Edward England ( –1721) was an Irish

pirate 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 ...

. The ships he sailed on included the ''Pearl'' (which he renamed ''The Royal James'') and later the ''Fancy'', for which England exchanged the ''Pearl'' in 1720. His flag was the classic

Jolly Roger Jolly Roger is the traditional English name for the flags flown to identify a pirate ship preceding or during an attack, during the early 18th century (the later part of the Golden Age of Piracy). The flag most commonly identified as the Jolly ...

— almost exactly as the one "Black Sam" Bellamy used — with a human skull above two crossed bones on a black background. Like Bellamy, England was known for his kindness and compassion as a leader, unlike many other pirates of the time. England was born Edward Seegar in Ireland around 1685. He took part in

Henry Jennings Henry Jennings (died possibly 1745) was an 18th-century Kingdom of England, English privateer from the colony of Bermuda, who served primarily during the War of the Spanish Succession and later served as leader of the pirate haven or "Pirates' ...

' expedition for the sunken

1715 Treasure Fleet The 1715 Treasure Fleet was actually a combination of two Spanish treasure fleets returning from the New World to Spain, the "Nueva España Fleet", under Capt.-General Don Juan Esteban de Ubilla, and the "Tierra Firme Fleet", under Don Antonio de ...

off the coast of

Florida Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and to ...

, and then began sailing with

Charles Vane Charles Vane (c. 1680 – 29 March 1721) was an English pirate who operated in the Bahamas during the end of the Golden Age of Piracy. Vane was likely born in the Kingdom of England around 1680. One of his first pirate ventures was under the l ...

in 1718. Upon Vane and other prominent pirates accepting the King's Pardon, England and some of his men sailed for

Africa Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent, after Asia in both cases. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of Earth's total surface area ...

. Along his way he spawned the career of

Bartholomew Roberts ) , type=Pirate , birth_place = Casnewydd Bach, near Puncheston, Pembrokeshire, Wales, Kingdom of England , death_place = At sea off of Cape Lopez, Gabon , allegiance= , serviceyears=1719–1722 , base of operations= Off the coast of the Americas ...

, among others. In 1720, near the African island of

Comoros The Comoros,, ' officially the Union of the Comoros,; ar, الاتحاد القمري ' is an independent country made up of three islands in southeastern Africa, located at the northern end of the Mozambique Channel in the Indian Ocean. It ...

, England and his men got into a violent conflict with

James Macrae James Macrae (1677 – July 1744) was a Scottish seaman and administrator who served as the President of Fort St George from 1725 to 1730. He is known for naval exploits against the pirate Edward England and for reforming the administration of ...

. After 10 days of hiding on an island, England and Macrae agreed to a peace deal, upsetting England's crew; he was subsequently voted out as captain and marooned on the island of

Mauritius Mauritius ( ; french: Maurice, link=no ; mfe, label=Mauritian Creole, Moris ), officially the Republic of Mauritius, is an island nation in the Indian Ocean about off the southeast coast of the African continent, east of Madagascar. It incl ...

. After four months, England and the loyal crewman that had been stranded with him managed to build a boat and sail to a pirate safe haven in

Madagascar Madagascar (; mg, Madagasikara, ), officially the Republic of Madagascar ( mg, Repoblikan'i Madagasikara, links=no, ; french: République de Madagascar), is an island country in the Indian Ocean, approximately off the coast of East Africa ...

. He died sometime in the winter of 1720–21, possibly from

tropical disease Tropical diseases are Infectious disease, diseases that are prevalent in or unique to tropics, tropical and subtropics, subtropical regions. The diseases are less prevalent in temperate climates, due in part to the occurrence of a cold season, whic ...

Early life

Born in Ireland as Edward Seegar sometime around 1685,Denis Piat, ''Pirates and Privateers in Mauritius'' he was probably raised a Catholic,David F. Marley, ''Pirates of the Americas, Volume 1'' and was said to be an educated man. Seegar changed his surname to England when he turned pirate. Some sources claim "Seegar" was not England's name at all, but was instead a separate pirate ( Jasper Seagar) who sailed under England. England made his way to

Jamaica Jamaica (; ) is an island country situated in the Caribbean Sea. Spanning in area, it is the third-largest island of the Greater Antilles and the Caribbean (after Cuba and Hispaniola). Jamaica lies about south of Cuba, and west of His ...

and during the

War of the Spanish Succession The War of the Spanish Succession was a European great power conflict that took place from 1701 to 1714. The death of childless Charles II of Spain in November 1700 led to a struggle for control of the Spanish Empire between his heirs, Phil ...

he served as a

privateer A privateer is a private person or ship that engages in maritime warfare under a commission of war. Since robbery under arms was a common aspect of seaborne trade, until the early 19th century all merchant ships carried arms. A sovereign or deleg ...

. He was captured by the pirate captain Christopher Winter and forced to join the crew. Winter took England to the pirate base on

Nassau, Bahamas Nassau ( ) is the capital and largest city of the Bahamas. With a population of 274,400 as of 2016, or just over 70% of the entire population of the Bahamas, Nassau is commonly defined as a primate city, dwarfing all other towns in the country. ...

. England took part in

' assault on the Spanish salvage camp at Palma de Ayz, Florida, stealing £87,000 in gold and silver. England is next reported as

quartermaster Quartermaster is a military term, the meaning of which depends on the country and service. In land armies, a quartermaster is generally a relatively senior soldier who supervises stores or barracks and distributes supplies and provisions. In m ...

, in March 1718. Vane's sloop, the ''Lark'' was captured by the

Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by English and Scottish kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime engagements were fought in the Hundred Years' War against F ...

, but England and the rest of the crew were released to induce the other pirates of Nassau to accept the King's pardon.

Captaincy – Coast of Africa

England was granted captaincy of his own ship in mid-1718. England decided not to accept the pardon along with Vane and a few others, and after the arrival of

Woodes Rogers Woodes Rogers ( 1679 – 15 July 1732) was an English sea captain, privateer, Atlantic slave trade, slave trader and, from 1718, the first List of colonial heads of the Bahamas, Royal Governor of the Bahamas. He is known as the captain of ...

, they set sail for the coast of Africa. Along the way, he and the crew took several ships. One of the ships was the ''Cadogan'' from Bristol, captained by a man named Skinner. Some of England's crew knew Skinner and recognized him instantly because he never paid them for their work previously. According to Charles Johnson, the crew member said:

Ah! Captain Skinner is it you, I am much in your debt, and now I shall pay you in your own coin.

A group of pirates next grabbed the captain, tied him to the windlass and threw empty bottles at him. Next because he had been a good master to his men they gave him a quick death by simply shooting him in the head with a

flintlock pistol Flintlock is a general term for any firearm that uses a flint-striking ignition mechanism, the first of which appeared in Western Europe in the early 16th century. The term may also apply to a particular form of the mechanism itself, also know ...

. Given the crew of the ''Cadogan'' was without a captain, England offered them a choice to join his crew. Aboard the crew was

Howell Davis Howell Davis (ca. 1690 – 19 June 1719), also known as Hywel and/or Davies, was a Welsh pirate. His piratical career lasted just 11 months, from 11 July 1718 to 19 June 1719, when he was ambushed and killed. His ships were the ''Cadogan'', ' ...

who refused to sign the articles of the pirates. Howell said he would rather die than become a pirate, however, England refused to kill him and instead gave command of the captured ship to Davis. This began the start of Davis' pirate career. Davis would go on to spawn the career of

as well, and the careers of many other pirates. After some time, England and his crew captured a larger brig or frigate named the ''Pearl''. Taking the ship as their own, they renamed it the ''Royal James'' (after James Stuart, alluding to the

Jacobitism Jacobitism (; gd, Seumasachas, ; ga, Seacaibíteachas, ) was a political movement that supported the restoration of the senior line of the House of Stuart to the Monarchy of the United Kingdom, British throne. The name derives from the first name ...

of England or his crew) and in the spring of 1719 went off in search of plunder in Africa. Between the

Gambia River The Gambia River (formerly known as the River Gambra) is a major river in West Africa, running from the Fouta Djallon plateau in north Guinea westward through Senegal and The Gambia to the Atlantic Ocean at the city of Banjul. It is navigable f ...

and the

Cape Coast Cape Coast is a city, fishing port, and the capital of Cape Coast Metropolitan District and Central Region of Ghana. It is one of the country's most historic cities, a World Heritage Site, home to the Cape Coast Castle, with the Gulf of Guinea ...

, the pirates seized and looted ten ships. Two of these they kept as prizes, granting them to Captains Robert Lane and Richard Sample, who left England to sail for the Caribbean. After looting the ten ships, England made John Taylor the captain of his next prize, the ''Victory''. After looting two additional ships, England and the crew decided to make port in a small African town. However, the pirates grew increasingly belligerent and conflicts arose with the locals over the treatment of women. Soon a fight broke out, resulting in the pirates burning the entire town and departing.

Indian Ocean

By 1720, England had reached the

Indian Ocean The Indian Ocean is the third-largest of the world's five oceanic divisions, covering or ~19.8% of the water on Earth's surface. It is bounded by Asia to the north, Africa to the west and Australia to the east. To the south it is bounded by th ...

, where he met with fellow pirate Captain Oliver la Buse. England captured a thirty-four gun Dutch ship, which he named ''Fancy'' in honour of English pirate

Henry Every Henry Every, also known as Henry Avery (20 August 1659after 1696), sometimes erroneously given as Jack Avery or John Avery, was an English pirate who operated in the Atlantic and Indian oceans in the mid-1690s. He probably used several aliases ...

, and he made the ''Fancy'' his new flagship. England decided to attack an East Indiaman under the command of

, the ''Cassandra'', near the island of

. A long and bloody battle ensued, and both ships ran aground. Macrae and his surviving crew escaped and hid on the island for ten days. Finally Macrae, who was injured, tired, and hungry, went aboard England's consort the ''Victory'', hoping for mercy, and surrendered to the pirates. The cargo of the ''Cassandra'' was valued at £75,000. Ninety of the ''Fancy's'' crew died in the attack on the ''Cassandra''. England had a good nature and unusual kindness, in that he did not believe in torturing captives unless they could not otherwise be persuaded. England ordered Macrae's life spared, and the pirates kept the ''Cassandra'' and gave the heavily damaged ''Fancy'' to Macrae. England's quartermaster, John Taylor, who was now captain of the ''Victory'', resented this choice, and only agreed after England got him drunk. England then captured a small English ship near

Cochin Kochi (), also known as Cochin ( ) ( the official name until 1996) is a major port city on the Malabar Coast of India bordering the Laccadive Sea, which is a part of the Arabian Sea. It is part of the district of Ernakulam in the state of K ...

, the drunk captain reporting a false rumour that Macrae was preparing a fleet to chase the pirates. This enraged the pirates, particularly Taylor, who had wanted to kill Macrae. Around this time, Taylor organised a vote to remove England from command. The new captain a former member of the ''Fancy'' crew named

Jasper Seator Jasper Seagar (died 1721) was a pirate active in the Indian Ocean, best known for sailing with Edward England, Olivier Levasseur, and Richard Taylor. Identity Some sources claim Edward England was born Edward Seegar, or that Jasper Seagar was ...

marooned Marooned may refer to: * Marooning, the intentional act of abandoning someone in an uninhabited area Film and television * ''Marooned'' (1933 film), a British drama film * ''Marooned'' (1969 film), an American science-fiction film * ''Marooned ...

England and three others on the coast of Mauritius, before taking ''Cassandra'' and ''Victory'' north in the hunt for more prizes. Seator died in 1721, with ''Cassandra'' eventually passing to Taylor who took her to the Caribbean.

Marooning in Mauritius

England and his three companions were put ashore without adequate provisions, and were forced to scavenge. After about four months, the men built a small boat and managed to sail to the pirate haven of

St. Augustine's Bay The Bay of Saint-Augustin is located on the southwestern coast of Madagascar in the region of Atsimo-Andrefana at the Mozambique Channel. This bay is the mouth of the Onilahy River at a distance of 35 kilometres south of Toliara Toliara (also kno ...

Legacy

After arriving at St. Augustine's Bay, England survived for a while on the charity of other pirates, possibly some of

's old crew. He died in late 1720 or early 1721, possibly from a

.''The Book of Pirates'' by Michael MacLeod, Christine Lampe and Jamaica Rose England's son John eventually did as his father had wished and named his son John as well. This tradition continued among England's descendants. Edward England is known today as one of the more humane pirate captains of the

Golden Age of Piracy The Golden Age of Piracy is a common designation for the period between the 1650s and the 1730s, when maritime piracy was a significant factor in the histories of the Caribbean, the United Kingdom, the Indian Ocean, North America, and West Africa ...

. According to Captain Charles Johnson,

He had a great deal of good Nature, and did not want for Courage ; he was not avaritious, and always averse to the ill Usage of Prisoners received : He would have been contented with moderate Plunder, and less mischievous Pranks, could his Companions have been brought to the same Temper, but he was generally over-rul'd, and as he was engaged in that abominable Society, he was obliged to be a Partner in all their vile Actions.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:England, Edward 1680s births 1721 deaths 17th-century Irish people 18th-century Irish people 18th-century pirates British military personnel of the War of the Spanish Succession Castaways Irish pirates Privateers