80px|Blackbeard, as pictured by Benjamin Cole
Edward Teach (c. 1680 – 1718), better known as Blackbeard, was a notorious English pirate who operated around the West Indies and the eastern coast of the American colonies. Most likely born in Bristol, little is known about his early life. He may have served on privateer ships during Queen Anne's War before he joined the crew of Benjamin Hornigold, a pirate who operated from the Caribbean island of New Providence, and with whom he engaged in numerous acts of piracy. Teach renamed a captured merchant vessel as Queen Anne's Revenge and became a renowned pirate, his cognomen derived from his thick black beard and fearsome appearance; he was reported to have tied lit fuses under his hat to frighten his enemies. A shrewd and calculating leader, he avoided the use of force, relying instead on his fearsome image, and commanding his vessels with the permission of their crews. There are no known accounts of his ever having harmed or murdered those he held captive. Following his death on 22 November 1718, his image was romanticised, becoming the inspiration for a number of pirate-themed works of fiction across a range of genres. (more...) Recently featured: Canoe River train crash – M-6 – Achtung Baby Archive – By email – More featured articles... Read the rest of this article: <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blackbeard> _______________________________ Today's selected anniversaries: 498: Following the death of Anastasius II, both Symmachus and Laurentius were elected pope, causing a schism that would last until 506. <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pope_Symmachus> 1635: Dutch colonial forces on Taiwan launched a three-month pacification campaign against Taiwanese aborigines. <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dutch_pacification_campaign_on_Formosa> 1928: Boléro, Maurice Ravel's most famous musical composition, made its debut at the Paris Opéra. <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bol%C3%A9ro> 1988: The first B-2 stealth bomber of the United States Air Force was first displayed in public at Air Force Plant 42 in Palmdale, California. <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Northrop_Grumman_B-2_Spirit> 2005: Angela Merkel assumed office as the first female Chancellor of Germany. <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Angela_Merkel> _____________________________ Wiktionary's word of the day: aperçu (n): A clever insight <http://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/aper%C3%A7u> ___________________________ Wikiquote quote of the day: It is better to be hated for what you are than loved for what you are not. --André Gide <http://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Andr%C3%A9_Gide> _______________________________________________ Wikipedia Daily Article mailing list. To unsubscribe, visit: https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/daily-article-l Questions or comments? Contact [email protected]
