Whydah Gally

Model of Whydah Gally
History
Great Britain
NameWhydah Gally
NamesakeThe African slave port Ouidah
OwnerSir Humphry Morice
OperatorPrivate vessel
Laid down1715, London
Launched1716, London
HomeportLondon
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Captured by pirates
CommanderCaptain Lawrence Prince
Chased by piratesLate Feb, 1717
Windward Passage
Surrendered /
Captured
three days later, near the lower Bahamas
History
Pirate
NameWhydah Gally
OwnerCrew of Captain/Commodore Samuel "Black Sam" Bellamy
Acquiredlate February, 1717
HomeportBlanco Islet, B.V.I. (later re-named Bellamy Cay) Caribbean Sea
Fateran aground, capsized
StatusRuins under perpetual recovery and conservation; private ownership and exclusive dive rights
CommanderSamuel "Black Sam" Bellamy
Wreckedlate night of 26 April 1717, Billingsgate, Cape Cod, Massachusetts Bay Colony 41°53′31″N 69°57′34″W / 41.892°N 69.9594°W / 41.892; -69.9594
Discovered1984, by Barry Clifford
Authenticated1985, by discovery of the ship's inscribed bell and a brass placard, both inscribed with ship's name
General characteristics
TypeGalley
Tons burthen300 tons BM
Length110 ft (34 m)
PropulsionSail & oar
Sail planfully rigged, 3 masts
Speed13 knots (24 km/h; 15 mph)
Complement150 men at launch; went down with 145 men & 1 boy (incl. 6 prisoners)
ArmamentAt launch: 18 active guns

Pirate upgrade: 28 active guns

Recovered: More than 65, recovery ongoing
NotesWhydah was the flagship of a 5-ship fleet which included the Marianne, Mary Anne, Anne, and Fisher

Whydah Gally[1] /ˈhwɪdə ˈɡæli, ˈhwɪdˌɔː/ (commonly known simply as the Whydah) was a fully rigged ship that was originally built as a passenger, cargo, and slave ship. On the return leg of her maiden voyage of the triangle trade, Whydah Gally was captured by the pirate Captain Samuel "Black Sam" Bellamy, beginning a new role in the Golden Age of Piracy.

Bellamy sailed Whydah Gally up the coast of colonial America, capturing other ships as he went along. On 26 April 1717, Whydah Gally was caught in a violent storm and wrecked off the coast of Cape Cod, Massachusetts. Only two of Whydah Gally's crew survived, along with seven others who were on a sloop captured by Bellamy earlier that day. Six of the nine survivors were hanged, two who had been forced into piracy were freed, and one Indian crewman was sold into slavery.

Whydah Gally and her treasure of captured pirate gold eluded discovery for over 260 years until 1984, when the wreck was found off the coast of Cape Cod, buried under 10–50 ft (3–15 m) of sand, in depths ranging from 16–30 ft (5–9 m) deep, spread for four miles, parallel to the Cape's easternmost coast. With the discovery of the ship's bell in 1985 and a small brass placard in 2013, both inscribed with the ship's name and maiden voyage date, Whydah Gally is the only fully authenticated Golden Age pirate shipwreck ever discovered.[2]

  1. ^ Or Whidah, and rarely, written as Whidaw (Strong 1836), or Whido (Southack 1717).
  2. ^ Cite error: The named reference MA-SC was invoked but never defined (see the help page).