# The most famous pirates in history

From the Caribbean of the Golden Age of Piracy to the South China Sea: the pirates and privateers whose names became legend. Who was the most fearsome?

- 2 votes · 17 items
- Mar 11, 2023 · georgia_gg
- https://even.best/en/l/1751/the-most-famous-pirates-in-history

## Top 17

1. **Bartholomew Roberts** (1 · ▲1 ▼0) — "Black Bart", who captured hundreds of ships, more than any other pirate of his age.
2. **Francis Drake** (1 · ▲1 ▼0) — English privateer who sailed around the world and fought the Spanish Armada.
3. **Blackbeard** (0 · ▲0 ▼0) — Edward Teach, who lit fuses in his beard to terrify his victims; killed in 1718.
4. **Henry Morgan** (0 · ▲0 ▼0) — Welsh privateer who sacked Panama in 1671 and ended up governing Jamaica.
5. **William Kidd** (0 · ▲0 ▼0) — Hanged in 1701; the legend of his buried treasure lives on.
6. **Ching Shih** (0 · ▲0 ▼0) — Commanded a fleet of hundreds of ships in the South China Sea in the early 19th century.
7. **Anne Bonny** (0 · ▲0 ▼0) — One of the few women pirates of the Caribbean, on Calico Jack's ship.
8. **Mary Read** (0 · ▲0 ▼0) — She sailed disguised as a man alongside Anne Bonny.
9. **Calico Jack** (0 · ▲0 ▼0) — John Rackham, famous for his flag with a skull and crossed swords.
10. **Samuel Bellamy** (0 · ▲0 ▼0) — "Black Sam", the richest pirate on record; his ship, the Whydah, was found in 1984.
11. **Henry Every** (0 · ▲0 ▼0) — His 1695 raid on a Mughal treasure ship was one of the biggest hauls in history.
12. **Hayreddin Barbarossa** (0 · ▲0 ▼0) — Ottoman admiral and corsair who ruled the Mediterranean in the 16th century.
13. **Grace O'Malley** (0 · ▲0 ▼0) — The Irish pirate queen who met Elizabeth I in 1593.
14. **Stede Bonnet** (0 · ▲0 ▼0) — The "gentleman pirate", a wealthy landowner who bought his own ship.
15. **Edward Low** (0 · ▲0 ▼0) — Notorious for his extreme cruelty in the 1720s.
16. **François l'Olonnais** (0 · ▲0 ▼0) — French buccaneer infamous for his brutality in the 1660s.
17. **Jean Lafitte** (0 · ▲0 ▼0) — Pirate and smuggler of New Orleans who helped the Americans in 1815.

How is this ranking ordered? By people's votes: each ▲ adds a point and each ▼ takes one away. Anyone can vote and add what is missing.