Battle of Cape Lopez

Black Bart and his crew were drinking when the Swallow reappeared. Illustration from The Pirates Own Book, first published in 1837.

Date	February 10, 1722
Location	Cape Lopez, Gabon, Africa
Result	British victory

Belligerents

Kingdom of Great Britain

Black Bart's Pirates

Commanders and leaders

Chaloner Ogle

Bartholomew Roberts †

Strength

1 ship-of-the-line

1 frigate
1 brig

Casualties and losses

1 ship-of-the-line damaged

3 dead
272 captured
1 frigate captured

Golden Age of Piracy

Turkish Abductions Lake Nicaragua Maracaibo 1st Porto Bello Panama 2nd Porto Bello Mandab Strait Chepo 17 November 1717 Charleston Cape Fear River 23 November 1718 Ocracoke Inlet Capture of the William 5 February 1722 Cape Lopez Capture of the Fancy

The Battle of Cape Lopez was fought in early 1722 during the Golden Age of Piracy. A British man-of-war under Captain Chaloner Ogle defeated the pirate ship of Bartholomew Roberts off the coast of Gabon, West Africa.

Background

Bartholomew was the most successful pirate during the Golden Age; he captured well over 400 vessels ranging from small fishing boats to large frigates. In April 1721, Roberts, also known as "Black Bart", was sailing the coast of Martinique when he came across a French frigate of fifty-two guns and captured her. Aboard the vessel was the governor of the French colony who was hung by Roberts from the yardarm of his ship. This act proved to be his downfall as it was apparently the final straw; in retaliation for Black Bart's repeated attacks on fleets of merchant ships and his killing of the governor, the French Navy and the Royal Navy dispatched several warships to hunt the pirates. Roberts and his men captured the two French warships off the Senegal River's mouth, the sixteen-gun sloop-of-war Comte de Toulouse and a ten-gun brig. Comte de Toulouse was renamed the Ranger and the brig Little Ranger. After taking the two Frenchmen, the pirates sailed southeast for the present day Gabon.

While on the way, off the coast of Pepper Coast Roberts sighted and captured the Royal Africa Company frigate Onslow which he renamed the Royal Fortune. The frigate mounted over forty guns and the crew consisted of about 250 men, black and white. Black Bart's luck was soon to run out though, as two Royal Navy men-of-war began patrolling the waters of West Africa, at about the same time, Roberts anchored in Cape Lopez for careening. The British vessels on patrol were the fourth-rates HMS Swallow and HMS Weymouth, both mounting fifty guns or more but only the Swallow under Captain Chaloner Ogle encountered Black Bart. When Captain Ogle sailed around the cape he sighted four vessels, three of them pirates and one a merchant ship the 'Neptune' belonging to a Captain Hill, which was illegally trading with the brigands. Ogle spotted a sandbar and quickly ordered his ship to turn out of the way, at the same time raising a Portuguese flag. By this time the pirates had spotted the Swallow so Roberts allowed Captain James Skyrm in the Ranger to capture what he thought was a fleeing merchant ship.

Sensing an opportunity, Captain Ogle chose to let the pirate chase him for several hours until they were far away from the cape and land was no longer in sight. Ogle then turned about, raised the White Ensign and engaged Captain Skyrm, who still did not realize the Swallow was a Royal Navy frigate. After a relatively short action, the sloop was captured, made a prize, and ten pirates were killed. Ogle then patiently sailed back to Cape Lopez where he arrived five days later on February 10, 1722.

Battle

Bartholomew Roberts and his fleet in the background attacking merchant ships off Quidah in 1721.

According to legend; at this time Black Bart Roberts was eating breakfast of salmagundi with Captain Hill of the captured ship 'Neptune' aboard the 'Royal Fortune' when one of his crew shouted that the Ranger was returning from her chase with the merchant ship. A few moments later they discovered the incoming vessel was not their sloop but the Swallow. One of the pirates, a man named Armstrong who had absconded from the 'Swallow's' sister ship 'Weymouth' at Madeira, recognized the British frigate and told Captain Roberts. Without fear Roberts boarded the Royal Fortune and as he did before all of his battles, he dressed in his finest clothing, a red damask waistcoat and a red feather in his hat, and began organizing his escape. Most of the crew from the Little Ranger was ordered to join the crew of the Royal Fortune so as to keep as many pirates as possible aboard the flagship for defense. The 'Little Ranger' which was hauled on her side being cleaned at the time, was abandoned. When the pirates left, Captain Hill's crew went aboard the 'Little Ranger' and looted gold and other valuables, and sailed off for Prince's Island (São Tomé and Príncipe).

Roberts' plan called for him to sail directly for the Swallow in order to quickly pass her and then escape. By doing this the Swallow would have to turn about to engage or chase the Royal Fortune which would give Roberts valuable time to flee. The plan however had one default, by sailing right past the British frigate, the Royal Fortune would be exposed to one of Swallow's deadly broadsides. Captain Roberts set out for his escape and issued the command for Little Ranger and the merchantman to leave. The following action ended badly for the pirates. When Royal Fortune was off Swallow's beam, the British released a massive broadside which raked the ship. The pirates opened fire and then an additional broadside from the Swallow raked the deck where Black Bart was commanding. The pirates got clear and ran ahead of the wind, leaving the 'Swallow' behind. The action took place during a fierce tropical storm, and just as the 'Royal Fortune' seemed to have escaped the ship hit the 'eye' of the storm, and were suddenly becalmed for half an hour. This gave the unaffected 'Swallow' time to catch up, and when they were in range, they fired their swivels (guns mounted on the bow which fired grape shot) at the 'Royal Fortune'. Three men died, one of them being Bartholomew Roberts. A piece of shot no bigger than a penny, hit him in the throat, severed his spinal column, and he died instantly. He settled down onto a gun, to initial observers that he was taking a rest but when the smoke had cleared away Black Bart was dead and Captain Ogle later allowed his crew to bury him at sea, which they did in all his finery, including a diamond studded six inch cross on a chain which he wore around his neck.

The pirates determined to avenge their captain chose to fight the British, they slowed their vessel and turned around to continue the engagement. According to some accounts the action lasted for around three hours before the British sailors dismasted the pirate frigate and boarded. Royal Fortune's colors were struck by force and the remaining pirates were arrested.

Aftermath

Sir Chaloner Ogle

Bartholomew Roberts was killed at the very beginning of the battle during the second British broadside attack. Several men were killed or wounded on both sides and 272 pirates taken prisoner in all. Many were wounded and died in captivity on their way to the prison of Cape Coast Castle. Fifty-four pirates were hanged for their deeds and thirty-seven were punished less severely. Of the 272 pirates, about seventy-five were black so the British sold them into slavery. Seventeen went to Marshalsea prison in London and twenty became indentured servants for the Royal African Company. Dozens of pirates escaped punishment as they were forced into a life with Roberts' pirates to begin with. Captain Chaloner Ogle benefitted from the battle significantly, besides being knighted and becoming an admiral he took off several ounces of gold dust from the Ranger and the Royal Fortune. After defeating Roberts; Captain Ogle intended to sail back and take the Little Ranger which was also carrying gold but she and the merchantman escaped and it is said that Captain Hill received most of the remaining gold.

With the death of Black Bart piracy in the Atlantic Ocean died off and the Golden Age ended by 1730. Sir Chaloner Ogle went on to fight at the major Battle of Cartagena de Indias in Colombia during the War of Jenkins' Ear where he led a failed assault on three Spanish forts, an action which helped lose the battle for the British.

References

Roberts, V'leOnica, The True & Complete Memoirs of Pirate Captain Bartholomew Roberts aka Black Bart (2004) ISBN 1-59971-939-8
Cordingly, David, Under the Black Flag: The Romance and Reality of Life Among the Pirates Harcourt Brace: New York (1995)
Rich, Jeremy, A Workman Is Worthy of His Meat: Food and Colonialism in the Gabon Estuary. Lincoln: University of Nebraska Press (2007) ISBN 0-8032-0741-7
Reader, John, Africa: A Biography of the Continent. Hamish Hamilton (1997) ISBN 0-241-13047-6
A General History of the Pyrates by Captain Charles Johnson (1724)

Piracy

Periods	Ancient Mediterranean Golden Age Republic of Pirates Libertatia 21st century

Types of pirate	Privateers Buccaneers Corsairs Sindhi corsairs Timber pirate River pirate Brethren of the Coast Barbary pirates Moro pirates Wōkòu Vikings Ushkuiniks Narentines Cilician pirates Confederate privateer Baltic Slavic pirates Uskoks Cossack pirates Sea Beggars Sea Dogs Fillibusters

Areas	Caribbean Lake Nicaragua British Virgin Islands Strait of Malacca Somali Coast Sulu Sea Falcon Lake South China Coast Anglo-Turkish piracy Port Royal Tortuga Saint-Malo Barbary Coast Lundy Lagos Salé Spanish Main Gulf of Guinea Indonesia Barataria Bay Persian Gulf

Noted pirates	Bartholomew Roberts Hendrick Lucifer Hayreddin Barbarossa Blackbeard Stede Bonnet Anne Bonny Abshir Boyah Laurens de Graaf Michel de Grammont Calico Jack Alexandre Exquemelin William Kidd Edward Low Redbeard William Dampier Black Caesar Henri Caesar Roberto Cofresí Jean Lafitte Henry Morgan Lawrence Prince François l'Olonnais Henry Strangways Charles Gibbs Benito de Soto Diabolito Pedro Gilbert Mansel Alcantra Hippolyte Bouchard Samuel Hall Lord Nathaniel Gordon Albert W. Hicks Eli Boggs Bully Hayes Rahmah ibn Jabir al-Jalahimah Louis-Michel Aury Shirahama Kenki John Newland Maffitt Joseph Baker Joseph Barss Jørgen Jørgensen Vincenzo Gambi Dominique You Pierre Lafitte John Hawkins Peter Easton Nicholas van Hoorn Moses Cohen Henriques Piet Pieterszoon Hein Charlotte de Berry Samuel Bellamy Benjamin Hornigold Samuel Mason Henry Every Roche Braziliano Gan Ning Liang Daoming Wang Zhi Limahong Zheng Zhilong Zheng Jing Cai Qian Cheung Po Tsai Ching Shih Shap Ng-tsai Chui A-poo Lai Choi San Fūma Kotarō Olivier Levasseur

Categories	Piracy Pirates By nationality Barbary pirates Female pirates Years in piracy Fictional pirates

Pirate ships	Adventure Galley Fancy Ganj-i-Sawai Queen Anne's Revenge Quedagh Merchant Saladin Whydah Gally Marquis of Havana Ambrose Light York

Pirate hunters	Pedro Menéndez de Avilés Angelo Emo Richard Avery Hornsby Robert Maynard Chaloner Ogle Pompey Woodes Rogers David Porter James Brooke Miguel Enríquez (privateer)

Pirate battles and incidents	Jiajing wokou raids Turkish Abductions Chepo Expedition Battle of Mandab Strait Blockade of Charleston Battle of Cape Fear River Battle of Ocracoke Inlet Capture of the William Sack of Campeche Attack on Veracruz Raid on Cartagena Battle of Cape Lopez Capture of the Fancy Persian Gulf Campaign Battle of New Orleans Anti-Piracy in the Aegean Anti-piracy in the West Indies Capture of the Bravo Action of 9 November 1822 Capture of the El Mosquito Battle of Doro Passage Falklands Expedition Great Lakes Patrol Pirate attacks in Borneo Balanguingui Expedition Battle of Tysami Battle of Tonkin River Battle of Nam Quan Battle of Ty-ho Bay Battle of the Leotung Antelope incident North Star affair Battle off Mukah Salvador Pirates Battle of Boca Teacapan Capture of the Ambrose Light Irene incident 1985 Lahad Datu ambush Operation Enduring Freedom – HOA Action of 18 March 2006 Action of 3 June 2007 Action of 28 October 2007 Dai Hong Dan incident Operation Atalanta Carré d'As IV incident Action of 11 November 2008 Action of 9 April 2009 Maersk Alabama hijacking Operation Ocean Shield Action of 23 March 2010 Action of 1 April 2010 Action of 30 March 2010 Action of 5 April 2010 MV Moscow University hijacking Operation Dawn of Gulf of Aden Operation Dawn 8: Gulf of Aden Beluga Nomination incident Battle off Minicoy Island Quest incident MT Zafirah hijacking MT Orkim Harmony hijacking

Slave trade	African slave trade Atlantic slave trade Arab slave trade Barbary slave trade Blockade of Africa African Slave Trade Patrol Capture of the Providentia Capture of the Presidente Capture of the El Almirante Capture of the Marinerito Capture of the Veloz Passagera Capture of the Brillante Amistad Incident Capture of the Emanuela

Fictional pirates	Tom Ayrton Barbe Rouge Hector Barbossa Captain Blood Captain Crook Captain Flint José Gaspar Captain Hook Don Karnage Monkey D. Luffy Roronoa Zoro One Piece Captain Nemo Captain Pugwash Red Rackham Captain Sabertooth Captain Stingaree Sandokan Long John Silver Jack Sparrow

Miscellaneous	Truce of Ratisbon Piracy Act 1698 Piracy Act 1717 Piracy Act 1837 Paris Declaration Respecting Maritime Law Child pirate Golden Age of Piracy Jolly Roger Walking the plank Treasure map Buried treasure Pirate booty No purchase, no pay Marooning Pirate code Pirate utopia Victual Brothers Pirate Round Libertatia Sack of Baltimore A General History of the Pyrates Mutiny Pegleg Eyepatch Letter of marque Davy Jones' Locker Air pirate Space pirate

Lists	Pirates Privateers Timeline of piracy Pirate films Women in piracy Fictional pirates Pirates in popular culture List of ships attacked by Somali pirates

Literature	Treasure Island Facing the Flag On Stranger Tides Castaways of the Flying Dutchman The Angel's Command Voyage of Slaves Pirate Latitudes

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Battle of Cape Lopez

Background

Battle

Aftermath

See also

References