A drawing of the Whyda, the pirate ship that John King is believed to have been
sailing on when he died. (Expedition Whydah Sea-Lab & Learning Center)
Posted on 06/03/2006 12:25:26 PM PDT by Pharmboy
A drawing of the Whyda, the pirate ship that John King is believed to have been
sailing on when he died. (Expedition Whydah Sea-Lab & Learning Center)
The silk stocking, shoe and fibula believed to be John King's, found in the
wreckage off Wellfleet. (Expedition Whydah Sea-Lab & Learning Center)
He was a boy, no more than 11, when pirates captured the ship he and his mother were sailing on in the Caribbean. As he watched the pirates haul off the ship's cargo of sugar and tobacco, John King made a decision: He would leave his mother and join the pirate crew, led by Captain Sam Bellamy.
Now, 290 years later, King's remains -- his fibula, silk stocking, and shoe -- have been identified among the wreck of Bellamy's ship, the Whydah, 1,500 feet off the coast of Wellfleet. While teenage pirates were common in the 18th century, King is considered to be the youngest ever identified.
Researchers excavating the Whydah used 18th century Caribbean court records and modern forensics to make the determination.
Their find opened a window onto the strange and brief life of a young boy swept up in a lost world of ocean piracy.
``It's a whole touchstone to a period in history which is often misunderstood or it's been twisted around by all these novels," said Ken Kinkor, a historian at the Expedition Whydah Sea-Lab and Learning Center in Provincetown, which made the discovery. ``Even though we find treasures, the best treasures aren't always gold or silver. It's the knowledge we get from the past."
King's tale ranges through the Caribbean, to the coast of Venezuela, finally to his watery grave off Wellfleet. It involves high-seas plundering, an appearance by the Puritan clergyman Cotton Mather, and a public hanging in Boston.
(Excerpt) Read more at boston.com ...
Used Dogpile, it's fast!
LOL! He probably signed up for the discipline.
Uh oh! That looks like it would have been my job!
Eric The Enforcer.
by the way, Talk Like a Pirate Day is Tuesday, September 19th, 2006.
Intresting story. He joined when he was 11. What happened to his mother, was she released or what?
Well, the article did say he was wearing silk stockings.
If they took over the boat and plundered it for a couple of weeks, they were probably having their way with the female passengers, and killed any men who resisted. The boy saw all this, and chose to join them. Fascinating story. Thanks for posting.
[What happened to his mother, was she released or what?]
Yeah. I'm sure the pirates said, "Sorry to bother you, ma'am. After we steal all your stuff, you're free to go."
I've taken this quiz several times, and never remember what I answered last time, and I always come back as Iron John Vane.
"Buckthorn Varlet"????
That sounds really gay! Bwaaa!
"I can't wear this puffy shirt on TV!"
Avast, ye matey!!
Yer talking to Captain Eyegouger
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