Eric Cobham and Maria Lindsey
Eric Cobham | |
---|---|
Born | 1700 Poole, Dorset, England |
Died | 1760 (aged 59–60) Le Havre, France |
Occupation(s) | Pirate, later a judge |
Known for | Practising piracy in the Gulf of St. Lawrence |
Spouse | Maria Lindsey |
Maria Lindsey | |
---|---|
Died | unclear Le Havre, France |
Cause of death | Suicide or murder |
Occupation | Pirate |
Known for | Practising piracy in the Gulf of St. Lawrence |
Spouse | Eric Cobham |
Eric Cobham (c. 1700 – 1760 or after) a pirate in the early eighteenth century who with his wife, Maria Lindsey, practiced piracy in the Gulf of St. Lawrence from their base in Newfoundland. They were both born in England – Eric Cobham from Poole and Maria Lindsey from Plymouth.
History
According to Philip Gosse in The Pirate's Who's Who (1924) and Horwood and Butts in The Pirates and Outlaws of Canada (1984), the Cobhams were among the first St. Lawrence pirates to become known for giving "no quarter," meaning all the captured crews were killed and the ships sunk. They were famous for their sadism and cruelty,[1] including using survivors for target practice. They were pirates between 1720s–40s after which they relocated to Le Havre, France. They became members of the community and Eric was appointed a judge. Maria could not make the adjustment and went insane, finally committing suicide (or possibly being murdered by Eric). Eric had an attack of conscience after her death, confessed his sins to a priest, and requested the true story of his life be published. This book was printed after his death, the family tried to buy and destroy this book, however there is allegedly a copy in the Archives Nationales in Paris. They were survived by two sons and a daughter. Gosse describes Eric Cobham as a native of Poole, who took to smuggling at age 18, and was caught. Later, he met Maria Lindsay at Plymouth, and brought her on board his ship, sailing to Newfoundland, where the couple assumed a career in piracy.[2] The couple is said to have operated out of Sandy Point (Flat Island) on the Western Shore of Newfoundland Island. They are a part of Canadian pirate lore, and Maria Lindsay has been dubbed "the Canadian Pirate Queen." A fictional, romantic novel based on described events in pirate literature about Eric Cobham and Maria Lindsay exists.[3]
Possibility of non-existence
Other than second hand mention, there is little historic proof that Eric Cobham and his wife actually existed. To some historians, it seems unlikely that the couple could have had the career described in the mid-eighteenth century without leaving documentary traces.[4] However, in a book, Buccaneers and Marooners of America, published in 1891, editor Howard Pyle mentions Cobham in passing as if his exploits were already well-known to the public at large and details Cobham's attack on a Spanish ship in the Bay of Biscay wherein all persons of Spanish origin (approximately 20) aboard the seized vessel were sewn into the mainsail and thrown into the sea. While some doubt the stories and are even skeptical that the Cobhams actually existed, Dan Conlin, the historian and curator of marine history at the Maritime Museum of the Atlantic in Halifax, believes the stories are probably true, but exaggerated.[5]
References
- ^ Pyle, Howard (1903). Book of Pirates. New York: Harper & Brothers. pp. 22–23.
{{cite book}}
: CS1 maint: date and year (link) - ^ Gosse, Philip (1924). The Pirate's Who's Who (1st ed.). London: Dulau and Company,. Ltd. pp. 78–80.
{{cite book}}
: CS1 maint: date and year (link) - ^ De Chastelaine, Alexander (2024). The Terror of Saint Lawrence (1st ed.). Amazon. ISBN 9798883341945.
{{cite book}}
: CS1 maint: date and year (link) - ^ Janzen, Olaf. "2015 George Story Lecture: The Pirate Who Never Was? Eric Cobham and Invention in History". Newfoundland & Labrador Historical Society Website.
- ^ Conlin, Dan (2009). Pirates of the Atlantic: Robbery, Murder and Mayhem off the Canadian East Coast (1st ed.). Formac Publishing Company Ltd. p. 55. ISBN 9780887807411.
{{cite book}}
: CS1 maint: date and year (link)
- Fitzgerald, Jack. The Hangman is Never Late
- Gosse, Philip, "The Pirate's Who's Who"
- Horwood, Harold, and Butts, Ed, "Pirates and Outlaws of Canada"
- Rogozinski, Jan, "Pirates! An A-Z Encyclopedia"
- Pyle, Howard, "Buccaneers and Marooners of America" 1891, 2nd Edition p. 20
- De Chastelaine, Alexander, "The Terror of Saint Lawrence" 2024 , ISBN 9798883341945
External links
- Article in the Canadian Encyclopedia
- Buccaners and Marooners of America by Howard Pyle 1905
- v
- t
- e
- Albanian piracy
- Anglo-Turkish piracy
- Baltic Slavic pirates
- Barbary pirates (corsairs)
- Brethren of the Coast
- Buccaneers
- Cilician pirates
- Child pirate
- Cossack pirates
- Fillibusters
- French corsairs
- Jewish pirates
- Moro pirates
- Narentines
- Privateers
- River pirate
- Sea Beggars
- Sea Dogs
- Sindhi corsairs
- Timber pirate
- Ushkuyniks
- Uskoks
- Vikings
- Victual Brothers
- Wokou
- Women in piracy
Atlantic World | |
---|---|
Indian Ocean | |
Other waters | |
Pirate havens and bases |
- Adventure Galley
- Ambrose Light
- Fancy
- Flying Dutchman
- Ganj-i-Sawai
- Queen Anne's Revenge
- Quedagh Merchant
- Marquis of Havana
- My Revenge
- Royal Fortune
- Saladin
- Whydah Gally
- York
- 1582 Cagayan battles
- 1985 Lahad Datu ambush
- Action of 9 November 1822
- Action of 28 October 2007
- Action of 11 November 2008
- Action of 9 April 2009
- Action of 23 March 2010
- Action of 1 April 2010
- Action of 5 April 2010
- Anti-piracy in the Aegean
- Antelope incident
- Anti-piracy in the West Indies
- Attack on Veracruz
- Balanguingui Expedition
- Battle of Boca Teacapan
- Battle of Cape Fear River
- Battle of Cape Lopez
- Battle of Doro Passage
- Battle of Mandab Strait
- Battle of Manila
- Battle off Minicoy Island
- Battle off Mukah
- Battle of Nam Quan
- Battle of New Orleans
- Battle of Ocracoke Inlet
- Battle of Pianosa
- Battle of the Leotung
- Battle of the Tiger's Mouth
- Battle of Tonkin River
- Battle of Ty-ho Bay
- Battle of Tysami
- Beluga Nomination incident
- Blockade of Charleston (Vane)
- Chepo Expedition
- Capture of the Ambrose Light
- Capture of John "Calico Jack" Rackham
- Capture of the schooner Bravo
- Capture of the schooner Fancy
- Capture of the sloop Anne
- Carré d'As IV incident
- Dai Hong Dan incident
- Falklands Expedition
- Great Lakes Patrol
- Irene incident
- Jiajing wokou raids
- Maersk Alabama hijacking
- MT Zafirah hijacking
- MT Orkim Harmony hijacking
- MV Moscow University hijacking
- North Star affair
- Operation Enduring Freedom – HOA
- Operation Atalanta
- Operation Dawn of Gulf of Aden
- Operation Dawn 8: Gulf of Aden
- Operation Ocean Shield
- Persian Gulf Campaign
- Pirate attacks in Borneo
- Quest incident
- Raid on Cartagena
- Sack of Baltimore
- Sack of Campeche
- Salvador Pirates
- Slave raid of Suðuroy
- Turkish Abductions
- African slave trade
- African Slave Trade Patrol
- Amistad Incident
- Atlantic slave trade
- Barbary slave trade
- Blockade of Africa
- Capture of the Veloz Passagera
- Capture of the brig Brillante
- Indian Ocean slave trade
- Trans-Saharan slave trade
popular
culture
Fictional pirates |
|
---|---|
Novels |
|
Tropes | |
Miscellaneous |
Lists | |
---|---|
Categories |
|
- Piracy portal
- Category