seldom are the peachy crimes successful . Often , culprit are either caught or killed , unable to enjoy the spoils of their crime . But during the Golden Age of Piracy ( circa 1650 - 1720 ) , there was one heist so large , by a pirate so bodacious , that it set off a diplomatic crisis . Despite an international manhunt , the conceiver was never bring to justice . This is the story of Henry Every ’s maraud of theGanj - i - Sawai .
A New Kind of Pirate
Known at times throughout his life as John Avery , Captain Bridgeman , and Long Ben , Henry Everywas born in England around 1653 and chop-chop took to a life at sea . He pass years serving in the Royal Navy and as an enslaver and privateer . It was n’t until his late thirties , however , that he begin what would become one of the most successful pirate life history in history .
In 1694 , Every led a mutiny aboard a privateering vas , became its captain , and completed his shift from privateer to hijack . He rename the shipFancyand voyage with his crew to the African coasts where thetrade routeswere full of English , Spanish , and French ships . After months of plundering — and having hoard a small fleet — Every learned of a pillage that would shift his life .
In 1695 , EmperorAurangzeb Alamgir , reign what is today India , orchestrated a massive pilgrim’s journey by ship to the holy metropolis of Mecca . The expectant and most opulent of the armada ’s 25 vessels , theGanj - i - Sawai(“Excessive Treasure ” in English ) , was loaded with gold , Ag , and wanted jewel — and protect by C of men as well as twelve of guns on the deck . Though Aurangzeb did not accompany the pilgrim’s journey , century of government activity officials and their folk and entourages were on table .
For Every , this presented a once - in - a - life moment . In August of that same year , he channelise his crew toward the Red Sea to bug the pilgrim’s journey . Knowing a raid of this plate would be no easy labor , Every joined with other pirate ship in the region , including theAmity , an American ship captain by another privateer - turned - pirate , Thomas Tew .
The coalition of pirates soon spotted the armada as it point for the Indian Ocean andbegan their by-line . Though much of the pilgrimage escaped that initial contact , Every ’s radical caught up with theFateh Mohammed , one of the belittled escort ships , and relieved the watercraft of its cargo following a short firefight . This was not enough , however , and Every and his pirates continued their chase . On September 7 , they finally approached theGanj - i - Sawai — their true prize — and open fervour .
A Brutal Attack and Unfathomable Haul
TheFancy ’s initial blast was so ferocious that the chieftain of theGanj - i - Sawai , Ibrahim Khan , was said to have hidden in his cabin . Without his leaders , the soldiers task with defending the watercraft quickly succumbed to Every ’s assault .
Once they had captivate the ship , Every ’s crewproceeded to torture and kill their prisoners over several day . So brutal was their treatment of the captives , many prisoners died by suicide before the pirate could put their hand on them .
The haul Every and his men took from theGanj - i - Sawaiwas immense . The coins alone were worth upwards of$130 million dollarsin today ’s money ; on top of that , a Brobdingnagian number of precious gems were also looted . In her bookPirates of New England , source Gail Selinger frame the time value of the entire cargo at $ 300 million dollars when adjusted for pretentiousness .
After they had satisfied their bloodlust and separate the spoils , Every and his crowd sailed to the Bahamas to lie low and assess the situation .
The Fallout
Across the mankind , Aurangzebwas savage . He arrested several leading members of the English East India Company under suspicion of conspiring with the pirates and threatened to offset the Company ’s moneymaking declaration in the area . Fearing the economical repercussions of such a response , English officials compensated the emperor for the slip good and point an enormous bounty on Every ’s head . shortly , the sea were full of Company and Navy ship hunting the elusive pirate across four continent — North America , Europe , Africa , and Asia — make it one of the mostmassive manhuntsof the seventeenth one C .
No one is certain what happened to Henry Every . He and his crew scattered after a short time on the Bahamian island of New Providence . Some account state that Every made his agency to Ireland or England to live out his days . Isis Davis - Marks , write forSmithsonian Magazine , relates a theory that Every may have made his way to New England , where coin with Arabic script were discover in Rhode Island .
Several of Every ’s bunch were captured and fulfill for their crimes ( and to maintain a wobbly diplomatical peacefulness ) . But many , including Every , escaped the noose and vaporize into account having draw off one of the most profitable and brutal raids ever .
