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Anne Bonny, the most famous and fascinating female pirate, was never able to
deny her passions. She did whatever she pleased and took whatever she
wanted...And Anne needed a great deal of attention. Anne was high-spirited,
to say the least. She also delighted in dressing and acting like a boy. The
rebellious teen was good at shooting, hunting, riding, and even cursing!
Despite her minimum efforts with her appearance, this tomboy was stunningly
attractive. Anne had the porcelain skin of the Irish, as well as a beautiful
head of thick, red curly hair she refused to tie up, so it draped her face
and shoulders like a lion’s mane. A story in The Pirate’s Own Book, 1837,
reports that Anne once attacked a young man who tried to have his way with
her. She assaulted him so violently that he was bed ridden for weeks.
Although the girl had many eligible men trying to court her, she was not
interested in settling down. By the time she was nineteen, William Cormac
took matters into his own hands and arranged for his daughter to marry a
prominent member of the community. For a young woman who didn’t want to
answer to anyone and longed for great adventure and excitement, this prospect
must have seemed like a lifelong prison sentence. Unable to bear the thought
of having to stay in Charleston betrothed to this stolid fellow her father
had chosen for her, she eloped with a young sailor she’s been seeing on the
sly, James Bonny. The union was definitely more about freedom than true love.
Anne saw the sailor as her way out of the restrictive social setting of
Charleston, and as an opportunity to see the world on her own terms.
Unfortunately, Anne quickly became bored with her husband. As a matter of
fact, she was pursuing other options when she was seen be pirate Jack Rackham
in Nassau on New Providence. He was there in hopes of obtaining the king’s
pardon, but got distracted from his mission when he saw Anne Bonny. The
instant he laid eyes on the wild redheaded woman, “Calico Jack” Rackham fell
head over heels in love. His feelings were reciprocated by Anne. For the
first time in her life, Anne Bonny discovered the real meaning of love.
Rackham tried to get Anne’s husband to divorce her by offering him a
large sum of money, but James Bonny refused the money and proclaimed he would
never let his wife go. He even went so far as revealing Anne’s infidelity to
the governor. Under the governor’s threat of official recrimination for their
adulterous actions, Anne and Calico Jack stole a ship, assembled a crew, and
set sail, not telling anyone their destination.
Anne probably found further excitement in the charade of having to
conceal her identity by dressing as a man, since women weren’t allowed to
crew or even be aboard pirate ships. More importantly, it would have
diminished Rackham’s authority if he had blatantly brought a woman on as part
of the crew. It probably wasn’t as difficult as one might think to pull off
this sham-the clothes were loose fitting, and boys were employed as powder
monkeys. Without make-up and with her hair put up under a hat, Anne could
have passed f or one of these lads, without close scrutiny.
The pair continued the deception for months. During this time, they
managed to successfully assault and raid some small merchant ships. However,
in 1720 something happened that nearly ended their relationship. Rackham
overtook a Dutch merchant ship, captured the crew, and forced them into
servitude. Anne Bonny began spending a great deal of time with one of the new
pirates. Calico Jack often spotted them huddled together, whispering.
Jealously besieged Rackham. In a rage, he confronted Anne and the English
pirate, promising to kill both for their indiscretions. Anne was forced to
tell Calico Jack the truth. She divulged that the man he thought she was
carrying on with was nothing more than a friend, a very good friend. Anne
then formally introduced her new best friend. Jack, I’d like you to meet
Miss Mary Read!
Shortly after this, the women abandoned their disguises, but not the
manly clothing. Having proven themselves to be more adept than most male
pirates, their revelation was well received. But, just as they were accepted
as female buccaneers, Anne found out she was pregnant and had to be taken to
Cuba to have the baby. If Calico Jack hinted that Anne could stay in Cuba to
raise the child, Anne must have quickly told him otherwise, for she was back
on board within a few weeks...All that was important to Anne was the freedom
of being a pirate because it was a great outlet for her untamed spirit. It
was one of her happiest days when she was once again part of Captain Jack
Rackham’s pirate crew. Little did she or any of them know that the high times
they had shared were behind them...
