Morgan, Sir Henry, 1635?–1688, Welsh buccaneer. In his youth he went to the West Indies, eventually joining the buccaneers there. On the death (1667) of Edward Mansfield Mansfield, Edward, d. 1667, West Indian buccaneer. Possibly born in Curaçao of Dutch parentage, he is also called Edward Mansveld. He was engaged (1665) by the British governor of Jamaica, Sir Thomas Modyford, to take Curaçao from the Dutch.
..... Click the link for more information. , Morgan took his place as commander of the buccaneers. He operated as a privateer, being commissioned in his activities by the British authorities. His exploits included the capture of Puerto Príncipe (Camagüey, Cuba) and the sack of Puerto Bello (1668), the capture of Maracaibo (1669), the ravaging of the Cuban and American coasts (1670), and the daring capture of Panama (1671). His operations were always marked by brutality and debauchery, but were sometimes executed with skill against great odds. Sent (1672) as a prisoner to England on complaints of piracy, he soon became a hero, was knighted (1673), and was made lieutenant governor of Jamaica, where he spent the rest of his life and was acting governor (1680–82).

Morgan, Sir Henry

(born 1635, Llanrhymney, Glamorgan, Wales—died Aug. 25, 1688, probably Lawrencefield, Jam.) Welsh buccaneer. In the second Anglo-Dutch War, he commanded buccaneers against the Dutch colonies in the Caribbean. After capturing Puerto Príncipe in Cuba and sacking the city of Portobelo, he set out in 1670 with 36 ships and 2,000 buccaneers to capture the major Spanish colonial city of Panamá, defeated a large Spanish force, and sacked and burned the city. On the return journey, he deserted his followers and took most of the booty. In 1674 he was knighted and sent to Jamaica as deputy governor. An exaggerated account of Morgan's exploits created his popular reputation as a bloodthirsty pirate.

Morgan, Sir Henry

(1635–1688) Welsh buccaneer; took over privateer band after Mansfield’s death. [Br. Hist.: NCE, 1832]

See : Piracy