Henry Morgan

 

As a young man Henry Morgan set out for the New World in search of a life of adventure, but his wildest dreams could not foretell what danger and excitement lay in store. He amassed considerable respectability, wealth and power thanks to some well-connected familial contacts and a bit of good old-fashioned hell-raising, before a kiss-and-tell exposé eventually revealed him for what he truly was – one of the most blood-thirsty pirates ever to have sailed the seven seas.

 

 

Henry Morgan was one of the most successful pirates of the 17th century. For most of his career, he had the protection of the British government, who employed him as a privateer in their battle with the Spanish over colonial rule in the New World. Because of this privileged position, he was able to do more or less as he pleased, making raids on cities, towns and settlements, and amassing enormous personal wealth in the process. There were reports that these raids entailed savage violence and brutality, including the torture of ordinary citizens, but he was quick to refute these stories, in one case suing a publisher who dared to suggest his methods were anything but civilized.

Occasionally, he went too far, as in his storming of Panama, for which he was arrested; but eventually, because of the political considerations of the day, instead of being hung, he was knighted for his pains. He was one of the very few pirates in history to retire gracefully from his buccaneering days, living out his last days as the wealthy owner of a plantation in Jamaica, rather than being hung as a thief. To this day, there are those who continue to regard him as an illustrious defender of English colonial rule, rather than a violent, marauding thug.

 

A life of adventure

Henry Morgan was born in 1635 in Llanrumney, Wales, which was then part of Monmouthshire, but is now an area of Cardiff. He was the eldest son of a well-to-do squire, Robert Morgan, but as a young man, he left home and travelled to the West Indies to seek his fortune.

He was lucky to find that, in the New World, there were numerous opportunities for a life of adventure. It was open season in the Caribbean for all manner of rogues and buccaneers, whether under the protection of the crown or independent. Moreover, Morgan had friends in high places, which was to help his career enormously.

In 1665, Jamaica was conquered by the British, and shortly afterwards, Henry’s uncle Edward was installed as Lieutenant Governor of the new colony. To cement the relationship, Henry married Edward’s daughter Mary, his cousin, and thus, through his family connections, gained access to the corridors of power among the colonial rulers of the region.

 

Admiral Morgan

Morgan is thought to have begun his career in the naval fleet, under the command of one Christopher Myngs. He also made expeditions to Honduras and Mexico, where several towns and settlements were raided. He then sailed under the seasoned privateer Edward Mansfield, who was backed by Sir Thomas Modyford, the Governor of Jamaica. Modyford’s expedition successfully took over the islands of Santa Catalina and Providence, after much resistance from the Spanish. However, some time later, Mansfield was captured and killed by the enemy. This proved to be Morgan’s break, as he was chosen to take over command. Thus it was that Morgan became an admiral of the British fleet.

 

The triumph of Portobello

By now, Morgan had become an important figure in the British Navy. Accordingly, he was given greater responsibility and more resources were laid at his disposal. He was given the task of making a raid on the principal town of Haiti, with a fleet of 10 ships and 500 men. The sacking of the town was successfully accomplished, although many lost their lives in the fighting, and there were criticisms that the victors bagged too many of the spoils for themselves.

Morgan then set his sights on a far bigger prize: the town of Portobello, which is now in modern-day Panama. This proved to be his claim to fame. Not only did he ransack the town, he also managed to free a number of British prisoners who had been languishing there under harsh conditions. When news of his victory reached the British, he became a hero over night. The famous market street in London, Portobello Road, was named in his honour, to commemorate the freeing of the prisoners.

 

Common pirates?

Naturally enough, these raids involved a great deal of bloodshed. Moreover, the plunderers were allowed to divide their spoils between them, with no regard for the property rights of those they attacked, and little respect for their superiors in the British government. However, the scandal of the marauding privateers, who behaved no better than common pirates, was hushed up by the Admiralty in Britain, who continued to trumpet Morgan as a hero. In addition, the Governor of Jamaica drew a veil over the violence of the raids, and even organized celebrations on the crew’s return from battle. It seemed that, as long as Morgan did the authorities’ bidding, they were prepared to turn a blind eye to the excesses of his attacks.

Before long, Morgan was sent off again to conduct raids on Spanish settlements in Cuba and Venezuela. He also destroyed three Spanish ships while at sea, provoking the wrath of the Spanish, who began to threaten attacks on Jamaica. The hostilities escalated, and soon Morgan was planning an attack on Panama, one of the wealthiest cities in the New World, with a force of over 1,000 men, even though this contravened a treaty made between England and Spain.

 

Sued for libel

In the event, the sacking of Panama was not quite as successful as Morgan had envisaged. Most of the city’s valuables had been loaded onto a ship and guarded closely, so that the freebooters could not get at it. Morgan and his men did as much damage as they could, but they emerged with a great deal less plunder than they had hoped. The inhabitants told tales of torture and arson, and this time, in an effort to placate the Spanish, with whom Britain had just signed a treaty, Morgan was arrested and hauled up before the British authorities. However, when relations between the Spanish and the British subsequently deteriorated, the charges were dropped, and instead of being charged with murder, Morgan was knighted. He was also promoted to Lieutenant Governor of Jamaica, and retired there to live a life of ease on a large plantation.

 

The tide turns

Morgan’s reputation then took a turn for the worse with the publication of book by a former confidante, a barber-surgeon named Alexander Exquemelin, which detailed his bloodthirsty exploits. Morgan immediately mounted a libel suit and successfully secured damages of £200 against the publisher, together with a promise to retract the accusations. However, the book did nothing to enhance Morgan’s standing, and from then on he became infamous as one of the most bloodthirsty pirates in history.

 

Final years

Although Morgan was by now a very rich and powerful man, the life of a grandee did not seem to suit him. He grew bored, and began to drink heavily, offending polite society with his rowdy behaviour. Little by little, his social standing deteriorated. He became overweight and his health suffered. Eventually he fell seriously ill, and was described by his medical advisor, Sir Hans Sloane, as being ‘yellow and swollen’. It seems likely that he was suffering from liver failure as a result of his heavy drinking. Sloane reported that Henry Morgan died in his bed on 25 August 1688.