Henry Morgan

Welsh pirate (1635-1688)

Sir Henry Morgan, a Welsh privateer, plantation owner, and later Lieutenant Governor of Jamaica, became wealthy through his raids on Spanish settlements and shipping. Much of his early life remains a mystery, but he rose to prominence in the 1660s and 1670s, conducting successful and lucrative raids across the Caribbean before being appointed as a Knight Bachelor and serving as the Lieutenant Governor of Jamaica.

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About the Henry Morgan

Sir Henry Morganwas a Welsh privateer, plantation owner, and, later, Lieutenant Governor of Jamaica. From his base in Port Royal, Jamaica, he and those under his command raided settlements and shipping ports on the Spanish Main, becoming wealthy as they did so. With the prize money and loot from the raids, Morgan purchased three large sugar plantations on Jamaica.

Much of Morgan’s early life is unknown; he was born in an area of Monmouthshire that is now part of the city of Cardiff. It is not known how he made his way to the West Indies, or how the Welshman began his career as a privateer. He was probably a member of a group of raiders led by Sir Christopher Myngs in the early 1660s during the Anglo-Spanish War. Morgan became a close friend of Sir Thomas Modyford, the Governor of Jamaica; as diplomatic relations between the Kingdom of England and Spain worsened in 1667, Modyford gave Morgan a letter of marque, or a licence, to attack and seize Spanish vessels. Morgan subsequently conducted successful and highly lucrative raids on Puerto del Principeand Porto Bello (now Portobelo in modern Panama). In 1668, he sailed for Maracaibo, Venezuela, and Gibraltar, on Lake Maracaibo; he plundered both cities before destroying a large Spanish squadron as he escaped.

In 1671, Morgan and company attacked Panama City, landing on the Caribbean coast and traversing the isthmus and its jungles before they attacked the city, located on the Pacific coast. This event occurred after the signing of a peace treaty, and, to appease the Spanish, Morgan was arrested and summoned to London in 1672; the Welshman was popularly celebrated as a hero, no less, and soon regained the favour of the government and King Charles II.

Morgan was then appointed a Knight Bachelor in November 1674 and returned to the Colony of Jamaica shortly thereafter to serve as the territory’s Lieutenant Governor. He served on the Assembly of Jamaica until 1683; on three occasions, he acted as governor in the absence of the then-current post-holder. His reputation was marred by a scurrilous memoir by Alexandre Exquemelin, a former Flemish shipmate of Morgan’s, accusing him of widespread torture and other offences, including during the infamous raid on Panama City. Morgan won a libel suit against the book’s English publishers, but Exquemelin’s portrayal has negatively shifted the public’s, and history’s, view of Morgan as a scoundrel. His life was further romanticised after his 1688 passing, as he became the inspiration for pirate-themed works of fiction across a range of genres.

Frequently Asked Questions

Sir Henry Morgan was a Welsh privateer, plantation owner, and later Lieutenant Governor of Jamaica, who became wealthy through his raids on Spanish settlements and shipping in the Caribbean.

During the Anglo-Spanish War in the 1660s, Henry Morgan was a close friend of the Governor of Jamaica, Sir Thomas Modyford, who gave him a letter of marque to attack and seize Spanish vessels.

Henry Morgan conducted successful and highly lucrative raids on Puerto del Príncipe (now Camagüey in Cuba), Porto Bello (now Portobelo in Panamá), Maracaibo in Venezuela, and Panama City.

A scurrilous memoir by Alexandre Exquemelin, a former Flemish shipmate of Morgan’s, accused him of widespread torture and other offences, which has negatively shifted the public’s and history’s view of Morgan as a scoundrel.

After the raid on Panama City, which occurred after the signing of a peace treaty, Henry Morgan was arrested and summoned to London in 1672. However, he was popularly celebrated as a hero and soon regained the favor of the government and King Charles II.

Henry Morgan’s life was further romanticized after his 1688 passing, as he became the inspiration for pirate-themed works of fiction across a range of genres.

Henry Morgan was appointed a Knight Bachelor in 1674 and returned to the Colony of Jamaica shortly thereafter to serve as the territory’s Lieutenant Governor. He served on the Assembly of Jamaica until 1683 and acted as governor on three occasions in the absence of the then-current post-holder.