Pirates expelled, Commerce restored: the Bahama Islands during the Golden Age of Piracy

Though it was only mid-morning, the tropical sun had risen quickly, becoming a ball of white fire suspended high over the shimmering turquoise sea. It was a calm morning, and only a slight breeze rippled the surface of the water and tugged at the sails of the seven British ships as they plied their way through the waves. From the deck of the lead ship, a man dressed in captain’s uniform stood scanning the horizon with a worn telescope. The small island ahead looked much like any other in the Caribbean, and with its gently sloping beach and tall pine forest, it certainly did not look dangerous. But Captain Woodes Rogers, newly appointed governor of the Bahama Islands, knew the deadly peril he was about to face. The island was the home base of a pirate gang more than 1,000 strong – and it was Rogers’ job to take them down.

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Hello everyone! Today I’m excited to present a coin I’ve been after for quite some time: an 1806 Bahama penny, struck under King George III and the first coin ever minted specifically for the Bahamas. These are somewhat scarce to find in nice condition, but I am very pleased with this one!

BRITISH BAHAMAS
Time of George III, 1760-1820
CU Penny (28.0mm, 10.00g, 6h)
Dated 1806. Soho mint, Handsworth, England
Obverse: GEORGIUS III·D:G·REX. around laureate and draped bust of King George III right; date below
Reverse: BAHAMA above full rigged sailing ship right; mountains rising in background, smaller ships to left and right; EXPULSIS PIRATIS RESTITUTA COMMERCIA in exergue
References: Numista 26815
Mintage: 120,000​

Bahama Islands from space. https://www.nasa.gov/image-article/island-nation-of-bahamas/

The Bahama islands today are famous for their beautiful beaches, vivid aquamarine water, and world-class fishing, but I doubt the good Captain back in 1718 had much of an eye for the islands’ natural beauty as he contemplated the daunting task ahead of him. And this was a man who, by age 39, had circumnavigated the globe, rescued a real-life Robinson Crusoe, captured a Spanish treasure galleon, and had enough adventures to write a best-selling book and go broke in the process.

But the history of British activity in the Bahamas goes back farther than 1718. It was in 1648 that the first settlements were established on the island of Eleuthera, a long, thin – only 30 feet wide at its narrowest point! – and curved strip of land along the eastern edge of the island group. The settlers, who called themselves the Eleutheran Adventurers, were religious independents from Bermuda who hoped to found the ideal colony in a new land – much like the New England Pilgrims nearly thirty years previous. The colony found it tough going though, owing to poor soil, scarce resources, and outside threats from the Spanish. Many of the settlers found it too difficult and abandoned the colony, among them the founder Captain William Sayle; but a handful stayed and stuck it out.

In due time more immigrants arrived from Bermuda, establishing towns and other colonies across the islands. New Providence, a small island maybe 40 miles west of Eleuthera, became the seat of government, though there was not really any direct control from England and frankly, not much interest in governance itself, which led directly to the situation Captain Woodes Rogers found himself in at the opening of this post.


View from Morgan's Bluff, Andros Island, Bahamas. Photo by the author.

In 1696, a notorious English privateer named Henry Every sailed into the harbor of Nassau, the capital city of New Providence. Using his ship and newly captured plunder as a bribe, he persuaded the governor, Nicholas Trott, to grant him safe harbor. The governor having showed himself open to such bribery, other privateers – and outright pirates – soon began using Nassau as a base from which to operate.

Things really kicked into high gear when the War of the Spanish Succession came to a close in 1714. Suddenly, hundreds of formerly legal privateers were out of work, forbidden to continue attacking and plundering Spanish and French ships. On top of this were thousands of ordinary navy seamen similarly unemployed. Turning to piracy was a natural and, to some degree, inevitable result of this sudden cessation of hostilities. Piracy exploded along the American coast and in the Caribbean. And more and more of these pirates came to settle in Nassau. In a few years, the pirate population of New Providence outnumbered the settled population by ten to one. By 1717, nearly two thousand pirates were operating with almost complete impunity out of Nassau. Among them were some of the most famous and feared pirates in history: Edward Teach, also known as Blackbeard; Benjamin Hornigold; Charles Vane; Black Sam Bellamy; Edward England, and others. They became brazen about their control of the island, forming themselves into a pseudo-republic and threatening any and all who dared to oppose them. Things were getting out of control.


Old cannons overlooking the ocean near Andros Town, Andros Island, Bahamas. Photo by the author.

Eventually, news of the pirates’ excesses reached King George in England, who decided that something must be done about it. He appointed a former privateer named Woodes Rogers to the task. Woodes Rogers was something of a hero in Britain, famous for his privateering expedition of 1708-1711. During this expedition, Rogers managed to capture one of the legendary Spanish treasure galleons, the Nuestra Señora de la Encarnación y Desengaño. He also rescued a marooned sailor, one Alexander Selkirk; this became the inspiration for Daniel Defoe’s book Robinson Crusoe. Woodes Rogers returned to England, having circumnavigated the world, and wrote a best-selling book about his adventures titled A Cruising Voyage Round the World.

However, despite the wealth Rogers acquired from his voyage and book publication, he soon found himself in dire financial straits due to other business losses and lawsuits brought by his crew, who contested that they hadn’t received their fair share of the booty. Rogers went bankrupt, and began looking into the possibility of another expedition to recoup his losses. He got the idea of routing out the pirates of Madagascar, which were becoming a serious problem for the East India Company trade, and establishing a colony there. Woodes Rogers travelled to Madagascar under cover but found that many of the former pirates had settled down and were willing to petition for clemency. Well, that was easy! The East India Company was pleased that the pirate problem had been solved but wasn’t enthusiastic about a new colony which might compete with their trade monopoly. Woodes Rogers had to think of something else.

It was about this time that the piracy in the Caribbean centered around the Bahamas became such a problem. Woodes Rogers, having done his work in Madagascar, managed to obtain an appointment as Captain General and Governor in Chief of the Bahama islands from King George. He now made preparations to sail to the islands, eliminate the pirates, and take control of the colony.


Scrub and pine forest, Andros Island, Bahamas. Photo by the author.

Rogers outfitted seven ships for the expedition. In addition to the 100 soldiers he had with him, Rogers also took along 130 new colonists and loads of supplies to aid them in rebuilding the colony on New Providence. He took his time in making preparations, finally setting sail in April of 1718 with the motto Expulsis Piratis, Restituta Commercia – “Expel the pirates, restore commerce”. This would later become the official motto of the Bahama Islands up until Bahamian independence in 1973.

The soldiers were important, but Woodes Rogers also carried with him an even more potent tool to help him overcome the pirates: the “Act of Grace”, a signed declaration of pardon from the King himself to all pirates who would voluntarily lay down their arms and forsake their illegal activities. Rogers would have known from his experience in Madagascar that such offers of pardon were often accepted by pirates, most of whom viewed their piracy as a temporary enterprise and had no desire to make a lifelong career of it. And in fact, there had been demands by the Nassau pirates for such a pardon. The hope was that this would be a repeat of the Madagascar experience.


Storm on the beach, Andros Island, Bahamas. Photo by the author.

After a couple months of sailing, Woodes Rogers and his party arrived at Nassau. Sailing into the harbor, they surprised one of the pirate ships, commanded by the notorious pirate Charles Vane. With Rogers’ ships blocking the main harbor entrance, Vane was trapped. In desperation, refusing to surrender, Vane set fire to one of his ships and sent it towards Rogers’ fleet. The plan succeeded in forcing Rogers back, buying Vane and his crew enough time to jump aboard a smaller, swifter vessel and make their escape through the harbor’s narrow eastern entrance.

Vane had escaped, but Rogers now sailed in and took possession of the island. The “Act of Grace” worked, with more than 200 pirates accepting the pardon and helping Rogers rebuild and reorganize the town. One of the pirate leaders, Benjamin Hornigold, not only accepted the pardon but even became a pirate hunter for Woodes Rogers.

Not everything went quite as planned, however. A number of the pirates who had accepted the pardon later recanted and resumed their life of crime. But they were hunted down by Hornigold and another ex-pirate, John Cockram, taken back to Nassau, and hung. This show of force and resolution helped discourage others from slipping back into piracy, and from then on, Nassau was secured. The so-called Golden Age of Caribbean piracy was ended. The pirates had been expelled, and commerce was restored.

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Thanks for reading! I hope you found it interesting. Some years ago, my wife and I were privileged to serve for a few months as missionaries on Andros Island. Week days were busy, but we were usually able to find some time on Saturdays to enjoy the beautiful beaches and scenery. Here are a few more photos from our time there.


Ocean view near Stafford Creek, Andros Island, Bahamas. Photo by the author.


Blue crab. Photo by the author.


Green heron. Photo by the author.


Wild orchids. Photo by the author.

 

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Wonderful coin and great read Meat Man!

 

Great read. Here my Bahama's penny

 

Thanks!

Thanks Chris B, that's a very nice coin! Looks AU? These are tough to find in higher grades like yours.