Jersey Pirates
Although today Jersey is more known as a tax-haven than a staging point for rape, loot and pillages, during the 17th Century the Island was a hotbed of piracy. General de Caterest who served simultaneously as both Jersey's Bailiff and Lieutenant Governor at various times was able to experience this first hand in 1628 when the ship he was on was captured by Spanish 'Privateers" out of Dunkirk. The money and supplies he'd been carrying to restock Jersy's castles were taken and he himself was only released after paying a hefty ransom which respectively left him so destitute he considered entering the service of the Dutch. The General's experience, while harrowing, was nothing compared to the fate of sailors captured by Barbary pirates, who would often be sold at African slave markets. Collections were often held in Jersey to buy the freedom of captured sailors such as Richard Dumaresq, whose bothers and sisters were able to raise enough funds for his ransom. ...