The Captain’s Beard are a folk-rock, pirate band from Brighton, UK. Their music ranges from traditional folk and sea shanties, upbeat originals and downright silly songs about Cockney Mermaids, English Monarchs and rubbish vans. Since their inception, they have released 3 albums and have toured extensively across the UK and Europe, making a name for themselves through their high-energy stage shows and intimate, impromptu offstage performances.
Benjamin Hornigold is famous for founding the ‘Pirate Republic’ and ‘The Flying Gang’ of Nassau, but probably even more so for betraying the pirate cause. He is said to have been born around 1660 and little is known of his early life. It is thought to have been born in Norfolk, England, although other claims include Jamaica. He might have been married to Sarah Norris in England in 1679, but her fate is unknown. Hornigold was a privateer in The Spanish War of Succession, and later claimed he was continuing this conflict rather than committing acts of piracy. He had a puritan background and was a known patriot, constantly refusing to attack British and Dutch ships. He was also reluctant to take lives and generally treated his captives well.
Hornigold the pirate
Hornigold left Port Royal, Jamaica for Nassau in 1713, starting out in two piraguas, the second captained by John West.…
The Jacobite cause came into being after The Glorious Revolution of 1688. The reigning monarch, James II of England and VII of Scotland, was extremely unpopular due to a combination of being Catholic and harbouring absolutist ambitions. Fear of Catholicism, which was the religion of the traditional enemies France and Spain, and James II’s tendency towards absolutism pushed several Protestant nobles to invite Mary, the eldest daughter of James II, and her husband, James’s nephew William of Orange, to take the crown. When William invaded England mass defections and little resistance to William’s cause forced James II and his wife to flee to France, where they became guests of his cousin Louis XIV. In March 1689, James attempted to reclaim his throne by landing in Ireland with 6000 troops, but was soundly defeated at the Battle of the Boyne in July of that year, forcing him to flee back to France where he died in 1701.…
The ship’s surgeon was one of the most indispensable members of crew and was normally held in high esteem by them. They were always present on warships, but only occasionally on merchant vessels. Someone with medical knowledge was extremely valuable, as a ship was a dangerous place to live and work on. In the early 1700s there was a scarcity of physicians, so surgeons and apothecaries were essential. On board a ship, as well as serious accidents there were also mundane ailments to deal with such as rashes caused by constantly wet clothes, sunburn, and toothache, and common minor injuries like cuts, bruises and sores inflicted by daily work, which were usually treated by applying plasters. Also the crew needed a regular cutting of their hair, shaving, and the trimming of their beards with scissors and razors, which was also the responsibility of the surgeon. These men were often referred to as barber surgeons in society.…
