Handcrafted Model Ships - Wooden Calico Jack's The William Model Pirate Ship 14"

John Rackham Becomes Calico Jack:

       Made famous as the last vessel upon which the legendary pirate Calico Jack sailed, The William was a small Bahamian sloop of 12 tons, carrying four cannons. While her pirate history is quite brief, leading up to her capture are the fascinating lives of John Rackham, later Calico Jack, and his diverse crew. An Englishman born in Jamaica on December 21, 1682, the majority of John Rackham’s life is almost a complete mystery; the earliest records of him from 1718 as quartermaster aboard Charles Vane’s sloop the Ranger. While on raids, the Ranger ventured near a large French man-o-war vessel, and while the crew wanted to fight, Vane chose to run. Following this incident, a vote was held in which Rackham and the majority of the crew stripped Vane of his captaincy, making Rackham new captain of the Ranger. Eventually coming to be called Calico Jack, Rackham rose to fame as a pirate, attacking vessels throughout the Caribbean and capturing the Kingston as their flagship. With a small fleet building, Calico Jack continued on to capture several larger vessels near Bermuda, eventually coming to create his legendary Jolly Roger flag.

Piracy in the Caribbean:

       While Calico Jack and his crew were sailing throughout the Caribbean, in 1718 England declared war on Spain, leading various English governors throughout the area to offer royal pardons, as well as letters of marquee, to many pirates. In 1719 Rackham sailed into Nassau to take advantage of this deal, though while granted his pardon, he was denied his letters. Retiring from piracy, John Rackham spent the next year at port in New Providence, where he met the soon-to-be legendary Anne Bonny.  Anne and John began an affair, and in February 1720 the war between the British and Spanish ended, leaving many sailors and former pirates out of work.  On August 22, 1720 the two, along with 10 other crew, rowed out into Nassau harbor and bordered the Bahamian sloop The William. Sailing through the Windward Passage  the renewed pirates escaped once again and began hunting the Caribbean.
       In mid-October, 1720 Calico Jack’s crew captured a large ship near Jamaica, leading the Jamaican government to contact Captain John Barnet, tasking him with capturing the infamous pirate. Continuing along the Jamaican coast, Rackham took The William to the western-most tip of the island where they ran across a small ship of fisherman and turtle trappers. Propositioning the crew to exchange their catches for liquor, the fishermen and Rackham dropped anchor and a large drinking party was begun. Within a matter of hours Captain Barnet had caught up to The William and a short lived battle ensued.

The William and the Downfall of Calico Jack:

       Boarding The William, Barnet’s crew found little resistance as the only two pirates with any fight in them were Anne Bonny and the other female member, Mary “Mark” Read. While the other pirates were drunk and cowardly, Bonny and Read fought for their freedom while cursing out their weak male counterparts, even firing upon and killing one of them. Following the brief ordeal the pirate crew was seized and taken to Port Royal, Jamaica for trial. Though Anne Bonny and Mary Read were granted stays in their execution, claiming to be pregnant at the time, Rackham and the others were convicted of piracy and sentenced to death on November 16, 1720. The next day the ten were hung at Gallows Point, ending the brief yet legendary career of Calico Jack.
       Following his death, few accurate accounts of The William exist, and while Mary Read in fact died of child-birth related causes some months later, Anne Bonny fled and disappeared from history. As his legacy Calico Jack left behind his emblematic Jolly Roger flag, as well as a career of piracy that has been taken up in novel and on the silver screen, most recently in the Disney blockbuster Pirates of the Caribbean.