Pirates - Anne Bonny

Welcome to our podcast on the infamous pirate Anne Bonny, one of the most notorious and enigmatic figures of the Golden Age of Piracy. Today, we'll delve into the life, legends, and legacy of a woman who defied societal norms and became one of the most feared pirates of her time. Our story begins in Kinsale County Cork, Ireland, around the year 1698. Anne Bonny was born into a world of scandal and secrecy. Her father, William Cormac, was a respected lawyer who had an affair with the family's maid, Mary Brennan. When Mary became pregnant with Anne, William's wife discovered the infidelity and left him. To avoid further scandal, William made a decision that would shape Anne's early life. He dressed the young Anne as a boy and introduced her as the child of a relative entrusted to his care. This early experience of living as a boy would later prove crucial in Anne's pirating career. As Anne grew older, the truth of her parentage became impossible to hide. William, Mary, and young Anne emigrated to Charles Town (now Charleston) South Carolina, to escape the gossip and start a new life. In the American colonies, William became a successful planter and merchant, providing Anne with a comfortable upbringing. However, Anne's rebellious nature soon began to assert itself. She was known for her "fierce and courageous temper," and rumors swirled about her carousing in local taverns and engaging in affairs with fishermen and drunks. These escapades damaged her father's business reputation, straining their relationship. The final break with her father came in 1718 when, at the age of 20, Anne married a poor sailor named James Bonny. Disapproving of the match, William disowned his daughter. This rejection set Anne on a path that would lead her to infamy on the high seas. Anne and James Bonny set sail for New Providence (now Nassau) in the Bahamas, a notorious pirate haven. It was here that Anne's life would take a dramatic turn. While James took up work as an informant for Governor Woods Rogers, turning in pirates for bounties, Anne found herself drawn to the freewheeling pirate lifestyle. In New Providence, Anne met and fell in love with John "Calico Jack" Rackham, a charismatic pirate captain. Rackham offered to buy Anne from her husband a common practice at the time, but James refused. Undeterred, Anne and Rackham decided to elope, stealing a ship and embarking on a pirating career together. It's important to note the rarity of female pirates during this era. The maritime world was overwhelmingly male-dominated, and superstition held that women on ships were bad luck. However, Anne Bonny, along with her later companion Mary Read, would challenge these notions and prove themselves as capable and fierce as any male pirate. Anne's time with Rackham's crew was marked by daring raids and fierce battles. Witnesses would later testify that Anne and Mary Read were among the fiercest members of the crew, "cursing and swearing much and ready and willing to do anything on board".   One of the most intriguing aspects of Anne's story is her relationship with Mary Read. Mary, like Anne, had spent much of her life disguised as a man. She had served in the British military and joined Rackham's crew while still presenting as male. According to Captain Charles Johnson's "A General History of the Pyrates," Anne, dressed in female attire, attempted to seduce the handsome new recruit (Mary, still disguised as a man). Mary, fearing repercussions from Rackham, revealed her true identity to Anne. This revelation forged a strong bond between the two women