Howell Davis Welsh pirate Country: Great Britain

1. Biography of Howell Davis
2. Early Life and Career
3. Escape and Pirate Activities
4. The Golden Coast and Death

Biography of Howell Davis

Howell Davis was a Welsh pirate who had a relatively short-lived career in piracy, spanning only 11 months from July 1718 to June 1719. He was born in Milford Haven, Pembrokeshire, Wales.

Early Life and Career

Davis began his pirate career in 1718 when the slave ship 'Cadogan', on which he served as a mate, was captured by Edward England. Davis decided to join the pirates and was entrusted with the command of the 'Cadogan'. However, his crew mutinied, and instead of sailing to Brazil as planned, the ship ended up in Barbados, where Davis was arrested and imprisoned on charges of piracy.

Escape and Pirate Activities

After being released, Davis sought refuge in the pirate haven of New Providence Island in the Bahamas. However, New Providence was later cleared of pirates by the governor Woodes Rogers, so Davis left on the sloop 'Buck'. The remaining six members of the crew elected him as their captain, and they sailed towards Martinique.

Setting up a base in Coxon's Hole, Howell Davis organized various pirate raids. He then crossed the Atlantic and terrorized the Cape Verde Islands. It was there that Davis captured a ship, which became the flagship of his fleet - the 26-gun 'Saint James'. He later formed a partnership with the French pirate Olivier Levasseur and another pirate captain, Thomas Cocklyn, but their collaboration fell apart after a drunken argument.

The Golden Coast and Death

Moving onto the 32-gun ship 'Rover', Davis sailed south to operate on the Gold Coast. Among his prisoners was Bartholomew Roberts, who would later become a more famous pirate than Davis himself.

Davis was known for his cunning and charismatic nature, often resorting to deception and trickery in his pursuits. He pretended to be a legitimate privateer and captured the commander of a Royal African slave port in Gambia during a welcoming dinner, holding him for ransom. He also managed to capture a large French vessel by hoisting a pirate flag on a different, poorly armed ship he had seized earlier. The French quickly surrendered, assuming that Davis' ship was heavily armed.

However, when Davis attempted to disguise himself as a privateer to kidnap the governor of the Portuguese island of Principe, located off the coast of southern Africa, the deception failed as the governor saw through his disguise. The pirates were caught off guard on their way to the fort, and Davis was shot and killed. Bartholomew Roberts, by the way, was elected as Davis' successor and later raided the island of Principe to avenge Howell Davis.