The Pirates' Who's Who Part 41

One of Major Stede Bonnet's crew. Hanged in 1718 at Charleston, South Carolina.

RINGROSE, BASIL. Buccaneer, pirate, and author.

Sailed in 1679 to the West Indies. A year later Ringrose had joined the buccaneers at their rendezvous in the Gulf of Darien, where they were preparing for a bold enterprise on the Spanish Main. They landed and marched to the town of Santa Maria, which they plundered and burnt.

Thence they travelled in canoes down the river to the Bay of Panama. After attacking the Spanish fleet and laying siege to the city, the buccaneers cruised up and down the West Coast of South America for eighteen months, sacking towns and attacking Spanish ships. All this while Ringrose kept a very full and graphic journal, in which he recorded not only their exploits, but also their hardships and quarrels, and gave descriptions as well of the various natives and their customs, and drew charts and sketches.

In 1681 Ringrose was still with Captain Sharp, and sailed through the Straits of Magellan, and on January 30th of the same year anch.o.r.ed off Antigua. Here he got a pa.s.sage in a ship to England, landing safely at Dartmouth on March 26th.

A year later he published an account of his voyage, as a second volume to Esquemeling's, "Bucaniers of America." In 1684 he went to sea again in the _Cygnet_ (Captain Swan), to traffic with the Spanish colonies. But the Spaniards refused to trade with them. In October, 1684, they met the famous Captain Edward Davis at that favourite haunt of the buccaneers, the Isle of Plate. The two captains agreed to join forces and to go together "on the account," so all the cargo was thrown overboard the _Cygnet_, and the ships set out to make war on any Spanish ships they might meet with.

In February, 1686, Ringrose with one hundred men took the town of Santiago in Mexico, but while returning with the plunder to their ship were caught by the Spaniards in an ambush, and Ringrose was killed.

Ringrose never attained any rank among the buccaneers beyond occasionally being put in charge of a boat or a small company on sh.o.r.e, but as a recorder of the doings of his companions he proved both careful and painstaking. Dampier had a great regard for him, and in his book he writes: "My ingenious friend Ringrose had no mind to this voyage, but was necessitated to engage in it or starve."

The t.i.tle of Ringrose's book, first published in 1685, is "The Dangerous Voyage and Bold a.s.saults of Captain Bartholomew Sharp and Others."

Written by Mr. Basil Ringrose.

Printed for William Crooke, 1685.

ROACH, PETER.

When Captain Quelch was captured with his crew, Roach escaped near the Cape by Snake Island. He was afterwards captured and thrown into the gaol at Salem. Tried for piracy at the Star Tavern at Boston, and on June 30th, 1704, was hanged. At the place of execution Roach disappointed the onlooking crowd, as, instead of the expected and hoped-for repentant speech, "he seemed little concerned, and said but little or nothing at all."

ROB, ALEXANDER.

One of Captain Gow's crew. Hanged at Execution Dock, Wapping, in June, 1724. He was not one of the original crew of the _George_ galley, but was taken out of a prize and joined the pirates of his own free-will.

ROBBINS, JAMES.

Hanged in Virginia in 1718 along with the rest of Captain Teach's crew.

ROBBINS, JAMES.

Of London.

One of the crew of the _Royal James_. Hanged in 1718 at Charleston, South Carolina.

ROBERTS, CAPTAIN BARTHOLOMEW. Welsh pirate.

Born 1682. Died 1722.

If a pirate is to be reckoned by the amount of damage he does and the number of ships he takes there can be no doubt that Captain Roberts should be placed at the very head of his profession, for he is said to have taken over 400 vessels. The only man who can be said to rival him is Sir Henry Morgan, but Morgan, although in some ways an unmitigated blackguard, was a man of much greater breadth of outlook than Roberts ever was, and, moreover, was a buccaneer rather than a pirate.

Roberts, like many other successful pirates, was born in Wales, not far from Haverfordwest. He is described as being "a tall black man," and was about 40 years of age at the time of his death. He was remarkable, even among his remarkable companions, for several things. First of all, he only drank tea--thus being the only total abstainer known to the fraternity.

Also he was a strict disciplinarian, and on board his ships all lights had to be extinguished by 8 p.m., any of the crew who wished to continue drinking after that hour had to do so on the open deck. But try as he would this ardent apostle of abstemiousness was unable to put down drinking. If Roberts had lived to-day, no doubt he would have been on the council of the local vigilance committee. He would allow no women aboard his ships, in fact he made it a law that any man who brought a woman on board disguised as a man was to suffer death. Roberts allowed no games at cards or dice to be played for money, as he strongly disapproved of gambling. He was a strict Sabbatarian, and allowed the musicians to have a rest on the seventh day. This was as well, for the post of musician on a pirate ship was no sinecure, as every pirate had the right to demand a tune at any hour of the day or night. He used to place a guard to protect all his women prisoners, and it is sadly suspicious that there was always the greatest compet.i.tion amongst the worst characters in the ship to be appointed sentinel over a good-looking woman prisoner. All quarrels had to be settled on sh.o.r.e, pirate fashion, the duellists standing back to back armed with pistol and cutla.s.s. Roberts would have no fighting among the crew on board his ship.

Bartholomew must have looked the very part of a pirate when dressed for action. A tall, dark man, he used to wear a rich damask waistcoat and breeches, a red feather in his cap, a gold chain round his neck with a large diamond cross dangling from it, a sword in his hand, and two pairs of pistols hanging at the end of a silk sling flung over his shoulders.

We first hear of Roberts as sailing, in honest employ, as master of the _Princess_ (Captain Plumb), from London in November, 1719, bound for the coast of Guinea to pick up a cargo of "black ivory" at Anamaboe. Here his ship was taken by the Welsh pirate Howel Davis. At first Roberts was disinclined for the pirate life, but soon changed his mind.

On the death of Davis there were several candidates for the post of commander, all brisk and lively men, distinguished by the t.i.tle of "Lords," such as Sympson, Ashplant, Anstis, and others. One of these "Lords," Dennis, concluded an eloquent harangue over a bowl of punch with a strong appeal for Roberts to be the new chief. This proposal was acclaimed with but one dissenting voice, that of "Lord" Sympson, who had hopes of being elected himself, and who sullenly left the meeting swearing "he did not care who they chose captain so it was not a papist." So Roberts was elected after being a pirate only six weeks; thus was true merit quickly appreciated and rewarded amongst them.

[Ill.u.s.tration: CAPTAIN BARTHOLOMEW ROBERTS.

To face p. 262.]

Roberts's speech to his fellow-pirates was short but to the point, saying "that since he had dipped his hands in muddy water, and must be a pyrate, it was better being a commander than a common man," not perhaps a graceful nor grateful way of expressing his thanks, but one which was no doubt understood by his audience.

Roberts began his career in a bright manner, for to revenge the perfectly justifiable death of their late captain he seized and razed the fort, bombarded the town, and setting on fire two Portuguese ships so as to act as torches, sailed away the same night. Sailing to Brazil they found in the Bay of Bahia a fleet of forty-two Portuguese ships ready laden and on the point of leaving for Lisbon, and Roberts, with the most astounding boldness, sailed right in amongst them until he found the deepest laden, which he attacked and boarded, although his was a much smaller ship. He sailed away with his prize from the harbour. This prize, amongst the merchandise, contained 40,000 moidors and a cross of diamonds designed for the King of Portugal.

He then took a Dutch ship, and two days later an English one, and sailed back to Brazil, refitting and cleaning at the Island of Ferdinando.

In a work such as this is, it is impossible to recount all, or even a few, of the daring adventures, or the piratical ups and downs of one pirate.

Roberts sailed to the West Indies devastating the commerce of Jamaica and Barbadoes. When things grew too hot there, he went north to Newfoundland, and played the very devil with the English and French fishing fleets and settlements.

His first ship he called the _Fortune_, his next, a bigger ship, the _Royal Fortune_, another the _Good Fortune_.

On two occasions Roberts had been very roughly handled, once by a ship from Barbadoes and once by the inhabitants of Martinica, so when he designed his new flag, he portrayed on it a huge figure of himself standing sword in hand upon two skulls, and under these were the letters A.B.H. and A.M.H., signifying a Barbadian's and a Martinican's head.

In April, 1721, Roberts was back again on the Guinea Coast, burning and plundering. Amongst the prisoners he took out of one of his prizes was a clergyman. The captain dearly wished to have a chaplain on board his ship to administer to the spiritual welfare of his crew, and tried all he could to persuade the parson to sign on, promising him that his only duties should be to say prayers and make punch. But the prelate begged to be excused, and was at length allowed to go with all his belongings, except three prayer-books and a corkscrew--articles which were sorely needed aboard the _Royal Fortune_.

The end of Roberts's career was now in sight. A King's ship, the _Swallow_ (Captain Chaloner Ogle), discovered Roberts's ships at Parrot Island, and, pretending to fly from them, was followed out to sea by one of the pirates. A fight took place, and after two hours the pirates struck, flinging overboard their black flag "that it might not rise in Judgement over them." The _Swallow_ returned in a few days to Parrot Island to look for Roberts in the _Royal Fortune_. Roberts being at breakfast, enjoying a savoury dish of solomongundy, was informed of the approach of the ship, but refused to take any notice of it. At last, thoroughly alarmed, he cut his cables and sailed out, but most of his crew being drunk, even at this early hour, the pirates did not make as good a resistance as if they had been sober. Early in the engagement Roberts was. .h.i.t in the throat by a grape-shot and killed; this being on February 10th, 1722. His body, fully dressed, with his arms and ornaments, was thrown overboard according to his repeated request made during his lifetime. Thus the arch-pirate died, as he always said he wished to die, fighting. His motto had always been "A short life and a merry one." One good word can be said for Roberts, that he never forced a man to become a pirate against his wish.

ROBERTS, OWEN. Welsh pirate.

Carpenter in the _Queen Ann's Revenge_, and killed on November 22nd, 1718, off the North Carolina Coast.

ROBINSON, EDWARD.

Of Newcastle-upon-Tyne.

Hanged at Charleston, South Carolina, in 1718.

ROCHE, CAPTAIN PHILIP, _alias_ JOHN EUSTACE.

In company with three other mariners--Cullen, Wife, and Neale--this Irish pirate shipped himself on board a French snow at Cork in November, 1721, for a pa.s.sage to Nantes. Owing to Roche's briskness, genteel manners, and knowledge of navigation, the master used occasionally to place him in charge of the vessel. One night a few days out a pre-arranged mutiny took place, the French crew being butchered and thrown overboard. The captain, who pleaded for mercy, was also thrown into the sea. Driven by bad weather to Dartmouth, the new captain, Roche, had the ship repainted and disguised, and renamed her the _Mary_. Then sailing to Rotterdam he sold the cargo of beef and took on a fresh cargo with the owner, Mr. Annesly.

The first night out of port they threw Mr. Annesly overboard, and he swam alongside for some while pleading to be taken in. On going into a French port, and hearing that an enquiry was being made about his ship, Roche ran away. The crew took the ship to Scotland, and there landed and disappeared, and the ship was seized and taken to the Thames.

Later on Roche was arrested in London and committed to Newgate Prison, found guilty of piracy, and hanged on August 5th, 1723, at Execution Dock, at the age of 30. The hanging was not, from the public spectators point of view, a complete success, for the culprit "was so ill at the time that he could not make any public declaration of his abhorrence of the crime for which he suffered."