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About The Whydah is the first authenticated pirate shipwreck ever found. Story The Whydah Galley was launched in London in 1715. She was designed as a slave ship, and represented the latest technology of the day. Equipped with the most up-to-date weapons, she was fast and easy to maneuver, essential qualities if she were to cross the Middle Passage as quickly as possible to minimize the loss of human cargo. She had a three-masted sailing rig, but was also fitted out for rowing. The lower decks could hold hundreds of captives and had large galleys with provisions to feed them. All of these features—size, speed, weaponry—made slave ships very attractive to pirates. In time, pirates would turn their attention to the lucrative slave trade, attacking slaving ships off the West African coast. It was this that eventually led to the pirates’ downfall. The navies of the European powers sought to exterminate them. But we are getting ahead of our story. After leaving London, the Whydah sailed to the west coast of Africa, trading goods for a total of 367 captives. Of these, 312 survived the Middle Passage and were sold at the slave market in Jamaica.Weighted down now with valuable cargo, the ship made sail for England. But she was never to reach her home port. CAPTURED BY PIRATES In February of 1717, Sam Bellamy, captain of the pirate ship Sultana, spied the Whydah while she was still in Bahamian waters. Hoisting the Jolly Roger, he gave chase for three days nonstop.When Captain Lawrence Prince realized capture was inevitable, he lowered his colors and his sails, and surrendered the Whydah without a fight. The pirates lost no time in transferring their loot from the Sultana onto their new prize. They quickly repositioned more weaponry, placing cannons both on the upper deck and below. To make the ship less top heavy, the pirates probably leveled the upper deck by clearing off cabins and other structures. Thus was a slave ship transformed into a pirate ship. As was their custom, the pirates invited the crew of the Whydah to join them. A few did, but those who declined were freed with Captain Prince to sail away, unharmed, on the Sultana. This may seem surprising, but there is much about the pirate way of life that runs counter to the modern stereotype, as we will soon see. Bellamy’s Voyage On a spectacular looting voyage through the Caribbean, Bellamy captured more than 50 prizes. Laden with booty—perhaps as much as 4.5 tons of treasure—the Whydah set course for New England, where legend says Bellamy intended to pick up his lady-love, Maria Hallett. But on April 26, 1717, a violent nor’easter off the coast of Cape Cod sent the pirate ship to a watery grave where its treasures remained undiscovered for nearly 300 years. LIFE AT SEA Sailors, Seamen, and Pirates This was the so-called “Golden Age of Piracy,” from about 1660 to 1730, a brief but action-packed period of history. Pirates were outlaws who pledged allegiance to no country and ravaged ships of all nations indiscriminately. They were ruthless opportunists with nothing to lose—except their lives. The penalty for piracy was hanging. Onboard Democracy Yet these outlaws evolved a kind of seagoing democracy at a time when it was unknown in Europe and the colonies. Upon joining a pirate crew, new recruits signed the Ship’s Articles. They swore an oath of loyalty and agreed to a code of conduct. In return, they were given an equal vote in electing the ship’s officers, an almost equal share of the loot (the captain and quartermaster got a larger share), and compensation for injuries or loss of limbs. By contrast, on merchant and naval vessels, there was a strict hierarchical order and pitifully low wages. To an international crew consisting of blacks, whites, and Indians, these were the rights and privileges unheard of at sea or on land. It is no wonder that many willingly signed on. The pirates also created onboard living conditions far superior to those on merchant or naval ships. Because they had crews of as many as a couple of hundred, the workload was lighter than on merchant ships which typically were worked by only 12–15 men. On a merchant ship, food and clean water were in short supply and diseases caused by malnutrition were rampant. The officers fared much better than the crew, however. On a pirate ship, everyone ate and drank equally. With frequent raids to restock supplies and with more leisure time to catch fresh food, the pirates ate (and drank) well. THE RECOVERY OF THE WRECK OF THE WHYDAH Pounded by 40-foot waves, the Whydah ran aground, and was battered to bits. This kind of “exploded” wreck is very difficult to recover. In addition, the sea floor off of Cape Cod has a shifting sandy bottom, so the ship and its contents were not only scattered but also buried under 10 to 30 feet of sand. The area is treacherous and over 3,000 ships have gone down there in a 400-year period. The site was also used as a firing range duringWorldWar II, adding even more debris to the seabed. Barry Clifford is not put off by challenges. He had been fascinated by the tale of the Whydah since childhood, and in 1983 began searching for the wreck. It was not until 1985 that he brought up incontrovertible evidence that the wreck was indeed the Whydah—her bell. Technology and Conservation The recovery process has required the use of some high-tech equipment, such as lasers, CT scans, x-rays, a proton precision magnetometer, and diving gear. The work is painstaking, and like an archaeological dig, the area is divided into grids. Clifford and his crew investigate one square at a time and carefully record their findings. They have also been careful to conserve what they recover. Metal objects such as cannons and coins, for example, are encrusted in concretions, formations that occur over time when metal disintegrates and combines with sea salts to make a concretelike mass. Concretions preserve the artifacts as long as they are kept wet. Further conservation requires a long process called electrolytic reduction to break down the salts without damaging the artifacts. The Whydah is the first authenticated pirate shipwreck ever found. Barry Clifford and his team continue making new discoveries. Their dedication has provided us with a window into the past, a glimpse of the little known life aboard ship in the “Golden Age of Piracy.” As Clifford said, “It’s not what you find, it’s what you find out.”
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