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Bartholomew Roberts

File:BartholomewRoberts.jpg · Wikimedia Commons · See Wikimedia Commons

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Bartholomew Roberts

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Also known as John Roberts, Black Bart

Welsh pirate (1682-1722)

Person · Open Library

Works
4

Top works

  • Gran Trader
  • Black bart, a pirate Captain
  • Willing Captive
  • Black bart, a pirate Captain

via Open Library + Wikidata

Listeners · Last.fm

Listeners
2
Total plays
2

<a href="https://www.last.fm/music/Bartholomew+Roberts">Read more on Last.fm</a>

via Last.fm · Bartholomew Roberts

Key facts

Born
John Roberts , 17 May 1682, Casnewydd Bach , Pembrokeshire , Wales
Died
10 February 1722 (1722-02-10) (aged 39), At sea off of Cape Lopez (present-day Gabon )
Cause of death
Grapeshot wound to the throat suffered during naval battle
Resting place
At sea near Cape Lopez
Known for
Being among the most successful pirates in the Golden Age of Piracy
Nickname
Black Bart ( Welsh : Barti Ddu )
Type
Pirate
Allegiance
None
Years active
1719–1722
Rank
Captain
Base of operations
Off the coast of the Americas and West Africa
Commands
Royal Rover , Fortune , Good Fortune , Royal Fortune , Ranger , Little Ranger
Battles wars
Battle of Cape Lopez †
Wealth
400 vessels

via Wikipedia infobox

~31 min read

Encyclopedic overview

Bartholomew Roberts (17 May 1682 – 10 February 1722), born John Roberts, was a Welsh pirate who was, measured by vessels captured, the most successful pirate of the Golden Age of Piracy. During his piratical career, he took over 400 prize ships, although most were mere fishing boats. Roberts raided ships off the Americas and the West African coast between 1719 and 1722; he is also noted for creating his own pirate code, and adopting an early variant of the Skull and Crossbones flag.

Roberts' infamy and success saw him become known as The Great Pyrate and eventually as Black Bart (Welsh: Barti Ddu, though this was a later attribution and was not used in his lifetime), and made him a popular subject for writers of both fiction and non-fiction. To this day, Roberts continues to feature in popular culture, and has inspired fictional characters (such as the Dread Pirate Roberts).

Excerpted from Wikipedia’s “Bartholomew Roberts” article, available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 licence.

Gallery (12)