by Jamaica Rose
Hourglass: Time is running out for you; your life will be short.
Initials: might be your own initials or those of your enemy. (As in Bartholomew Roberts’ flag below. Roberts hated Barbados and Martinique because the governors of those two islands had tried to capture him. The flag shows Roberts standing on two skulls. The initials ABH and AMH stand for “A Barbadian’s Head” and “A Martinician’s Head.”)
Bartholomew Roberts’ flag.
Knife/dagger: We are ready to fight.
Man: If clothed, usually represents the captain of the pirates.
Man holding up knife: We are ready to fight and kill; powerful fighters.
Naked man: Without shame.
Scythe (curved blade on a handle): The Grim Reaper’s tool to harvest souls.
Skeleton: King Death and the shortness of life. Also can be the devil.
Skeleton dancing: We delight in death and don’t care what happens to us.
Skeleton, horned: Represents the devil, also called “Old Roger.” (There is one of these on Blackbeard’s flag.) Your time has run out. The devil himself has come for you, and you will suffer a slow, painful death.
Skeleton, red: Bloody, violent death. A lot of blood will be spilled, and a lot of people will die.
Skull: Symbolizes death. On gravestones, skulls were usually drawn with wings, showing the soul was going to heaven. By leaving the wings off, pirates were saying your soul would go to meet with the devil instead. Pirates would swear an oath over a skull, believing if they broke their oath, they would die.
Skull over crossbones: Called the “death’s head,” this was a common symbol for death. Sea captains often used this symbol to record a death in their logbooks. Pirates used it to say, “We are death! Defy us and die.”
Skull held up by hand: We celebrate and welcome death.
Spear: We are ready for battle. You will die if you fight us.
Swords crossed: Death during battle.
Swords: Power, violence, and aggression. Pirates often swore an oath upon a sword.
Sword in flames: Defiance.
Winged hourglass: Your time to live is flying away.
Pastimes for Scurvy Dogs
A Black Flag Would Be As Good as Fifty Men
Now that you understand what the symbols on the flags mean, it’s time to get creative and design a flag of your own.
The Field
Lets start by picking out the background color on the flag. This was commonly called the field.
Black Field: During the early 1700s, black was the preferred color, but there were a few red flags. Henry Every (also known as John Avery) flew both black and red versions of his flag, and Christopher Moody had a red flag as well. Black represents death, darkness, and terror.
Red Field: Red means “No Quarter Given,” or no mercy (quarter) shown to anyone. Red represents blood, violence, battle, and danger.
White Field: Though a white flag could mean “surrender,” it was also the flag of France in the 1600s. There is an account of a white flag with a black “death’s head.” The pirate might have been French.
Other colors were rarely used.
Layout
Once you have picked your background color, your next step is to select your symbols. Go back and look over the symbols in the previous section. You may use these or other symbols that have special meaning for you. Pick the ones that you think will look best together on your flag. We recommend between two and six symbols. More than that and your flag will look too crowded. And remember, your symbols don’t all have to be white; some could be red, gold, or any other color you choose.
Draw your design on a piece of paper. With a little thought and some creative arranging, you can design a flag that is uniquely your own. Later in this chapter, we’ll show you how to make your design into a flag.
Famous Pirates and Their Flags
Now that you’ve designed your own Jolly Roger, lets take a look at some more infamous pirate captains and see how they designed theirs.
Christopher Condent
Christopher Condent was one of the more successful pirates of the eighteenth century. In 1720, near Bombay, India, Condent’s ship, the Flying Dragon, captured a huge Arabic vessel containing more than £150,000 ($375 million dollars) in treasure and valuables. Deciding it was a good time to retire, he set sail for the French island of Reunion, where he took the king’s pardon, married the governor’s sister-in-law, and settled down to become a wealthy merchant.
Condent’s flag was said to be the traditional skull and crossbones repeated three times across the banner. This flag was also used as a generic pirate pennant, usually flown from the topmast of the vessel, with the pirate’s personal flag flown from the rearmost (or mizzen) mast.
There seems to be no eyewitness accounts of what flag Condent flew. One early 1900s historian says this design dates to 1704, but he did not assign it to any certain pirate.
Edward Lowe
Captain Edward Lowe (alias Ned Low) was one of the most brutal and sadistic pirates of the early 1700s. He inflicted torture and did many cruel things to his victims. The only people he treated decently were married men. Since he missed his own daughter terribly, he refused to “force” married men into his crew, saying he would make no child an orphan.
An eyewitness described Lowe’s flag as “a Black Flag with a figure of death [a skeleton] in red.” This was a fittingly bloodthirsty banner for one of history’s most bloodthirsty pirates. Lowe had more than one flag. It was also reported he flew a flag similar to the one described for Blackbeard.
Lowe even had a flag for special occasions. He was said to have used a green silk flag with a yellow figure of a man blowing a trumpet. The Green Trumpeter flag was used when several pirate ships sailed together as a fleet. The flag was hoisted to the top of the mizzenmast to call his captains to a meeting aboard the flagship.
Christopher Moody
Christopher Moody was one of Bartholomew Roberts’ officers. But a few years before sailing with Roberts, he had been a captain in his own right. He mainly pirated off the coast of North and South Carolina.
His flag was red like the older “bloody” flags. It featured a gold, winged hourglass, showing victims that their time to live was flying away. In addition, there was an arm holding a dagger and a gold skull with crossbones. He also liked to fly a red pennant from the top of the mainmast.
This design may not be Moody’s. There seems to be no eyewitness record of what flag Moody actually flew. A flag design similar to this was first described in the late 1700s as just being a pirate flag. So we know pirates used the design. We are just not sure which pirate used it.
John Quelch
John Quelch sailed from Marblehead, Massachusetts, as part of a privateering crew. They quickly mutinied and elected John as their captain. Quelch sailed for the coast of Brazil, where he captured nine Portuguese vessels and a great quantity of treasure. They foolishly sailed back to Marblehead to sell their ill-gotten gains, where they were quickly captured.
Quelch’s flag was described as “an anatomy [naked man] with an hourglass in one hand and a dart in the heart with three drops of blood proceeding from it in the other.” It is often confused with Blackbeard’s flag, which is very similar.
The first description of this flag for Quelch seems to be from a historian in 1911. There is no mention of it in any of the trial records. At Quelch’s trial, it was reported he would fly the English colors throughout his attacks. This was the trick he used to make his victims think his was a friendly ship...until too late.
Thomas Tew
Thomas Tew was commissioned by the governor of Bermuda to raid French trading posts along the African coast. But Tew had different plans—to turn pirate! When he informed his crew of his decision, they were said to have shouted, “A gold chain or a wooden leg, we’ll stand by you!” He set sail for the Red Sea in search of treasure. And he succeeded beyond his wildest dreams! He managed to capture one of the Grand Moghul�
�s ships filled with gold, ivory, silks, and other treasure worth over $50 million dollars by some accounts.
Tew was not satisfied with this fortune. He went back to the Red Sea for more, but he would pay for his greed. Tew was killed when his vessel, along with John Avery’s Fancy and two others, attacked the Grand Moghul’s treasure fleet. A shot got him in the belly.
Tew’s flag is a white arm holding a sword, on a black field, meaning “We are ready to kill you!” It is doubtful Thomas Tew actually used this flag. He died in 1695, five years before the first black and white pirate flags were reported being used. However, the symbol of the arm holding the sword was a common design used in the 1600s.
Richard Worley
Richard Worley set out from New York in 1718 with a crew of eight men to become a pirate. They terrorized the American colonies and the Bahamas for a short time. His career lasted less than a year before he was killed in battle near Jamestown, Virginia, in February 1719. His crew was captured and hanged.
This design might be accurate, for an eyewitness said Worley had a black flag “with a white Death’s Head in the Middle of it.” Though this does not mention the crossed bones behind the head, they may have been there, or an inventive artist could have added them later.
Emanuel Wynne
Emanuel Wynne, a French pirate of the 1700s, was the first pirate known to have flown his own personalized black flag.
On July 18, 1700, the HMS Poole, commanded by Captain John Cranby, engaged Wynne’s ship off the Cape Verde Islands. In Cranby’s account, he described “a sable ensign with cross bones, a death’s head, and an hour glass.” The hourglass was a common pirate symbol signifying that only by surrendering quickly could his prey evade death.
Pastimes for Scurvy Dogs
Flying Yer Colors
Now that you’ve designed your own flag, here are some ways to make your pirate flag fly. Discuss with your parents which method you wish to use (appliqué, paint, or bleach gel pen).
Type of Cloth
Pirate flags were often said to be silk. Silk is lightweight and catches the wind nicely, but silk can be rather expensive. A plain cotton fabric is fine too. To save money, try finding some plain cotton sheets at a thrift or discount store (avoid those that are a cotton/polyester mix if you plan to use the bleach gel pen method). If you can’t find the color you need, get white or light solid-colored 100 percent cotton sheets and dye them the color you want. Be sure to get help from your parents with the dye. (Dyes work best on 100 percent cotton. Avoid cotton/polyester blends.)
Cutting the Cloth and Hemming
Decide if your flag should be one layer or two layers back-to-back sewn together. A single-layer flag will be lighter and will catch the wind easier than a double-layer flag. It also uses less fabric, so it is cheaper to make.
For the bleach method, you can make your flag from only one layer of cloth. The design will show through on both sides, but one side will be in reverse (mirror image) from the other. The appliqué and painting methods can also work with one layer, but you will need to paint or apply your design to both sides (if the paint shows through the fabric, you will need to use two layers). Again, the sides will be reverse images from each other. Perhaps you plan to display your flag so only one side will show. Then you will only need one layer because it won’t matter how the reverse side looks.
If you want the design on both sides to appear the same, you will need to make two flags, and sew them back-to-back. If you have letters or words in your design, this will be necessary.
One Layer: When you cut your fabric into a rectangle, you will need 3 inches extra on the left side of the design to make a pocket for the pole. Add 1 inch extra on the remaining three edges of your fabric. You can do the hemming (fold over and hide the raw edges) before or after you make the design. First, fold the fabric over along each edge 1/2 inch and sew it down. Then fold each edge another 1/2 inch and sew again. This way, all raw edges are on the inside, to prevent unraveling. (If you don’t know how to use a sewing machine or don’t have one, get help from someone who does. Or, you can hand-sew the hems.)
Two Layers: You will need to cut two separate rectangles for your flag. When you measure it, you will need 3 inches extra on the left side of the fabric to make a pocket for the pole. Add an extra 5/8 inch along each of the other three edges for the seam (where the pieces are sewed together). You will need to wait until you are done making the design before you sew the two sides together. When you sew them together, put them face to face and sew around all the sides at 5/8 inch from the edges. Leave about an 8-inch gap on one side to turn the flag right-side out. Before you turn it, clip off each corner close to the stitching without cutting the stitches. This will let the corners lay flat after you turn them inside out. Turn it right side out and iron the edges flat with a warm iron. Hand-sew the open gap closed.
Appliqué
You will need:
Cloth for your flag background
Cloth for your flag design (white or other colors your design calls for)
Chalk
Scissors
Needle and thread, or sewing machine, or fabric glue
In this method, you will cut your design out of the white or other color cloth and sew or glue it on the flag.
Sketch out your design on your white or other color fabric using a piece of colored chalk. Remember, if you want the design to show on both sides of your flag, you will need to make two sets of your design.
Cut out your design with the scissors, carefully following your chalk lines.
Glue or sew the design pieces onto the background cloth. If you are using a sewing machine, use the zigzag mode to help keep the raw edges of the cloth from unraveling.
Glue or sew the second set of design pieces onto the backside of the cloth (for a one-layer flag) or on the second background cloth (for a two-layer flag).
Painting
You will need:
Cloth for your flag
Chalk
Acrylic paint
Round or chisel-shaped paint brush (1 inch or smaller diameter)
Rag to wipe with
Rinse water cup
Old newspapers or paper bags
You can paint onto the cloth with acrylic craft paints. Once they dry they are permanent, so be careful. Even before they dry, they are hard to get out of unwanted places.
Be sure to cover your work surface with old newspapers or used paper bags. You should wear old clothes.
Sketch out your design on your cloth using a piece of chalk. Remember, if you are making a two-layered flag, you will need to draw your design on both pieces.
Paint your design following your chalk drawing. Be careful not to get paint on you or on other things. While the paint is drying, rinse out your brushes with soap and water. Dump out the rinse water and clean the cup.
If you are making a one-layered flag, you will need to wait until the first side is completely dry before flipping the flag over to paint the other side.
If you are making a two-layered flag, paint both pieces of fabric. When they are both completely dry, you can sew them together as described above.
Bleach Pen
Warning
Check with your parents before you start. You will need their supervision and help with this project.
You will need:
Cloth for your flag
Chalk
Gel bleach pen (Clorox Bleach Pen) OR Rit Color Remover
Stop-Bleach (or hydrogen peroxide)
Tub
Plastic or paper bags or old newspapers
With a gel bleach pen, you can draw your design right onto the black or colored fabric. The color on the cloth erases away. This works on 100 percent cotton or linen cloth only! The bleach has been thickened into a gel so it is easier to use and less messy than unthickened bleach. Depending on how big your design is, you might need more than one gel bleach pen.
Depending on the fabric and how it was colored, you will get differ
ent results. Instead of white, it might turn to a light color (black often turns light reddish-brown or orange). Not all fabrics and dyes will work well with this method. Use this only for COTTON and LINEN cloth. DO NOT USE THIS ON SILK OR MAN-MADE FABRICS (including cotton/polyester blends). If you want your flag to be silk, you can use Rit Color Remover instead (this will also work for cotton or linen).
Be sure to cover your work surface with plastic or used paper bags or old newspapers. You should wear old clothes. Be careful not to get bleach drips on your clothes or the things around you. Bleach spots are PERMANENT.
First, test the fabric to make sure it is able to lose color. Shake the pen and start squeezing gently. Make a small mark on a fabric scrap with the bleach pen. Beware of accidental drips! If the color disappears, good. If it does not disappear, you will need to get different cloth or try the sewing or painting methods.
Have your parents help you prepare a stop-bleach bath. You will need to have this ready to rinse the cloth in the stop-bleach bath right after you finish drawing your design. If you don’t use the stop-bleach, the bleach (a mild acid) will eat away at your fabric, and, after a while, holes will show up. You can use Anti-Chlor, Bleach Stop, or some other bleach neutralizer (available where you buy dyes) as your stop-bleach bath. Follow the instructions on the package. Instead, you can soak the cloth with 3 percent hydrogen peroxide (the kind you get in drug stores). Hydrogen peroxide costs more than Anti-Chlor, but it is safe and it works. Use one part hydrogen peroxide to eight parts water.