Chapter Three

(In the last installment, Sam, Kate and Mr. Dreamer find themselves on the deck of a ship. Looking up, the kids spy a flag with a skeleton holding a spear that points to a bleeding heart.)

  Indeed they were on a ship and not just any old ship – but the Queen Anne's Revenge.

 "You're sure they can't see us?" Sam asked as he watched two fearsome looking fellows pass within a few inches.

 "Absolutely. Let's see – where was I? Oh yes. The Queen Anne's Revenge – whose ship was that? Can you tell me?"

"Uh – I know it was a pirate's ship, but I can't remember the name…" Kate stopped to think about it, but before she could continue, a large man with long black hair and a beard appeared upon the deck. He stopped to speak with the other two men.

 "That's the captain of the Queen Anne's Revenge. He's one of the most famous pirates to ever plunder the coast," Mr. Dreamer said.."

"Blackbeard! That's Blackbeard! Wow – I can't believe we're standing here, right next to the most famous pirate in the world!" Sam said.

 "Believe me, if he could see you, you wouldn't be standing here," Mr. Dreamer said. "Now, what do you know about Blackbeard?"

 "Um, he had a beard and it was black?" Kate asked. Mr. Dreamer shook his head.

 "I think we can do a little better than that, Kate. Let me tell you about this – to use Sam's word – "boring" pirate, who went by the name of Edward Teach, although no one really knows what his real name was.

 "Teach commandeered a French slaving ship called the Concorde in 1717, renamed it and used it to plunder and terrorize ships up and down the coast until June of 1718, when it was lost. At one time, he commanded a fleet of four ships and more than 300 men."

Across the deck the pirate stopped talking and began to walk in their direction. Sam thought Blackbeard was looking straight at him.

 "He...he…he sure looks bad, Mr. Dreamer. I hope you're right about him not seeing us," Sam said.

"You think Blackbeard looks 'bad' now?  You haven't seen anything, my boy! You know  those cartoons you like? You know the ones I mean, uh, I can't think of the name right now -- Volley Ball D or maybe it's Football, I can't remember  --  but those cartoon fellows are nothing compared to the real thing, and believe me, Blackbeard was the real thing."

Mr. Dreamer told them how the notorious pirate would attack coastal cities, but Blackbeard preyed mostly on other mariners.

For a while, it appeared the pirate had retired, Mr. Dreamer continued. "He settled in Bath with a considerable amount of ill-gotten gains, but he was unable to give up his greedy trade and was soon back in business, terrorizing the sea-going public."

Blackbeard's luck soon ran out, too. The governor of Virginia decided he was fed up with the marauding pirate and sent Lt. Robert Maynard after him with a pair of British sloops.

"Maynard, who was in the Royal Navy, finally trapped Blackbeard,  on board the pirate ship Adventure and killed him," Mr. Dreamer said. "Then do you know what he did?"

"What?" The kids asked.

"Lt. Maynard cut Blackbeard's head right off and hung it – beard and all – on the ship's bow so everyone could see that the terrible pirate's reign had finally ended."

"Yuck," Kate said.

"What happened after that?" Sam asked.

Mr. Dreamer looked at his watch. "Sorry. No time to go into that now. You'll have to cover that in history class. It's time to move on. Look – there's the door. We must go!" And with that, the three passed once more through the red door.

* * *

They were standing near a bridge in the growing darkness where a group of men armed with swords and odd-looking rifles were gathered.

"What is this place?" Sam asked.

"Welcome to the Revolutionary War, kids. This is the Battle of Moore's Creek.

Travel to Moore's Creek by clicking here.

Vocabulary Words:

commandeered: To take over and control by force.

plunder: To steal things by force, often during a battle.

notorious: Being well-known for something that's bad.

mariners: One who navigates or assists in navigating a ship.

bow: The nose of a ship.

Did You Know?

 Blackbeard had a very short career as a pirate. He is believed to have been born in England in 1680. He died on Nov. 22, 1718, at the age of about 38.

 In order to look more fierce and frighten his intended victims, Blackbeard liked to take hemp rope and tie it into his hair and beard, then light it. Smoke would frame his face, making some people believe he was truly a demon from another world. Hemp fuses were slow burning and used to fire cannons

Something To Talk About:

 Edward "Blackbeard" Teach didn't respect other people's property or lives. As a result, he broke the law many times. Although he was a successful pirate, eventually he paid the price for his actions.

 Society puts laws in place in order to give us a uniform and organized method of dealing with those who do not respect other people's right to live and own property.

 There is a saying that "crime does not pay." Does this apply in Blackbeard's case? Why is it important to respect the rights and property of others?

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