Friday, March 14, 2008

Anne Bonny -Women's History Month


Ahoy Mateys!

Let’s take a glimpse into the life of Anne Bonny…

Anne Bonny (1698-1782) was the first Irish female pirate in the Caribbean! Historically, young boys and women were not allowed on ships, so women had to be sneaked in. In order to get on a ship, they would have to disguise themselves by cross-dressing, so many were able to get away with it.

Anne Bonny was married, but then had an affair with a pirate named Jack Rackham. The two of them eloped, and traveled on Jack’s ship, The Revenge. Anne earned the respect of the men quickly as she was very competent, brave, and courageous. Anne was very effective in combat, and she even stabbed a pirate for discovering her gender!

Anne was actually not the only female pirate on the ship! She found out that a woman by the name of Mary Read was also disguising herself as a man to be aboard on the ship! During this time, they both discovered that they were both pregnant, and they became great friends.

The truth eventually came out, and the men accepted the fact that they were on board.

This tale ends in tragedy as the ship was captured and imprisoned. Mary died in prison after giving birth, and there whereabouts of Bonny remained mysterious.

And who says that women can’t fight?? Anne and Mary proves them all wrong!

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