Insignia del terror
-a DMgTJDa +oMMZ RoHer o Candera pJrata, Don DaMaWera
blanca y dos huesos (tibias) cruzados debajo, sobre
fondo negro, fue la insignia de los piratas y en el imagi-
nario colectivo se popularizó como la insignia con la que
Te reDonoDe a MoT pJrataT Dada perTonaKe tenra Ma TVZa
-aT prJmeraT CanderaT RVe DaVTaron terror eran de
color rojo intenso:
jolie rouge
. Éstas eran izadas cuan-
do los barcos tenían intención de atacar para saquear
a TV rJWaM TJn tomar prJTJoneroT eT deDJr, DomVnJDaCan
su intención de entablar una batalla sangrienta cuyo
fin era la victoria o la muerte.
Entre las banderas más famosas están las de Ri-
Dhard 8orMeZ, &dXard &nHMand, BarCaneHra, &dmVnd
$ondent, )enrZ &WerZ, $hrJTtopher MoodZ, RaDLman
Z BarthoMomeX RoCertT, por menDJonar aMHVnaT
En cuanto a los navíos piratas, también son objeto
de DontroWerTJa -aT peMrDVMaT TVeMenmoTtrarnoT CarDoT
grandes, bien armados y poderosos, pero en realidad
no eran aTr -oT CarDoT normaMmente eran peRVevoT Z
veloces, pues esto permitía a los piratas alcanzar a los
pesados galeones mercantes que solían ser sus presas
favoritas, así como escapar de los buques de guerra que
los perseguían. Un ejemplo de esto son los balandros,
los cuales medían entre 19 y 24 m de eslora y de poco
DaMdo 1or eTte motJWo, MaT trJpVMaDJoneT no eran mVZ
numerosas, aunque sí suficientes para amedrentar a
los marineros mercantes. Cuando un barco caía en sus
manos, la mayoría de los capitanes piratas ofrecía a los
marineros unirse a su tripulación. En caso de negativa,
podían ser asesinados o abandonados en alguna playa
remota MVDhoT pJrataT JnJDJaron aTr TV Darrera, Domo
marineros de un barco mercante capturado.
-a pJraterra en eM $arJCe Domen[w a deDMJnar a ¬naMeT
deM TJHMo 97***, DVando eM Dentro deM DomerDJomVndJaM Te
desplazó del Caribe a la India y los gobiernos europeos
pusieron mayor empeño en su erradicación.
Insignia of terror
The classic Jolly Roger or pirate flag, with a white
skull and a pair of bones (tibias) below, over a black
background, was the emblem of pirates; and in the
social imaginary it was popularized as a badge to
recognize pirates; every character had his own.
The first flags that provoked terror were
bright red: jolie rouge. They were raised when the
sailboats intended to attack their foe in order to
loot, no prisoners taken; that is, they communi-
cated their intention to wage bloody battle, aim-
ing to achieve either victory or death.
Theflagsof RichardWorley, EdwardEngland, Black-
beard, Edmund Condent, Henry Every, Christopher
Moody, John Rackman, Bartholomew Roberts, just to
mentiona few, are regardedamong themost famous.
In regards with the pirate ships, they are also
matter of controversy. Movies usually show us
big, heavily armed and powerful ships; that was
not the reality, though. Boats were usually small
and quick, because that allowed the pirates to
reach the heavy galleon freighters, which used
to be their favorite preys, the same as to escape
from the warships chasing them. An example
are the sloops, having between 19m and 24m of
length and a shallow waterline; thus, crew mem-
bers were not numerous, but enough to frighten
the crews.When a ship fell into their hands, most
of the pirate captains offered the seamen to join
his crew. If they refused, they could have been
murdered or marooned in a remote island. Many
a pirate initiated his career this way, as a crew-
member of a seized merchantman.
At the end of the XVIII century piracy started
to decline, when the hub of world trade moved
from the Caribbean to India, and the governments
became more committed to eradicating it.
·amura·
129
IereOciB cVMtVrBM •
culture and heritage
6 )enrZMorHanataDw
1anamgen 6 ,
unade lasciudades
más importantes
del imperioespañol.
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HenryMorgan
attackedPanamain
1671,oneofthemost
importantcitiesof
theSpanishempire.
7.Barbanegra
representaunode los
piratasmáspopulares
ytemidosde la
historia./
Blackbeard
isoneofthemost
popularandfeared
piratesinhistory.
6
7
En t o n c e s s u r g i ó l a l e y e n d a .
T h e n t h e l e g e n d s t a r t e d .
