Kidd, William (1645?-1701), was a famous Scottish-born pirate and privateer. Privateers were commanders of privately owned armed vessels hired by a government to attack enemy ships.
Kidd’s birthplace is not known for sure, but it was probably Greenock, Scotland. As a young man, Kidd became a privateer for England in the Caribbean region. By 1691, he had moved to New York, where he married and became a respectable, wealthy sea captain. But Kidd tired of this type of life and sailed to England in 1695. King William III of England directed Kidd to capture pirate ships. Kidd took command of the ship Adventure Galley. He picked up part of his crew in England and the rest in New York.
Kidd sailed for the Indian Ocean. On his way, he attacked merchant ships in the Red Sea and captured several on the east coast of India. Some of these ships worked for France. England was then at war with France and considered these ships prizes of war. But Kidd also attacked ships of countries friendly to England. Meanwhile, Kidd’s men came to dislike him. During an argument, Kidd killed his gunner, William Moore. Most of Kidd’s men deserted him when his ship landed in Madagascar, an island east of the African mainland.
Kidd and the men who remained with him sailed to the Caribbean. There, he discovered that the English government had declared him a pirate. Kidd sold most of his cargo and returned to New York, where he hid some of his treasure with friends. He then sailed to Boston. He was arrested in Boston and sent to England for trial. Kidd claimed he had been forced to commit acts of piracy by his mutinous crew. But he was not allowed to present his evidence. The jury found him guilty, and he was hanged on May 23, 1701.
After Kidd’s arrest, the government seized most of his hidden loot. But tales and legends grew about his treasure and career.
