Sainte-Marie pirate massacre (1697)
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| Sainte-Marie pirate massacre | |
|---|---|
| Part of Golden Age of Piracy | |
| Location | Île Sainte-Marie (Sainte-Marie), Madagascar |
| Date | c. 1697[1] |
| Target | Pirate settlers |
Attack type | Massacre |
| Deaths | Up to 30 pirates[2] |
| Perpetrators | Native Malagasy inhabitants |
The Sainte-Marie pirate massacre was a violent uprising by Malagasy natives of Île Sainte-Marie (Nosy Boraha) against pirate settlers in 1697 leading to the annihilation of Baldridge’s pirate settlement on the island.[3]
Adam Baldridge, a Caribbean pirate, arrived on Sainte Marie Island around 1690. Slavery was endemic to Madagascar when the pirates arrived. Warring factions often exchanged prisoners after battles; if no exchange occurred, prisoners were taken to neighboring villages and kept as slaves. The defeated faction could later raid these villages to recover their people and take others in turn. Baldridge allied with some native clans on the island, assisting them in redeeming wives and children taken by rival clans. He became the traders of captured members of rival clans to American slavers;[2][4] the Malagasy on Saint Marie themselves did not engage in such trade.
Sainte Marie offered an ideal environment for a pirate settlement: a safe harbor, fresh water, fertile land, abundant food sources, and strategic positions for lookout and defense. Baldridge built a fort which included a tavern and a brothel, attracting slavers and pirates passing the Cape of Good Hope to resupply and rest.[3] The settlement grew prosperous and became a central hub for pirate activity in the Indian Ocean.The pirate population on the island fluctuated over time, ranging from a few hundred to more than a thousand people, depending on the number of ships in port.[4]
Relations between the pirates and the native clans on Saint Marie were generally harmonious. Conflicts arose mainly among the pirates themselves, often over the division of plunder. Alcohol consumption contributed to tensions, and in one recorded instance, fourteen pirates fought in two groups of seven over their shares, with the two survivors dividing the contested spoils.[4]