![]() ![]() The pair, along with a new crew, stole a sloop and returned to piracy in August 1720, voiding Rackham’s pardon. When James Bonny found out about the relationship Rackham offered to pay him to divorce her - a common practice at the time - but James Bonny refused. Though she was married to a sailor and government informant named James Bonny, the two began to have an affair. There, while frequenting the taverns, he met a woman named Anne Bonny. Rogers, who hated Vane, granted the pardon and soon Rackham moved to New Providence. Captain Jack and his crew asked for the pardon, claiming that Captain Charles Vane had forced them to become pirates. Rogers provided a general amnesty and royal pardon for any pirate ready to accept it in exchange for discontinuing their illegal endeavors. Next, Calico Jack and his crew made it to Nassau in the Bahamas, where British Governor Woodes Rogers had been sent to address the pirate problem. The crew, in the meantime, were onshore and able to escape into the woods, but, they lost their ship and its cargo. The bounty hunters caught up with the Kingston as it was anchored off Cuba in February 1719. Unfortunately, the pirates had been seen and the outraged merchants of Port Royal hired bounty hunters to go after the thieves. The ship had a rich cargo and the crew made the new vessel their flagship. In December, Rackham and his crew captured a Jamaican merchant ship called the Kingston. Rackham and his men then cruised the West Indies and the waters near Bermuda plundering small vessels close to the shore. The crew then set Vane and his 15 supporters adrift on a smaller boat, along with a small supply of ammunition and goods. Overwhelmingly the pirates approved and Vane was removed from the captaincy, making Rackham the next captain. On November 24, 1718, Calico Jack branded Captain Vane as a coward, called for his removal and asked for a vote from the crew to see if they agreed. However, Vane declared that the captain’s decision was final despite the overwhelming support for Rackham’s cry to fight, and the Ranger and its crew fled the French man-of-war. Vane however, still refused, but of the crew, only 15 supported the captain’s decision, while the remaining 75 agreed with Calico Jack. But Jack Rackham spoke up, contesting the decision and suggesting they fight the larger vessel as it would have much treasure and would win them a larger ship. Though the crew wanted to fight, Vane commanded a retreat from battle. The ship was at least twice as large as the Ranger and immediately began to pursue the pirates. At this time, the crew primarily operated out of New Providence island in the Bahamas, which was such a notorious base for pirates that it was known as the “Pirates Republic.” After making their way north and robbing several ships outside of New York City, the Ranger encountered a large French man-of-war. The first recorded documentation of Rackham is when he was working as a quartermaster on Charles Vane’s sloop, the Ranger, in 1718. Born in England on December 26, 1682, nothing is known of his early life but by the early 18th century he had made his way to the New World. John “Calico Jack” Rackham (1682-1720) – Commonly known as Calico Jack because of the colorful calico clothing that he wore, Rackham was an English pirate captain operating in the Bahamas and in Cuba during the “Golden Age of Piracy” (1650-1730). ![]()
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