Charles Swan (died 1690) was a reluctant

buccaneer Buccaneers were a kind of privateers or free sailors particular to the Caribbean Sea during the 17th and 18th centuries. First established on northern Hispaniola as early as 1625, their heyday was from Stuart Restoration, the Restoration in 16 ...

. Captain Swan was forced into

piracy Piracy is an act of robbery or criminal violence by ship or boat-borne attackers upon another ship or a coastal area, typically with the goal of stealing cargo and other valuable goods. Those who conduct acts of piracy are called pirates, v ...

by his crew in the 1680s, and proceeded to write letters to the owners of his ship ''Cygnet'' in

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

, begging them to intercede with

James II of England James VII and II (14 October 1633 16 September 1701) was King of England and King of Ireland as James II, and King of Scotland as James VII from the death of his elder brother, Charles II, on 6 February 1685. He was deposed in the Gloriou ...

for his

pardon A pardon is a government decision to allow a person to be relieved of some or all of the legal consequences resulting from a criminal conviction. A pardon may be granted before or after conviction for the crime, depending on the laws of the ju ...

even as he looted his way up and down the coastal areas of

South America South America is a continent entirely in the Western Hemisphere and mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere at the northern tip of the continent. It can also be described as the southe ...

. He was present at the attack on

Payta Paita is a city in northwestern Peru. It is the capital of the Paita Province which is in the Piura Region. It is a leading seaport in the region. Paita is located 1,089 km northwest of the country's capital Lima, and 57 km northwest o ...

in 1684 alongside

John Eaton John Eaton may refer to: * John Eaton (divine) (born 1575), English divine * John Eaton (pirate) (fl. 1683–1686), English buccaneer *Sir John Craig Eaton (1876–1922), Canadian businessman * John Craig Eaton II (born 1937), Canadian businessman ...

, where he burned the town after no booty was found. On 25 August 1685, he separated from his confederates Peter Harris and Edward Davis, and sailed up the coast of

Mexico Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...

alongside Francis Townley, but met with little success. He seized the town of Santa Pecaque but lost fifty men to a Spanish counter-attack, including

Basil Ringrose Basil Ringrose (about 1653–1683) was an English buccaneer, navigator, geographer and author. Early life Ringrose was christened at St. Martin in the Field in 1653. Career First voyage Ringrose crossed the Isthmus of Darien in 1680 with a g ...

. On 31 March 1686 he set out across the

Pacific The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean (or, depending on definition, to Antarctica) in the south, and is bounded by the continen ...

to ambush the

Manila Manila ( , ; fil, Maynila, ), officially the City of Manila ( fil, Lungsod ng Maynila, ), is the capital of the Philippines, and its second-most populous city. It is highly urbanized and, as of 2019, was the world's most densely populate ...

treasure galleon, but failed to overtake the ship. Due to the failure of the assault on Santa Pecaque provisions were short, and by the time they reached the

East Indies The East Indies (or simply the Indies), is a term used in historical narratives of the Age of Discovery. The Indies refers to various lands in the East or the Eastern hemisphere, particularly the islands and mainlands found in and around t ...

the crew were plotting to eat their officers of the ''Cygnet'' as it crossed the Pacific (starting with the Captain).Dampier, William (1991). ''A Voyage to New Holland''. Nonsuch Publishing. (Swan is reported to have remarked that the lean

William Dampier William Dampier (baptised 5 September 1651; died March 1715) was an English explorer, pirate, privateer, navigator, and naturalist who became the first Englishman to explore parts of what is today Australia, and the first person to circumnav ...

would have made them a poor meal; the captain himself was a remarkably fat man.) They arrived at

Guam Guam (; ch, Guåhan ) is an organized, unincorporated territory of the United States in the Micronesia subregion of the western Pacific Ocean. It is the westernmost point and territory of the United States (reckoned from the geographic cent ...

without having to resort to

cannibalism Cannibalism is the act of consuming another individual of the same species as food. Cannibalism is a common ecological interaction in the animal kingdom and has been recorded in more than 1,500 species. Human cannibalism is well documented, b ...

, and made their way on to the Sultanate of

Mindanao Mindanao ( ) ( Jawi: مينداناو) is the second-largest island in the Philippines, after Luzon, and seventh-most populous island in the world. Located in the southern region of the archipelago, the island is part of an island group of ...

. The arrogance of Swan and unruliness of his men soon spoiled their good relations with the local ruler, Raja Laut; and when the captain decided to abandon the attempt on the galleon, his men mutinied. He was replaced as Captain by John Read, who had originally been a crewman under Edward Davis (and Davis' predecessor, John Cook). He managed to save five thousand pounds (legally the property of the ''Cygnet's'' owners) from the mutineers, and remained in Mindanao, becoming an officer in Laut's army. In 1690 he attempted to escape back to

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

on a

Dutch Dutch commonly refers to: * Something of, from, or related to the Netherlands * Dutch people () * Dutch language () Dutch may also refer to: Places * Dutch, West Virginia, a community in the United States * Pennsylvania Dutch Country People E ...

ship with the money, but was chased by Laut's warriors who capsized his boat and speared him in the water.Wilkinson, Clennell (1929). ''William Dampier''. John Lane at the Bodley Head.

References

1690 deaths British pirates Year of birth unknown 17th-century pirates {{pirate-stub

See also

References