The Pirate Republic - Madmen, Gold, and the Governor’s Mistake Found Treasure, Faked Pardons, and the Pirate Who Ate Ears! Issue #5 – May 23th, 2025

Captain Blackquill
May 23
4 min read

Updated: 2 days ago

⚓ This Week in Pirate History

May 19, 1690 – The Birth of Edward “Ned” Low: Mad Dog o’ the Atlantic

Born in the back alleys of London on May 19, 1690, Edward “Ned” Low grew up poor, mean, and full of spite—a perfect recipe for piracy. He started his wicked ways pickin’ pockets and knockin’ heads, but by the 1720s, he’d seized his first ship and set course for infamy.

Where most pirates sought gold and a little rough fun, Low reveled in mayhem and cruelty. He weren’t the kind to take yer cargo and leave you floatin’. No, Low made an example of his victims—with ears severed, lips sliced, and sometimes whole crews burned alive in their ships.

One tale tells of Low laughin’ as he forced a captured captain to eat his own ears. Another tells of prisoners tied and flung to the deep, never to be seen again.

He captained the Fancy, the Rose Pink, and terrorized ships from the Caribbean to Nova Scotia. Even other pirates steered clear of him—Blackbeard had flair, but Ned Low had fury.

His end be a mystery: some say the French hanged him, others reckon his own crew marooned him, tired of his madness. No grave, no glory—just shadows in the sea.

⚓️ Legacy: Edward Low weren’t a pirate ye toasted at the tavern—he was the nightmare ye prayed never to meet at sea.

May 20, 1718 – Blackbeard Accepts a Royal Pardon (But in Pirate Fashion)

Even the fiercest devils of the deep know when to feign civility. On this day, the notorious Edward “Blackbeard” Thatch—the most feared pirate of his age—stood before Governor Charles Eden of North Carolina and took a royal pardon under King George’s Act of Grace.

He handed over his captured ship (the Adventure) and promised to forsake piracy. For a moment, it seemed the sea had lost its most feared rogue.

But this was no surrender—it was strategy.

Blackbeard used the pardon to bide his time, hide his treasure, and keep smugglin’ in secret. Rumors swirled that Governor Eden turned a blind eye, so long as the coin kept comin’.

By the end of the year, Blackbeard returned to the waves—bolder, bloodier, and burnin’ with legend.

⚓️ Legacy: He didn’t break the law… he bent it, buried it, and came back laughin’.

🪙 Treasure Tales – Ancient & Modern

☠️ Lost Treasure & Forgotten Souls – The Danish Slave Ships Off Costa Rica

In 1710, two mighty Danish vessels—the Fridericus Quartus and Christianus Quintus—met their doom off the Caribbean coast of what is now Cahuita, Costa Rica. But this was no tale of stormy seas or cannon fire. Nay, the true tempest came from within…

Originally launched as part of Denmark’s slave-trading ventures, the ships set sail from Ghana bound for the West Indies, heavy with human cargo. But the voyage turned cursed. Navigation errors sent them far off course. Provisions ran low. Disease raged through the crew.

With order collapsing and mutiny brewing, the captains made a desperate choice—they released the enslaved people and abandoned the voyage. The ships were left to rot near the coast.

Now, centuries later, archaeologists have discovered the wrecks, lying offshore like ghostly reminders of a dark past. Among them—iron cannons, timbers, and whispers of freedom hard-won in the shadow of death.

⚓️ Legacy: One of the most significant maritime archaeological finds in recent memory.

An anonymous group buried a 22-pound chest of gold and rare San Francisco artifacts in the Mount Sutro Reserve, then posted a poem with clues on Reddit.

Within just 11 hours, it was found.

Inside? Gold nuggets, silver and copper coins, vintage baseball cards, and even a 1939 Golden Gate Exposition ticket. The treasure stirred a city-wide hunt, and the organizers say there may be more chests to come…

⚓️ Legacy: The call of treasure ain’t just in dusty maps and cannon fire—it’s still echoing through the streets.

🏴‍☠️ Plunder Pick o’ the Week

⚓ Black Pearl Model Ship – For the Captain’s Shelf

Set sail from your mantelpiece with this stunning replica of the Black Pearl, straight from Pirates of the Caribbean. Crafted with rich detail and dark elegance, this model ship is perfect for the pirate-obsessed rogue with a taste for legend.

With full rigging, hand-carved wooden hull, and that unmistakable silhouette, this ship’s no toy—it’s a collector’s vessel worthy of any captain’s quarters.

Whether ye be a Jack Sparrow loyalist or simply love a ship that sails the shadowy side of the sea, this one’s a beauty.

🛒 Claim yer Black Pearl here →

🌊 Modern Pirate Ship Sightings

The The Galeón Andalucía Sails into Devon

Locals in Devon were left slack-jawed when the full-scale replica Galeón Andalucía appeared on the horizon. A 500-ton floating museum, she brought the Golden Age of Sail back to life, with her carved hull and towering masts turning every head in port.

⚓️ Legacy: She’s no ghost ship—she’s a time machine with canvas and cannon.

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