Samuel Bellamy
English pirate who captured at least 53 ships in a career lasting little more than a year.
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via Wikipedia: Samuel Bellamy · see source
Samuel Bellamy was an English sailor who became a pirate captain in the early 18th century.[1] During the Golden Age of Piracy, Samuel Bellamy is recorded as one of the pirates who amassed the greatest wealth.[1]
Key facts and history
Bellamy took a captured vessel, the Sultana, as his own and assigned his friend Palsgrave Williams as commander of the Marianne.[2] His greatest capture was the slave ship Whydah Gally in spring 1717.[3] Around 1715, Bellamy journeyed to Cape Cod, reportedly to look for family members living there.[4] In early 1716, Bellamy departed Cape Cod with a party, aiming to recover treasure from the Spanish Treasure Fleet that had been wrecked off Florida in 1715.[5]
The treasure hunters soon turned to piracy under captain Benjamin Hornigold, whose first mate was Edward Teach, later known as "Blackbeard".[5] On 26 April 1717, a nor'easter storm caught the Whydah off Massachusetts, causing it to sink and killing Bellamy along with nearly all his crew.[6][7] In February 2018, bones thought to be Bellamy's were discovered near the wreck; however, DNA analysis in May 2018 proved they were not his.[8]
What the cited sources add
The Real Pirates museum describes Bellamy as the highest-earning pirate of all time, with a love affair with Maria Hallet.[9] Forbes has listed Bellamy as the highest-earning pirate ever, plundering about $120 million worth of treasure.[10] The wreck's remains were confirmed when a bell inscribed "THE WHYDAH GALLY 1716" was recovered.[9] Bellamy's body was among 40 never found or identified.[10]
The Whydah Pirate Museum in West Yarmouth displays artifacts from the wreck.[9]
References
- Wikipedia, "Samuel Bellamy" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "Top-Earning Pirates", Forbes, 19 September 2008 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "Samuel Bellamy" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Dow, "The pirates of the New England coast, 1630–1730", Argosy-Antiquarian, 1923, p. 116–131; Humanity, "Infamous Pirates Olivier Levasseur", www.goldenageofpiracy.org; Clifford, "Expedition Whydah : the story of the world's first excavation of a pirate treasure ship and the man who found her", Cliff Street Books, 1999 (we also read that source) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "Samuel Bellamy" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Dow, "The pirates of the New England coast, 1630–1730", Argosy-Antiquarian, 1923, p. 116–131; Dow, "The pirates of the New England coast, 1630–1730", Argosy-Antiquarian, 1923, p. 116–131; Woodard 2008, p. 156–158; "The Slave Ship Whydah: A Slave-Based Economy", "Real Pirates" museum exhibit website, 2009 (we also read that source) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "Samuel Bellamy" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "The Whydah Museum", The Whydah Museum Official Site (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "Samuel Bellamy" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Dow, "The pirates of the New England coast, 1630–1730", Argosy-Antiquarian, 1923, p. 116–131 (we also read that source) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "Samuel Bellamy" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Clifford, "Expedition Whydah : the story of the world's first excavation of a pirate treasure ship and the man who found her", Cliff Street Books, 1999 (we also read that source) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "Samuel Bellamy" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "Capt. Samuel Bellamy, Rogue Romeo" (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "Samuel Bellamy" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Sabur, "Possible remains of world's 'richest pirate' Captain Black Sam Bellamy to be compared to English descendant's DNA", The Daily Telegraph, 19 February 2018; "Bones found in shipwreck don't belong to infamous pirate", New York Post, 25 May 2018 (we also read that source) en.wikipedia.org
- "Real Pirates Museum Brings Authentic Pirate Treasure and Stories to Salem claim", 8 April 2022. facts only, no text reused. nshoremag.com
- "Bones found in shipwreck don't belong to infamous pirate", New York Post, 25 May 2018. facts only, no text reused. nypost.com
Each numbered sentence above was checked against the source it cites before publication. Sentences citing Wikipedia adapt text from the English Wikipedia article Samuel Bellamy (contributors), used under CC BY-SA 4.0; this entry is available under the same licence. Other sources were used for facts only; no text or images are copied from them.
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Sources
Compiled from Wikipedia and the sources listed below. Text from Wikipedia is available under CC BY-SA 4.0; this entry is adapted from it.
- Wikipedia: Samuel Bellamy (CC BY-SA 4.0).
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