Madagascar is a large island lyeing 250 miles off the southeast coast of Africa. The islands landscape consists of high plateaus, steep escarpments, and arid plains. On its eastern edge there is a mountainous spine usually covered in mist and clouds. This is due to the mountain range catching the moisture laden trade winds after they pass over the Indian Ocean. The islands west coast has many good harbours, and coves. There are many beaches that are ideal for careening ships. Madagascar also has an abundant supply of fresh water, and edible plants and animals. Of particular note to sailors would be the islands limes, and oranges which would prevent scurvy, and ricketts on long voyages. Cattle, chickens, and pigs round out the food selection. Additionally Madagascar boasts 33 species of Lemur.
The islands mounains are covered in thick forest, and divide the islands many small tribes. These tribes seem to be constantly at war with one another, and this was quickly and easily manipulated by pirates. Often pirates would help one tribe in exchange for provisions, labor, and slaves.
Many pirates who visited the island returned to retire there. It is customary for the men to have up to 5 wives, and thus produce many children. In a few years a man would have his own tribe of wives, children, dependents and followers. These people would require a stable home, and defense. After all the island was full of pirates, and warring tribes. For this reason villages are more fortified than in most other areas. This fortification was usually accomplished by the old standby of a ditch surrounding a high wall, in turn surrounding an area of dense jungle, with a fresh water source. There would be only one bridge across the ditch, and only one openning in the wall. The dense jungle would be cut into paths only wide enough for one man, and formed into a maze. Large thorns and sharpened stakes were placed along the sides of the paths to discourage hacking your way through the jungle. The paths would intersect each other, and wind in curves, and switchbacks. An unfamiliar person could wander around for hours before finding the village itself. The actual village would be well hidden within this area, so you would not notice until you were on top of it.
The rainy season is from December to May. During this time many cyclones strike the east coast, and black clouds pass over the mountains drenching the southern part of the island. There are torrential rains, and floods. From May through Summer, and Fall the southern part of Madagascar is a semi arid grassland. This supports large herds of cattle. During the wet season the locals grow abundant rice crops providing yet another food staple.
Ten miles off the north east coast of Madagascar there is a small island called Saint Mary's or Isle Sainte Marie. This island has one of the best harbours in the area. The island is long and narrow, with a bulge in the middle. The harbor is located toward the southwest end of the island, and contains another small island named Ilot Madame. This island is located at the mouth of the harbor, narrowing the approaches and making the island easier to defend. Saint Mary's hosted a small pirate settlement with a low pallisade wall and a few cannon.
Despite the proximity of the African coast, most of the inhabitants of Madagascar are of Indonesians descent. Some Africans also made it to the island crossing the Mozambique Channel. The islanders were relatively isolated for several centuries. Sometime in the ninth century the Arabs arrived, and began a limited slave trade. In 1500 the European explorer Diogo Dias was swept wide the Cape of Good Hope in a violent storm, and drifted along the east coast of the island. The Portuguese named the island Saint Laurence, this was quickly replaced by the local name Madagascar.
European merchants, especially the portuguese considered the island strategically important. It was near the regular trade routes, and made an excellent way station. Tales about the Madagascars healthful atmosphere, and plentiful produce circulated widely. It was said to be a paradise, where an easy and liesurely life could be had. Unfortunately it did not live up to it's reputation.
About 300 miles east of Madagascar lies the island of Mauritius. It had no native population, and in 1598 the Dutch settled it, and established a post for far eastern trade. The Dutch then proceeded to cut down the forests for ebony wood, using slave labor taken from Madagascar. They also brought rats to the island, and without any natural predators to keep them in check the rats ate or contaminated everything. The Dutch also developed quite a taste for Dodo, a large flightless bird, which they hunted to extinction. Finally the Dutch abandoned Mauritius in 1712.
Madagascar proved to even more difficult to colonize. The English made an attempt in 1644. A group of merchants lead by William Courteen, and Thomas Kynnaston established a colony at St. Augustine bay. Arriving in the dry season, they were unable to grow any crops. Local natives stole their cattle, and attacked the colony. After 80 of them had died, the remaining 60 departed for India. The English would never again attempt to colonize Madagascar.
The French made the most persistent attempts at colonization. In 1643 they founded a settlement on the southeastern tip of the island. It was named Fort Dauphin, after Louis IV who was Dauphin of France at the time. He would eventually become King. They suffered from a lack of supplies, and constant raids by the natives. None the less the French held on until 1674 when the natives finally destroyed the colony.
While colonization proved to be impossible, trade flourished. Both european, and American merchants traded with the local chieftans. The usual imports were gunpowder, and firearms, and the most popular export was slaves captured in the constant intertribal fighting. Using their new firearms, chieftans were able to capture even more slaves, which they traded cheaply for more weapons. This became known as the Malagasy slave trade. Even though it was well outside of the established African trade, the low prices made the long journey worthwhile.
Pirates used the island from 1690 to 1723 as a safe haven from which to prey on the rich trade of the Indian Ocean. In the late 1700s Caribbean piracy was on the decline. National navies were actively hunting pirates, and old ports like Tortuga were settling down into regular colonies. Port Royale would never recover from the Great Quake in 1692. The famous Spanish treasure fleets were smaller, and less frequent. Finally an annoying outbreak of peace in europe meant little work for official privateers.
At the same time rumours circulated about rich Moorish vessels plying the Indian Ocean. Soon enterprising pirates began making the passage around the Cape of Good Hope creating what was to become known as the "Pirate Round". Their favorite targets were Moorish ships travelling between Mocha, and India. An ideal place for pirates to lie in wait was the island of Perim, also known as Bab's Key. Situated at the mouth of the Red Sea. The problem was that it had no fresh water, or supplies. Madagascar was an excellent place to obtain these provision on the way too or from Perim. It boasted many fine harbours, and anchorages, an abundance of food, and fresh water, no colonial government, and no local native government. The natives were little threat to the well armed pirates.
Whe pirates settled the island the local chieftans all sought them as allies in the fights with their neighbors. As the natives had few, or no firearms, and didn't understand them, whoever had the pirates with them was certain to be victorious. Indeed the guns made such a difference that eventually the mere sight of pirates with their enemies was enought to cause natives to flee without a fight. The pirates changed sides with alarming regularity. They soon became feared, rich, and powerful. Prisoners they took were kept as slaves or sold to traders. They had harems of wives, the most beautiful of the native women. This strnegthened their alliances with local tibes, and produced numerous half-breed children known as Zana-Malata
The pirates also had a great trade relationship with American merchants. England had imposed many trade restrictions and taxes. To avoid these, many merchants and investment syndicates in America sent ships to Madagascar under the guise of licensed African slave trade. These vessels were often captained by former pirates. They carried goods, and supplies the pirates would need, which were traded for slaves, and plunder which were brought back to America, and traded to europe, bypassing England. The prices for the pirates booty on Madagascar was so low that a fantastic profit was made by all involved. It was profitable enough to be worth of the risk of capture by British trade officials.
One of the more famous pirates to stop at Madagascar was Thomas Tew. He arrived in 1693 as master of an 8 gun sloop named the Amity. England was at war with France in 1692, and he had been given a commission by the governor of Bermuda to prey on the French slave trade. The Amity, and another ship were to attack the French slaving stations at Goori, and Gambia. The two ships were seperated during a storm, and Tew decided to become a pirate. His men were easily covinced of the benefits of risking their lives for plunder, as opposed to doing so for the English government. According to Defoe, they “cry’d out one and all, ‘a gold chain, or a wooden leg, we’ll stand by you.’”
Rounding the Cape of Good Hope, Tew headed for the Straits of Bab-el-Mandeb, the entrance to the Red Sea. There they encountered a large Indian ship bound for Arabia. Carrying 300 soldiers in addition to its crew, it seemed a risky prize. Tew extolled his men with tales of the riches the vessel carried and added that its occupants lacked the two things nessecary to prevail aginst the pirates: courage, and skill. He was correct. His men managed to board the Indian ship without loss. The pirates took what they wanted, and threw the rest overboard. When the spoils were divided each man on the Amity received 3,000 pounds. Tew, as Captain, received 8,000 pounds.
Turning back to Madagascar for provisions they found the island “productive of all the necessaries of life, that the air was wholesome, the soil fruitful and the sea abounding with fish,”. The men were so impressed that the ships quartermaster decided to settle down there, and 23 of the men joined him. The remainder sailed with Tew back to the Americas, where they bought plantations on Bermuda
Despite his retirement, Tews former men constantly entreated him to mount another expedition. Most had sqaundered their shares of the loot and were destitute. In 1694 he finally agreed. Getting a license from the governor of New York, he sailed with William Want, and Thomas Wake. The expedition reached the Red Sea in 1695, joining a pirate sqaudron under the command of Henry Every. During an attack on one of the large ships of the Great Mogul Tew was mortally wounded. Accounts claim “a shot carried away the rim of Tew’s belly, who held his bowels in with his hands for some space. When he dropped, it struck such terror into his men that they suffered themselves to be taken without further resistance.”
A decade passed between the first arrival of European and Caribbean pirates in the Indian Ocean, and any serious trouble in India. Henry Every was the cause of that trouble. Every sailed as a mate aboard a merchantman, and served as a privateer for the Spanish. Finally he crossed into piracy. He emerged from the ranks of faceless sailors in the early 1690s while working as an unlicensed slave trader in the Bahamas. By June of 169 he was the second in command on the Charles. It was a 6 gun private warship employed by the Spanish government to hunt French smugglers in the West Indies.
Like most pirates, Every was quick, clever, and knew an oppurtunity when it knocked. While the captain lay asleep in a drunken stupor Every plotted with a small number of the crew. They took the ship in the dead of night, and Every was elected Cpatain. He renamed her The Fancy, reportedly saying “I am a Man of Fortune and must seek my Fortune.”
Every headed south along the African coast robbing the occasional ship they encountered. On the Guinea coast he lured some native men aboard under pretense of trade, then robbed them, and took them as slaves. Encountering two Dutch sloops at the island of Principe, the pirates fought a hard battle. They burned one sloop, and kept the other, and many Dutch sailors joined them. They ended up burning the second sloop as well. They arrived at Madagascar overloaded, and in dire need of supplies. Loading up on fresh water, and food, Every pressed on to the Red Sea. After plundering some ships they returned to Madagascar. Every issued a proclamation on February 28th 1695 stating that he would not attack any English ships. He hoped the East India Company would not pursue him.
His letter had the opposite effect. Indian rulers commonly beleived that all pirates were English. They also thought that the East India Company used pirates to harrass local merchants, while large English merchants were free to ply their trade. Every's letter looked like proof of this conspiracy. The East India Company had to stop him.
After taking on provisions, Every headed for the Red Sea again. He planned to take the Pilgrim fleet that travelled from surat to Mocha, and then on to Mecca with thousands of Muslim pilgrims. On the return journey the ships would be full of valuables, and treasures. Of course this was a magnet for pirates, and others started turning up. In the end there were five vessels, including Thomas Tew's ship, the Amity. The pirates waited at the mouth of the Red Sea, near the Strait of Bab-el-Mandeb. In the dark of night the pilgrim fleet almost slipped past. One straggler gave them away, and five day pursuit ensued, as the pirates chased the pilgrim fleet across the Arabian Sea. Finally they caught their prey. The Fath Mahmamadi was the first ship to be taken yeilding 60,000 pounds. A few days later the Ganj-i-Sawai was sighted. It was the largest ship in the Great Moguls fleet, carrying 40 guns, and 400 rifles. At the beginning of the battle a Muslim cannon exploded doing considerable damage, and a shot from the Fancy took out the main mast. The fighting lasted two hours. Reportedly the Muslim captain, Muhammad Ibrahim, fled below decks, and armed some newly acquired slave girls, sending them out to face the pirates. The slave girls, apparently, were not enough, and the ship was captured. It was renamed the Gunsway.
The pillaging and looting of the pilgrim fleet went on for days, as vessels were chased down and captured. When it was all divided each man received 1,000 pounds. Henry Every prepared to return to the Americas, but some of his men decided to stay on Madagascar. Every Spent some time in the West indies, then moved up the east coast of America. Here his men split again. Some remained in the Carolinas, while Every, and others opted to return to England by way of Dublin.
Eventually some of the men were caught, and hung, but Every evaded capture and disappeared into history. According to Johnson's A General History:
"amongst Every’s treasures taken from the Gunsway there was a large number of gems and precious stones, not readily usable for money or to trade without arousing suspicion. Hiding out in the town of Bideford, Every sent a message to his friend in Bristol who had contacts amongst local traders, to come and discuss terms as to the disposal of the plunder. The merchants visited him there and Every handed over his jewels to the merchants who claimed that as they were men of wealth and riches, there would be no enquiries as to how they had come by such items.
In return for the goods, the merchants allowed Every some small amount of money for subsistence while they disposed of the treasure. Every changed his name and lived in Bideford unnoticed. Soon the little money he had been given was spent and still he had heard nothing from the merchants. He wrote to them many times to ask how things were going and to ask for more money. They sent him a small supply, enough to pay his bills, but not enough for him to eat. Eventually, seeking a satisfactory settlement, he traveled to Bristol to speak with the merchants directly.
His reception was less than cordial and the merchants threatened to expose Every to the authorities and thus silenced him. Every fled to Ireland and existed on what little he made from begging. Life was hard and he resolved to return to the merchants and, damn the consequences, would throw himself upon their mercy. Working his passage back, he landed at Plymouth and made his way on foot to Bideford, where he spent a few days before he became ill and died without enough to pay for a coffin."
Of course the true fate of Every cannot be verified, and remains a mystery. However all pirates that came after him in the Indian Ocean inherited the fear, and hatred of Indian Moguls, and East India Company Representatives alike.
The next famous, or infamous pirate to grace Madagascar with his presence was Captain William Kidd. He sailed unwittingly into this environment of fear, hatred, and politics largely unaware of the forces waiting for a scapegoat. William Kidd was not a very successful pirate, though many writers have portrayed him as such. In fictional accounts he is fearles, dashing, and a ruthless tyrant. A veritale terror of the seven seas. However this is far from the truth. In The History of Piracy and The Pirates’ Who’s Who, Philip Gosse said: “...if Kidd’s reputation was in just proportion to his actual deeds, he would have been forgotten as soon as he had been ‘turned off’ at Wapping Old Stairs.” Indeed, Captain Kidd made only a single voyage, and took only one noteable prize.
As always, the details of Kidd's life are sketchy before his emergence onto the stage of history. He captained a privateer, The Blessed William, licensed by the governor of Nevis during the Nine Years War (1688-1697). He was commissioned to loot French ships, and Colonies. In 1689 he participated in the sack of Marie Galante. After many hard battles with French ships Kidd's crew decided a life of piracy was superior to a life of war. In February of 1690 while Kidd was ashore in Nevis, his crew took the Blessed William. He was quickly given another ship, and pursued his mutinous crew to New York.
Kidd arrived during a violent conflict within the colony, and aided the winning side. He married a wealthy widow in 1691. Over the next few years he networked and cultivated relationships with various political leader, among whom was Robert Livingstone. Livingstone was an entreprenuer, and businessman always on the prowl for new oppurtunities. Kidd continued to prey on French shipping along the coast. In 1695, hoping to obtain a privateering license from the Admiralty Court, Kidd sailed to England. There he encountered Livingstone, and Richard Coote, the Earl of Bellmont, and new governor of New York. the three quickly hatched a plan to capture pirate ships, and keep the booty rather than return it to its rightful owners.
The three men drew up and signed a contract naming Kidd as captain of a vessel, 4/5ths of the cost of which would be borne by Coote. In secret documents they agreed that King William III would be given 10% of the proceeds, and 60% would be split between Coote and some high ranking partners. These included the Secretary of State, and the heads of the Admiralty, and Judiciary. Three commissions were granted to Kidd. He received a standard privateering license to prey on the French, a special royal decree allowing him to arrest pirates, and a third document that allowed him to keep the booty. Thomas Tew was one of the men named in the second document. To keep Kidd honest he was to turn over his gains to Coote in Boston.
In May of 1696 Kidd left England aboard his pirate hunting vessel, the Adventure Galley. The ship was quite impressive, weighing 300 tons, and carrying 3 guns, and 46 oars. Kidd spent July and August rounding up cutthroats in New York. He promised the men 60%, which is odd considering that his contract called for 60% to go to Coote, and his backers. In September the Adventure Galley crossed the Atlantic and sailed down the African coast to the Indian Ocean. Kidd stopped at Madagascar, then careened at the Comoro Islands. Finally he recruited more men at Johanna Island in April 1697.
It appears that this is the point where crosses the line into piracy. Instead of hunting the plentiful pirates around Sainte Marie, and Madagascar, Kidd headed for the Red Sea to await the pilgrim fleet. The very fleet that Every, and Tew had plundered in 1695 stirring up the Great Mogul, and a number of other Indian Leaders.
On August 15th The Adventure Galley caught an Indian sqaudron which was escorted by an East India Company ship. The British fired on Kidd, and he fled, heading for the northwestern coast of India. Four days later he captured an Indian vessel, and tortured the sailors. Kidd also kidnapped the captain, who was English, and forced him to act as pilot. Following the coast south to Karwar, and then Calcutta, Kidd attacked two Portuguese ships in September. Next he stopped at the Laccadive Islands to make repairs. He enslaved the islanders to repair his ship, while his men tortured the remianing men, and raped the women.
Kidd encountered another East India Company vessel in early November. His crew wanted to attack, but Kidd managed to convince them to let the ritish ship go. Some two weeks later they encountered a Dutch vessel, and in a dispute over whether or not to attack it Kidd killed his gunner, William Moore. At the end of November Kidd encountered the Rouparelle, a ship owned by dutch merchants, but flying French colors, and carrying French papers. Kidd renamed her the November. In December they took another small Indian vessel.Kidds only noteable prize was taken January 12th 1698. Off of Cochin Kidd encountered the Quedah Merchant, which was leased to the Indian government, but carrying French papers, and flying the French flag. He continued south, capturing a small Portuguese ship, but two East India Company ships got away. He returned to Madagascar in April of 1698, where he landed at the island of Sainte Marie. There he encountered the Mocca captained by Robert Culliford. As it happens, Culliford had been one of Kidd's old crew who had stolen the Blessed William in Nevis. Both men were cautious of the other, but Kidd managed to assure the pirates that he was one as well. It took a month for the slower Quedah Merchant to catch up to them. Kidd renamed it the Adventure Prize. When the plunder was divided Kidd kept 40%, and gave 60% to the crew as agreed in the ships articles, but in violation of his agreements with his backers. Most of Kidds crew then joined Culliford, who departed in June 1698. Kidd burned the Adventure Galley, which had rotted due to poor maintenance.
While Kidd was renewing old associations, and playing pirate, the Great Mogul was positively livid. The plundering of the Ganj-i-Sawai in 1695, and the capture of the Quedah Merchant in 1698 were high points in a continous barrage of piracy against Indian and Arab shipping. He threatened to cut off trade with the west, and expel all Europeans. The East Company representatives managed to assuage him by paying large amounts of compensation to the owners of the lost cargoes, and promising to institute regular naval patrols of the Indian Ocean. The Mogul was temporarily appeased but continued to blame the East India Company for each new attack.
The East India Company tunred their wrath on William Kidd. He would be made to pay for the crimes of all pirates in the Indian Ocean. Kidd was named as an omission to the general pardon and amnesty issued in 1698, and in November 1698 all colonial governors were ordered to conduct a manhunt for him. In April of 1699 Kidd arrived at the Caribbean island of Anguilla, and learned of his predicament. The Danish governor at St. Thomas refused him sanctuary, and Kidd and his crew wandered from island to island looking for a safe place to hide. Kidd bought a small sloop on Hispaniola, abandoning the Adventure Prize, and headed for North America. Sailing up the east coast, he headed for Boston. He apparently thought his old friend, and backer, the Earl of Bellmont would help him. However his actions had not only alarmed the Indians, but the English establishment as well. Parliament had been alarmed to learn that a man in the position of hunting pirates, and with licenses, and commissions would stoop to common thievery, and had begun an investigation. Coote, and the other backers were facing some uncomfortable questions regarding the unusual nature of Kidds commissions. Rather than admit their original scheme of stealing pirate booty, they decided to blame Kidd, and made him the scapegoat for the whole thing.
Kidd made several stops on the way, at New Jersey, and Long Island, and finally entered Boston Harbour. Legends abound about him burying his treasure, but to this none has ever been found. In July of 1699 Kidd was arrested. Coote had him sent to England for trial in the Admiralty Court, and Kidd arrived in London in April 1700. There he was imprisoned for a year awaiting trial, while a political storm raged around those involved in his expedition.
The case had caused a scandal, and the opposition party had accused Kidd's sponsors of crimes against the empire, and improper conduct in office. A motion to impeach those office holders involved failed by a very narrow margin. Kidd's sponsors realized that only his execution could prevent Kidd from testifying against them.
After languishing in prison for a year Kidd was finally brought before a special session of Admiralty Court held in the House of Commons. He was accused of the murder of William Moore, and of piracy on the high seas. Kidd maintained that both the Rouparelle, and the Quedah Merchant were legal prizes under his commission as both sailed under the French flag, and carried French papers. The court asked to examine these papers, but Kidd had handed them over to Coote in Boston. Coote and his associates claimed they were missing, and could not be produced, despite the fact that they had been exhibited before the House of Commons not long before. Unfortunately for Kidd they would not be located until 200 years later, when they were discovered in the Public Records Office. By then it was far too late to save Kidd's life. The East India Company was pressuring the court to make an example of Kidd, and his sponsors wanted him permanently silenced before he ruined them, so Kidd's fate was sealed.
He was convicted of the murder of William Moore, despite the fact that Kidd was captain, and Moore was mutinous. Ordinarliy this would justified Kidd striking him, and even killing him, but the court was only looking for an excuse to hang Kidd, and the murder provided it. On May 23, 1701 Kidd was hanged at Execution Dock on the Wapping waterfront. His luck did not improve with execution. The first rope broke. Kidd was hanged again, more successfully. His body was tarred, and hung from a gibbet on the Thames shore near Tilbury Fort as an example to other pirates.
In 1698 a royal decree of clemency, with a general pardon and amnesty was issued, and many pirates took advantage of the oppurtunity. With regular patrolling of the Red Sea piracy was becoming more hazardous. Many settled down on Madagascar, and traded slaves legally. Few made the Atlantic crossing and the pirate round, with the noteable exception of John Halsey in 1704. It wasn't until Woodes Rogers cleansing of piracy from the Bahamas in 1718 that a new wave of piracy erupted in the Indian Ocean and Red Sea.
The return was lead by Christopher Condent who fled New Providence in 1718 when Woodes Rogers became governor. Reportedly on the Atlantic crossing an Indian sailor threatened to blow up the ships powder magazine. Condent jumped into the hold and shot the man, saving the ship. After taking a merchant vessel the crew divided. Half decided to depart on the merchant vessel, and those who remained chose Condent as their captain. Upon arriving at the Cape Verde Islands Condent took a Portuguese ship full of wine, a number of small vessels, and finally a Dutch warship. The warship was renamed the Flying Dragon.
Condent, in the Flying Dragon, patrolled the Brazillian coast for a time, and took a number of merchant vessels. He then plundered his way along the African coast arriving in Madagascar in June or July 1719. Condent picked up some of John Halseys old crew at Sainte Marie and marauded in the Indian Ocean and Red Sea for a year. In 1720 Condent took a large Arab ship near Bombay. It was a rich prize, more than 150,000 pounds. Such a prize had not been taken in 20 years. Condent ordered his men not to abuse the crew in the hope of avoiding the wrath of the East India Company. They returned to Sainte Marie and divided the plunder. Each man received 2,000 pounds. Condent the made for the French island of Reunion along with 40 of his men. They managed to get a pardon from the French governor, and more than 20 of his men settled there. According to DeFoe Condent married the governors sister-in-law, and moved to France. There the couple settled in Brittany, and he became a wealthy merchant.
Edward England, and John Taylor were among the next to venture back to Madagascar. Their shop was the Pearl, and they managed to loot or burn more than 24 vessels between Gambia, and Ghana on the African coast. One of these captured vessels was renamed the Victory, and was given to Taylor. Acoording to DeFoe, during a stop at a beach to careen, the pirates “liv’d there very wantonly for several weeks, making free with the negroe women and committing such outrageous acts that they came to an open rupture with the natives.” The pair quickly moved on.
In early 1720 they stopped at Madagascar to reprovision, then pillaged their way up the Malabar coast of India. England swapped the Pearl for the Fancy, which carried 34 guns. After another reprovisioning stop at Madagascar the pair made for Johanna Island. They arrived on the night of August 27 1720 to discover three large English and Dutch ships trading there. Wisely the two Dutch vessels fled, their escape covered by the stubborn captain of the English vessel. The ship was the Cassandra, and was commanded by James Macrae. He fought the pirates for hours and both the Cassandra, and the Fancy ran aground. The two ships stayed stuck, pounding each other with broadsides. Finally Macrae, and some of his men escaped to the shore, and hid in the jungle. they reportedly left behind a cargo worth 75,000 pounds. The Cassandra's casualties numbered 37 men, whereas the pirates lost more than 90 men.
After a week in the jungle Macrae went aboard the Victory seeking mercy. Some of the pirates had served under him in the past and argued to spare his life. England was amenable, but Taylor had to be softened up with rum before agreeing to spare Macrae. Macrae and his remaining men were allowed to sail away in the ruined Fancy. It took them seven weeks to reach Bombay, starving, and dehydrated. The East India Company rewarded Macrae for his courage by making him governor of Madras from 1725 to 1730.
Back among the pirates England was removed his captaincy for being so soft on Macrae, and in 1721 was marooned on the island of Mauritius along with three of his supporters. They managed to construct a small boat and sail to Madagascar. There England lived on the charity of others and died soon after.
After Englands removal, Taylor joined Olivier Le Bouche. In 1723 they took a Portuguese ship carrying 500,000 pounds in diamonds and coins, and 375,000 in valuable oriental goods. This was the richest prize ever taken near Madagascar. The East India Company's response was swift. Word spread that a sqaudron of warships under Commodore Thomas Mathews had rounded the Cape of Good Hope. Le Bouche made for Reunion and retired with a pardon. Taylor returned to the Caribbean. This was the end of piracy based out of Madagascar. Those pirates still on the island settled into a life of trading, and went native.