Jean Bernanos (b. 1648 - d. 1695) was a French

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 ...

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 ...

, and pirate active in the Caribbean and across Spanish Central America.

History

Born in France, Bernanos moved to

Saint-Domingue Saint-Domingue () was a French colony in the western portion of the Caribbean island of Hispaniola, in the area of modern-day Haiti, from 1659 to 1804. The name derives from the Spanish main city in the island, Santo Domingo, which came to refer ...

where he cruised against the Spanish in 1677 without success. He may have joined other buccaneers such as William Wright in various adventures over the next two years. In a 6-gun, 86-ton, 100-man vessel he sailed against Chepo in Panama in late 1679 but was repulsed by Spanish defenses despite help from native tribes. At the San Blas Islands he joined an English expedition led by John Coxon alongside Robert Allison, Thomas Magott, Cornelius Essex, and others who collaborated to sack Spanish

Puerto Bello Puerto, a Spanish word meaning ''seaport'', may refer to: Places *El Puerto de Santa María, Andalusia, Spain *Puerto, a seaport town in Cagayan de Oro City, Philippines *Puerto Colombia, Colombia *Puerto Cumarebo, Venezuela *Puerto Galera, Orient ...

. The buccaneers looked for a new target and Bernanos suggested allying with the natives near Darién based on their willingness to help against the Spanish. He sailed with the flotilla to Costa Rica but when they elected to march overland to take

Panama Panama ( , ; es, link=no, Panamá ), officially the Republic of Panama ( es, República de Panamá), is a transcontinental country spanning the southern part of North America and the northern part of South America. It is bordered by Cos ...

instead, he and fellow French rover Jean Rose (“Captain Row”) broke off from the English pirates:

Upon these and other reasons which they gave us, we concluded to desist from the journey of Tocamora and to proceed to Panama. Having taken these resolutions, Captain Bournano's and Captain Row's vessels separated from us, as being all French and not willing to go to Panama, they declared themselves generally against a long march by land.

Bernanos operated out of

Petit-Goâve Petit-Goâve ( ht, Ti Gwav) is a coastal commune in the Léogâne Arrondissement in the Ouest department of Haiti. It is located southwest of Port-au-Prince. The town has a population of approximately 12,000 inhabitants. History The town is ...

in the 1680s. Commanding a 60-man, 6-gun vessel in 1684, he sailed to Venezuela's Orinoco River alongside Rose,

Francois Grogniet Francois Groginet (died 1687) was a French buccaneer and pirate active against the Pacific coast of Spanish Central America. History Groginet began his career as a (French buccaneer) in 1683, sailing a 70-man, 6-gun ship named ''St. Joseph'' ( ...

, and others to capture Santo Tomé. The privateers took little booty but remained there for a few months before Bernanos returned to his wife and home at Port-de-Paix. The Governor employed him as a privateer during the

Nine Years' War The Nine Years' War (1688–1697), often called the War of the Grand Alliance or the War of the League of Augsburg, was a conflict between France and a European coalition which mainly included the Holy Roman Empire (led by the Habsburg monarch ...

, during which he captured several ships and participated in multiple expeditions against France's enemies. He was killed in 1695 while defending settlements in Saint-Domingue against a raid by English and Spanish troops, after which Governor

Jean-Baptiste du Casse Jean-Baptiste du Casse (2 August 1646 – 25 June 1715) was a French privateer, admiral, and colonial administrator who served throughout the Atlantic World during the 17th and 18th centuries. Likely born 2 August 1646 in Saubusse, near Pau (B ...

took in Bernanos’ children.

Notes

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bernanos, Jean 17th-century pirates French pirates 1648 births 1695 deaths

History

See also

Notes

References