Thomas Anstis

By Crusader1307

Born in England, Anstis served on various Pirate and Privateer Ships in the early 18th Century. He specialized in raiding The Eastern Coast of America. He made a name for himself among many Merchant Ships attempting to cross The Atlantic Ocean. He “served” under Captain Bartholomew Roberts, who eventually made him Captain of the Brigantine “Good Fortune”. Bartholomew and his “Fleet” were enroute to The African Coast when Anstis and his ships broke and went back to The Caribbean (for reasons unknown). He raided between Jamaica and Hispaniola, earning an even more infamous name for himself as a rapist of his captives.

Anstis began assembling his own small “Fleet” of ships. It was aid that many of Anstis crews were “forced enlistments” and as such many of the men would write letters to The King of England (secretly mailed in Port) – petitioning pardon. It was perhaps these “letters” that found 2 British Warships HMS “Adventure” and “Hector”- attacking “Good Fortune” in 1722. The ship was captured and boarded (but Anstis and a few “loyal” to him, escaped). Anstis luck held out, and he was able to capture a Sloop The “Antelope”, off of The Bahamas Islands. However, prior to his raiding, he ran into yet another British Warship. Rather than engaging the potential prized 44-gun ship, he evaded capture. This supposedly angered his crew who promptly murdered him in his sleep.