could have witnessed the art of 'bellydancing', whatever name it might gone by in the moment, but to explain our heavy handed use of one art form everywhere, when it was limited in it's own scope then, seems, well, greatly exaggerated. I'll gladly hear arguments for bellydancing, but only with some extant materials from the Colonies, Caribbean or Madagascar. After all, these are our proverbial playgrounds of reenactment.