BlackBeard

BLACKBEARD In the year 1680, one man was born that would strike fear into the hearts of many. Many people think this man (or most would argue, monster,) was born in Bristol, England. His believed-to-be-names were Edward Teach, or Thatch. His life truely began when he joined the crew of [|Benjamin Hornigold], a pirate that ran his 'business' out of the caribbean. During this time, Hornigold and Blackbeard (he was a young man at this time) captured a slave ship. Blackbeard asked Hornigold if he would spare the ship, so BlackBeard would have his own ship. Hornigold agreed, And BlackBeard quickly named it the [|//Queen Anne's Revenge//]. (Artist's Depiction Below)

Sadly, in 1718, an army of men sent by [|Governor of Virginia], [|Alexander Spotswood], killed BlackBeard in a fight on his Ship, Adventure. 22 wounds were found on his body, 6 of which were bullet wounds. They chopped of his head and hung it on the mast of their ship. Quickly after, his crew gave up, seeing their captian killed.

BlackBeard (or Black-Beard, explained below) met a sad, but proud end.

Not much is known about Blackbeard's early life, but new reseach has discovered that this man may have been born in Bath, NC. This could mean that he didn't just come here to navigate and hide in the Outer Banks, but he was really coming home. They say his father was a Privateer, (a legal pirate, basically. Sounds fun, eh?) and that Black-Beard (note the hyphen.) helped his father fight with the British, or redcoats. When the war was over, Black-Beard couldn't stop and he did it without it being legal. The hyphen you saw earlier might mean, when looking at historical records, Beard was his last name. His dad, (thought to be dad, at least) name was James Beard. Black-Beard mentioned more than once about having a sister, Suzanne. James Beard had a young daughter that had the same name. This information is critical. But we don't really know, do we?

Blackbeard has been part of pop culture for years.

BlackBeard (or Black-Beard, whichever you prefer,) loved striking fear into hearts of people. He kept a Demonic look, with fuses and candles under his hat, and on his beard. Though he looked like Satan, he obviously was a ladies' man. He married over a DOZEN women and had at least one kid with each of them. Well, you must be asking, "What happened to the 'Queen Anne's Revenge?" or, "I thought BlackBeard died on his first ship." Well, don't worry, I'll tell you. Many people think he knew his crew was going to try to kill him, so he sunk it on a sandbar in the Outer Banks.(Wow. A little bit of overkill, don't you think? I mean come on, what happened to "Walk the plank!")

Some historians believe this picture shows BlackBeard at the Outer Banks.

Well, the only thing that REALLY knows what happened to this legend, is the Outer Banks herself. But she isn't telling, is she?

[] A funny, but informational video about BlackBeard. (Not Really...)