Anne Bonny lived to be eighty-two, having eight children after her career as a pirate. Yes, she was redheaded too and was said to have a hot temper. Most of what we know of her comes from Captain Charles Johnson's "General History Of The Robberies & Murders Of The Most Notorious Pirates".
She was born about 1690 in Cork, Ireland, the illegitimate daughter of a lawyer, William Mc Cormac, and his serving girl Mary Brennan. Mary and William ran away from London, to escape his wife's family, settling in the Carolina's . Will dropped the "Mc" from his name, changing it to Cormac. They raised Anne as "Andy", dressing her in boy's clothes. Mary died when Anne was twelve. When Anne, who was considered to be very attractive, even though she was more than a bit boyish, was thirteen she married a poor sailor-and, sometimes-pirate whose name was James Bonny. Anne continued to be strong minded and difficult; she once stabbed a maid with a table knife. And, there was a rumor that she tried to set fire to her father's estate. He had become well-to-do and he then disowned her. Anne and her husband James left for the town of Nassau on New Providence Island. Nassau was a haven for English pirates and for a while James Bonny became a spy for Governor Woodes Rogers. But, his and Anne's relationship and marriage went down hill after James found Anne in a hammock with another man.
So... The rather footloose-and-fancy-free Anne hung around in taverns, there meeting "Calico" Jack Rackman, who was called "Calico" because he liked to wear colorful shirts made of the fashionable, new fabric imported from France in 1690. Jack had friends in Cuba; actually they were pretty much all girlfriends. (He had big eyes for the ladies.) He and Anne became lovers and it was thought that she had a son by him while they were in Cuba and that the boy was abandoned there. Anne divorced her dull and stolid husband James and married dashing, womanizing Jack Rackman at sea. Jack and Anne met a sailor they liked very much. Anne later found the sailor was a woman called Mary Read. Anne, Jack and Mary captured a sloop called "The Revenge" and pirated the ship around the Caribbean.
Anne was respected by her crewmen and, although a girl, was said to be as good a fighter as any of them. Mary, Anne and Jack were captured in 1720 by Jonathan Barnet, a captain of a King's sloop. Most of the pirates put up little fight, being sloppy drunk, but Anne and Mary Read fought very hard. Jack Rackham was tried and hanged. According to Charles Johnson, Anne's last words to him were, --- "Had you fought like a man you would not now be hang'd like a dog." Anne and Mary both "pleaded their bellies"; that is, both said they were pregnant, and they were. Mary Read died of a violent fever in prison. Perhaps, her baby died with her; we just don't know. Anne might have been ransomed by her well-off lawyer father, and, then remarried. What happened to her baby is also unknown, but after she had that baby she supposedly had seven more and then disappeared from history.
*** I imagine Anne Bonny as the way she's portrayed on the mini series "Black Sails", dangerous and actually snarling much of the time, --- totally unpredictable. We all know she is DEFINITELY NOT right in her head!... ;)
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