As has been mentioned before, warfare is no reason to be impolite, and piracy isn't either, at least not in 18th century society.
Captain Benjamin Hornigold's tenure as a scourge of the seven seas lasted from 1715 to 1718, at which point his crew decided that they were not too keen on his never attacking an orphan (actually, never attacking a ship flying a British flag) and his second-in-command, Edward Teach took over. Captain Hornigold does not appear to have been a particularly threatening pirate either.
During one particular attack, Hornigold boarded the ship and, apologetically, asked the crew of the attacked ship for their hats. Captain Hornigold and his crew had overindulged the previous evening and tossed their hats overboard in an excess of drunken merriment. Once Captain Hornigold had recieved the hats, he thanked the crew and sailed away at once.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
Well he did have that name working against him, "Hornigold" doesn't exactly strike fear into the hearts of men. Now Teach, he knew the power of a fearsome image...:)
ReplyDeleteThat is true. Hornigold is not the best of piratical names and 'Politely Requests Other People's Hats' is neither a good nickname or a particularly terrifying one.
ReplyDelete