Notes: Episode 52, Caribbean Piracy (Part 2)
As with every show, I’ll list any corrections or clarifications here. If there’s anything I’ve overlooked, please contact me by email or in the comments and I’ll edit the notes to reflect the new information.
8:55 – I realized around this point that I didn’t give the name of the governor of Jamaica who had essentially traded its safety for any legitimacy in prosecuting piracy in the region. Largely that’s because it was a series o a few pirate-friendly governors who were happy to issue letters of marque to any and all pirates willing to harass the Spanish. However, in the context of Henry Morgan, the most relevant one is Sir Thomas Modyford, who governed from 1664 to 1671 and fought to maintain the status quo of privateer protection for Port Royal in the face of some opposition from the Crown.
12:33 – I’m going to make this correction a few times throughout this episode, so we should clear it up right away. The unification of Great Britain doesn’t occur until 1707, meaning that any time before that we need to talk about the English empire rather than the British one. As we’re dealing quite a bit with England/Britain right around the time that unification occurs, it can be difficult to keep straight which one it is exactly that we need to be using. This episode almost exclusively takes place between about 1655 and 1720, and what’s more isn’t entirely chronological, meaning I’ll need to make that semantic transition a few different times.
14:33 – That was some rough pronunciation! His name is spelled “Alexandre Exquelemin”, which let’s be real is a bit of a mouthful.
36:25 – I definitely forgot to write down the name of that island. It’s Ocracoke, which is now in North Carolina.
53:12 – I was able to confirm that the child was a son, but still no idea whatsoever what happened to him.
1:02:02 – There was a third pirate who fought the pirate hunters along with Read and Bonny but his name has been lost unfortunately.
