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A Meeting of the Pirates
Just as he was getting ready to leave the castle, Davis saw an unknown ship aggressively entering the harbor. It was a pirate vessel commanded by a Frenchman named Olivier La Buse, and he had thought to attack the King James. When he discovered that Davis was also a pirate, the two men joined forces. Shortly thereafter, they met up with another pirate named Cocklyn. The three pirates together assaulted and captured a small fort before they had a drunken falling out and went their separate ways.
During the time of their association, Davis met a captive of Cocklyn's named William Snelgrave, a ship's captain. Davis protected Snelgrave, who later wrote a book about his experiences, in which he referred to Davis as essentially a decent guy, for a pirate.
A Rich Haul
Davis continued along the African coast, plundering several merchant vessels. He boldly engaged a larger ship, a Dutch vessel of 30 guns: after a fierce firefight, the Dutch ship surrendered and Davis took it as his flagship, renaming it the Rover. He captured three ships at the Bay of Anamaboe. One of these ships, the Princess, had on board a certain Bartholomew Roberts, second mate. Roberts less-than-enthusiastically joined the pirate crew, beginning a career that would see him become the most successful pirate of his age.
A little later, the captured a Dutch ship with the Governor of Acra on board: this turned out to be a very rich find, as there was more than 15,000 pounds sterling on board in addition to other goods.
It would be Davis' biggest score.
The Final Deception
Davis had the idea to sack the Portuguese island of Principe. He arrived in the harbor and went ashore, claiming to be captain of a ship of English pirate-hunters. He had heard there were some in the vicinity. The Governor at first fell for the ruse and offered any assistance. Davis thanked him and told him to send the bill for anything his men needed to the King of England.
went back on board just as a smaller French ship entered the harbor. Davis promptly told the Portuguese that he had been looking for that French ship, as it had been trading with pirates. Right there in the harbor, he attacked and captured the French ship. The Governor was so impressed that he commended Davis for his diligence.
Davis by now had the trust of the Governor, but he decided he needed just a little more bait, so he made him a gift of twelve negro slaves. His plan was to lure the governor aboard the ship, where he could be held for ransom until the town came up with the 40,000 pounds he intended to ask for. But the night before, a Portuguese negro captive on board escaped and swam ashore, alerting the governor to the ruse.
The next day, Davis himself went ashore to personally escort his guest to the ship, but the Portuguese had an ambush ready: Davis and his men were gunned down, although according to Captain Johnson, Davis made a valiant final stand: "…just as he fell, he perceived he was follow'd, and drawing out his Pistols, fired them at his pursuers: Thus like a game Cock, giving a dying Blow, that he might not fall unavenged." (Johnson 193)
The exact date of his death is unknown, but it was in June or July of 1719.
Legacy of Howell Davis
Upon Davis' death, his crew quickly selected another captain: they chose recently "converted" Bartholomew Roberts. Roberts' first order of business was revenge for the death of Davis: the Portuguese fort was assaulted, captured, and looted and its cannons were tossed into the ocean. Then, the town was bombarded into rubble by the pirate cannons as the populace cowered in the woods. They even burned two Portuguese ships anchored in the harbor for good measure. The requirement for revenge satisfied, Roberts sailed off into history: he would become the most successful and feared pirate of his era.
Davis himself has been somewhat forgotten, even in this age of romanticizing pirates. This is a pity, because he shows a side of piracy occasionally overlooked: the use of trickery over force. Davis always avoided fights and considered violence a last resort. He was very clever and charismatic and must have been quite a good actor. Even his final ruse, which led to his death, seems likely have worked if the escaped slave had not spilled the beans.
Davis was the scourge of African shipping for a few months in early 1719 before his death. He did not do the damage that Roberts did, or even Blackbeard or Charles Vane, but it was still considerable. Had his alliance with La Buse and Cocklyn held, they might have done serious damage to the slaving economy.
Source:
Defoe, Daniel. A General History of the Pyrates. Edited by Manuel Schonhorn. Mineola: Dover Publications, 1972/1999.
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