Nathaniel North

Surname	Nathaniel North
birth	circa 1671 - Bermuda , Atlantic
death	circa 1716 - Madagascar , East Africa
genre	Privateer / pirate
Rank	Quartermaster / captain
Places of activity	Atlantic , Red Sea , Indian Ocean
command	Brigantine: Defiant Frigate: Charles

Nathaniel North (* around 1671 in Bermuda , Atlantic ; † around 1716 in Madagascar , East Africa ) was a pirate born in Bermuda during the Golden Age of piracy . He carried out his activities in the Indian Ocean under John Bowen and was captain of the Defiant after Bowen's resignation in 1704 . After losing the Defiant , he ran a pirate colony in Ambonaivo made up of his former crew before returning to sea. North retired in 1709 with great wealth, settled in Madagascar and married a local woman who was murdered by her family.

Earlier life

In 1689, Nathaniel North was a crew member on board an English privateer who attacked French shipping during the War of the Palatinate Succession . He was forcibly enlisted into the Royal Navy , but he made his way to Jamaica . There he met British press groups again, but escaped by jumping overboard and swimming ashore. Until 1696, North was a crew member in a group of privateers (which included future captain George Booth ) that captured the 18-gun brigantine called Pelican off Newfoundland . While the privateer, under new captain Robert Colley, was given an assignment to attack French holdings in West Africa , they instead traveled to Madagascar , where they looked for ships on the Arab and Swahili coasts. When they couldn't find any ships, the Pelican raided villages in the Comoros instead .

Upon his return from Madagascar, North was appointed quartermaster by the crew after Colley and several others died of illness. Ship cooper Joseph Wheeler was named captain. The Pelican then joined Dirk Chivers and Robert Culliford and the three ships together captured the Great Mohammed . However, Chivers and Culliford refused to share the booty of the Great Mohammed , claiming the Pelican did not take part in the battle. After this event, the Pelican left the trio and later captured three small ships, keeping one and renaming it Dolphin . Damage caused to both ships in a hurricane forced a return to Madagascar , where the loot was split up, with each of the pirates receiving around £ 700.

Previous career

In 1699, Nathaniel North again served as quartermaster under Captain Samuel Inless , who had received command of the Dolphin . After taking over a large Danish ship, they sailed to Île Sainte-Marie and split up the loot, with each man being paid about £ 400. However, four British warships arrived on the Île Sainte-Marie, forcing Inless to burn the Dolphin . While the pirates were offered a pardon - some of them accepted it - North instead fled the longship straight to Madagascar.

In 1701 Nathaniel North turned to raiding settlements and led a looting expedition ashore in the Comoros . His raid looted villages on Ngazidja and held the Sultan of Mayotte hostage before returning to sea.

Later career & death

It was not until 1707 that North John Halsey joined the Brigantine Charles as quartermaster . During this time two British ships were captured, one of which took Halsey for himself and returned to Madagascar , with North taking command of the Charles . This turned out to be short-lived as the Charles ran aground shortly afterwards. North eventually returned to Madagascar and lived with the King of Maratan. In 1709, North returned to Ambonavoula , where he traded in Mauritius and occasionally acquired slaves from Anjouan . Some time later he was captured during a local conflict and later murdered by opposing natives.

swell

• Seitz, Don Carlos. For the rest of his life ... Under the Black Flag: Exploits of the Most Notorious Pirates Mineola, New York: Courier Dover Publications, 2002. ISBN 0-486-42131-7