WOMEN IN HISTORY -  PIRATE QUEENS: ANNE BONNY and MARY READ

The most notorious, formidable, and fearsome pirates of the Caribbean.

DATE OF BIRTH

Anne Bonny: Unknown
​Mary Read: Unknown

PLACE OF BIRTH

Anne Bonny: Unknown, perhaps Ireland
Mary Read: England

DATE OF DEATH

Anne Bonny: c. 1733
Mary Read: 1721

PLACE OF DEATH

Anne Bonny: Unknown
Mary Read: of Typhus in a Jamaican Jail

ACCOMPLISHMENTS

Shiver me timbers! While they were not the only female pirates in the 18th Century, Anne Bonny and Mary Read were quite the dynamic duo.  Known as the most notorious, formidable, and fearsome pirates of the Caribbean, Bonny and Read swore, fought and often dressed like men, brandishing pistols and cutlasses. Not content to live within the female confines of the time, they chose the adventures of the open seas and became legendary pirates. 

BIBLIOGRAPHY

  • Rebecca Alexandra Simon. PIRATE QUEENS: The Lives of Anne Bonny & Mary Read (Pen and Sword History: June 2022)
  • Captain Charles Johnson. A General History of the Pyrates (Dover Publication: August 1999) 
  • Rebecca Simon. The Pirates’ Code: Laws and Life Aboard Ship (Reaktion Books: December 2023) 
  • Crispin Boyer. How To Survive In The Age of Pirates (National Geographic Kids: June 2024) 

WEBSITES

  • National Park Service - Anne Bonny, Pirate
  • The Way of The Pirates - Famous Pirate: Anne Bonny  
  • https://blogs.loc.gov/law/2024/07/the-life-and-trial-of-anne-bonny/ 
  • https://www.historic-uk.com/HistoryUK/HistoryofEngland/Mary-Read-Pirate 
  • https://www.heritage-history.com/index.php?c=read&author=stockton&book=buccaneers&story=women 
  • https://www.annebonnypirate.com/famous-female-pirates/marry-read/ 
  • https://www.libs.uga.edu/reserves/docs/scans/johnson-the-life-of-mary-read.pdf 
  • https://www.piratesinfo.com/famous-pirates/mary-read/