28. Black Pirates

During the golden age of piracy, a pirate ship was one of the few places a black man could attain independence, money, and power.  

Some black pirates were fugitive slaves. Others joined pirate crews when slave ships were raided.  Most movies and media do not portray the racial makeup of pirate ships correctly.  It is estimated that up to 1/3 of the 10,000 pirates, during the golden age of piracy, were black. 

On these pirate ships, black pirates could vote, carry weapons, and receive an equal share of the booty.  Back on land, however, justice for black and white pirates was not equal. White pirates were usually hanged, but black pirates were often returned to their owners or otherwise resold into slavery—a fate worse than death for some.

Many black pirates rose to prominent status aboard their ships.  Many of their names have been lost to history, but we still know a few of them. 

One of the most famous black pirates was Black Caesar, who raided ships in the Florida Keys for almost a decade before joining Blackbeard aboard the Queen Anne's Revenge. He was known as a large and cunning man. Many accounts state that he was an African Chieftain who was captured into slavery and then escaped.

Diego Grillo began life as a slave in Havana, Cuba. He escaped and joined a band of black pirates that plied the West Indies, Florida, and South America.  His base of operation was Tortuga. In 1671, as Captain on board his own 10-gun ship the Saint-Jean, he assisted Henry Morgan in sacking Panama. In 1673 he was hanged for piracy. A statue of Grillo is at the Casa Museo Cayo Largo, a museum in Cuba. 

Peter Cloise, a slave, became a pirate after Captain Edward Davis took him from his owner. They became close companions and went on pirating expeditions in the Caribbean. 

Juan Andres, also known as Andresote, led an insurgent group of runaway slaves and Indians and pirated off the coast of Venezuela.