Top 10 Richest Pirates In History: Blackbeard, Drake & Others Worth Millions in 2024 - Financesonline.com (2024)

While the richest and most popular pirate of today is surely the “Pirates of the Caribbean” movie franchise (worldwide gross: $3.7 billion), the pirates of the old days were no slouches–and they probably weren’t as weird as Johnny Depp, either. They were often go-getter British brigands living mostly in the 1500s-1700s, when European countries were raping and pillaging the Americas–and bringing back gold, silver, slaves, and other finery for the kings and queens of Europe.

These feisty Brits (and others of course) realized that, instead of directly trading, raiding, and conquering the indigenous Americans themselves, they could make a pretty penny letting the Spanish do so–and then stealing all their loot. Not exactly an honorable trade, but stealing from the genocidal Spanish wasn’t the worst thing a person could do to get ahead in life!

Most of these piratical seamen didn’t make much. It took a large crew to raid another ship and emerge victorious, and the costs of maintaining an oceanic fighting force in the era before GPS and Whole Foods was no cheap task. But every once in a while, it worked, and a particular pirate would make almost unfathomable amounts of money. These are their stories, collected by Forbes and researched in detail. Their booty has been converted into modern US dollars by way of comparison, but don’t be fooled: $1 million then meant still more than it means today, as there were comparatively few that reached such echelons. Yo ho, a pirate’s life indeed.

10. Blackbeard (Edward Teach): $12.5 million

While we don’t know much about how Edward Teach’s life began, we know how it ended: a furious battle in 1718 fought between Blackbeard’s crew and a fighting force sent by the Alexander Spotswood, the Governor of the Virginia colony. The governor was involved for good reason, as Blackbeard had amassed millions of dollars of treasure over his career.

His thick black beard became a trademark, known and feared around the Caribbean and the cash-crop colonies of the Carolinas and the Chesapeake. A trademark intervention was the successful blockade of the major port town of Charleston, South Carolina. Blackbeard was able to hold the blockade and ransom the residents for untold sums of gold and other tradeables.

At his death in 1718, Blackbeard was wealthy and he was feared. Fortunately for the world–or at least, fortunately for its wealthy government-backed corporations–the era of the pirate was on its way out, although holdouts would persist and continue to gnaw at the heels of these early multinationals.

9. John Halsey: $13 million

What little we know of John Halsey comes chiefly from one source: a 1724 book entitled A General History of the Robberies and Murders of the most notorious Pyrates. Book titles were a lot better back in the day!

Other than his piratical exploits, Halsey was perhaps best-known as a lover of watermelons. From the History: “His grave was made in a garden of watermelons.” Amongst pirates, Halsey was well-known to be “courteous to all his prisoners” and therefore he “lived beloved and died regretted”.

Halsey’s life-long haul of $13 million was insufficient to protect him from the ills of the time: his ships were nearly obliterated by a 1708 hurricane, and Halsey contracted a fever and died a short time later.

8. Captain Morgan (Harry Morgan): $13 million

If you’ve ordered yourself a rum-and-co*ke recently to “get a little captain in you”, then you were simultaneously getting your “arrr me matey” on. Sir Henry was a bit less fun and a bit more militant in reality. The Welsh privateer was an admiral in His Majesty’s Navy and supplemented his income by raiding settlements around the Spanish main. With a relatively long career (likely due to the military backup), Sir Henry was one of the best-plundering pirates of all time.

7. Thomas White: $16 million

White was one of several pirates who made their loot on the long and treacherous journey from the North Atlantic English, American, and Caribbean ports around the tip of Africa and into the Indian Ocean, where they could prey on ships trading for cargo like spices, fruits, and animals that were uncommon in Europe. Incidentally, the Indian Ocean is the home of the well-known modern-day pirates that operate off the coast of Somalia. Today it’s oil, back then it was tea: both goods in high demand in England despite limited direct access, meaning pirates like White could make a killing.

6. Jean Fleury: $31.5 million

In 1519, Hernando Cortes landed on the coast of modern-day Mexico, and within three years the smallpox his crew carried with them had managed to decimate the Aztecs, and Cortes took their capital of Tenochtitlan–and all of its gold. On the way back to Spain, a funny thing happened: French pirate Jean Fleury showed up and promptly stole 2 of the 3 treasure ships in the fleet, making off with tens of millions of dollars in gold.

Fleury’s haul was so vast that he was able to share with his crew and have plenty left over to live the good life in France and vacation in the Caribbean. The bounty wasn’t returned to King Francis I of France in one piece, and as a result the hoard lies not at Versailles but scattered to the winds, in jewelry and other holdings of gold the world over.

5. Black Bart (Bartholomew Roberts): $32 million

Black Bart’s short-lived career nevertheless came at the right time: the height of the (aptly-named) Golden Age of Piracy (get it, golden age?). Barti Ddu as “Black Bart” would have been called in his native Welsh, had sailed for much of his life and turned to pirating in 1719, when he raided ships engaged in the triangle trade off the coasts of West Africa’s Gold Coast and the Americas. The going was good but brief: Black Bart was killed in 1722, and his wealth vanished with nary a trace, likely handed out amongst crew or settled somewhere in the watery depths.

4. John Bowen: $40 million

Another piratical candle that burned bright but fast, Bowen was active for four years before attempting a retirement–only to catch an intestinal ailment, a common fate amongst those trafficking in the Indian Ocean where British immunity hadn’t caught up to the diseases of the tropics. While Black Bart is better known, Bowen’s haul surpassed his in a similarly short span of time. From a single episode, this Creole captain took in £170,000. Upon returning to Madagascar and preparing to retire, he contracted an intestinal ailment. The inability to maintain water in his body quickly killed him, but his bounty lived on after his brief career and even briefer retirement.

3. Thomas Tew: $103 million

Now we are talking: Tew took over $100 million in treasure, a vast fortune that was even more vast at the time. He died a few years before Bowen made it on the scene, succumbing to the typical brief (and bloody) life typical of this list. Tew’s wealth–or rather, how he stole it–paved the way for Bowen and Black Bart.

Tew was an early pirate on the so-called Pirate Round, the trip ‘round the horn of Africa and into the bounteous trade routes of the Indian Ocean. Unsurprisingly, Tew found the going easier in the 1690s than Bowen would the next decade, or Black Bart a generation later: with so many pirates following in his footsteps, they stepped on one another’s toes. Tew’s original route enabled the plundering of only a few very high-value ships, that he parlayed into a fortune he wouldn’t live long enough to enjoy. The pirate’s way, it seems.

2. Sir Francis Drake: $115 million

Better known as one of the first (specifically, the second) captain to navigate the globe, Drake had no fear of pillaging and plundering the Spanish treasure fleet. In fact, he had a real knack for ruining the Spanish: he was second in command of His Majesty’s Navy during the 1588 destruction the Spanish Armada that catapulted England up the international tables and proved the first nail in the coffin for Spain as the major European power.

In between his day jobs of captain, admiral, and politician, El Draque was a fearsome pirate. His exploits were so fabulous that the Spanish Crown offered millions of dollars for his head on a plate. After defeating the Armada, Drake continued to wreak havoc on his rivals, eventually amassing enough bounty to be one of the richest men of the age.

1. Black Sam (Samuel Bellamy): $120 million

Much like today’s wealth tables, an American tops the list of wealthiest pirates. Ok, that’s a stretch: Black Sam was born in England, but he left for America to seek his fortune. Work in the Royal Navy eventually turned into a year of piratical escapades, which reached their pinnacle in the taking of the Whydah Gally near the Bahamas in February of 1717. All told, Black Sam’s bounty was the greatest ever earned by a pirate. And typically, his good fortune would not last long, for Black Sam would be dead by late April.

Sailing back to New England to see his fifteen year-old lover, Black Sam’s ship was swept up in a Nor’easter and he drowned along with over one hundred other pirates. The ship would not be rediscovered until 1982, when a diving team visited the wreck. They took a photo of the brass bell, which clearly read the name of the ship and the year of its christening, 1716. The discoverer helped establish a pirate museum nearby that included a cannon from the ship–stuffed to the gills with plundered gold and gems, a fitting tribute to the (briefly) wealthiest pirate of all time.

Key Insights

• Historical Context: The era of piracy peaked between the 1500s and 1700s, during European colonial expansion in the Americas.
• Pirate Motivation: Pirates often targeted Spanish ships returning from the Americas loaded with gold, silver, and other valuable goods.
• Economic Impact: Despite the high risks, successful pirates could amass fortunes equivalent to tens of millions of modern US dollars.
• Famous Pirates: The article highlights ten notable pirates, their exploits, and their estimated wealth converted to modern values.
• Pirate Demise: Many pirates met untimely deaths due to battles, natural disasters, or diseases, often leading to short-lived careers.
• Cultural Legacy: Figures like Blackbeard and Captain Morgan left enduring legacies in popular culture, from literature to rum brands.

FAQ

1. What was the peak era of piracy? The peak era of piracy was between the 1500s and 1700s, coinciding with European colonial expansion in the Americas.
2. Why did pirates target Spanish ships specifically? Pirates targeted Spanish ships because they were often laden with gold, silver, and other valuable goods obtained from the Americas.
3. How did pirates amass their wealth? Pirates amassed wealth by raiding ships and coastal settlements, seizing valuable cargo, and sometimes ransoming captives.
4. Who was the wealthiest pirate in history? The wealthiest pirate in history was Black Sam (Samuel Bellamy), who amassed an estimated $120 million in modern US dollars.
5. What led to the decline of piracy? The decline of piracy was influenced by increased naval patrols, international anti-piracy laws, and the diminishing profitability of pirate ventures.
6. Are there any remnants of pirate treasure found today? Yes, some pirate treasures have been discovered, such as the wreck of Black Sam’s ship, the Whydah Gally, found in 1982 off the coast of Cape Cod.
7. What role did privateers play in piracy? Privateers were essentially government-sanctioned pirates who attacked enemy ships during wartime, often blurring the line between legal privateering and outright piracy.
8. How accurate are modern portrayals of pirates? Modern portrayals of pirates, such as in movies and books, often romanticize and exaggerate their lives, focusing on adventure and flamboyant characters rather than the brutal reality.
9. What was the typical lifespan of a pirate? The typical lifespan of a pirate was often short due to the high risks involved, including battles, disease, and harsh living conditions.
10. How did piracy influence global trade? Piracy significantly impacted global trade by increasing the costs of maritime insurance and forcing nations to invest in stronger naval defenses and secure trade routes.