Bartholomew Roberts - Aftermath

Aftermath

The battle continued for another two hours, until the Royal Fortune's mainmast fell and the pirates signalled for quarter. One member of the crew, John Philips, tried to reach the magazine with a lighted match to blow up the ship, but was prevented by two forced men. Only three pirates, including Roberts, had been killed in the battle. A total of 272 men had been captured by the Royal Navy. Of these, 75 were black, and these were sold into slavery. The remainder, apart from those who died on the voyage back, were taken to Cape Coast Castle. 54 were condemned to death, of whom 52 were hanged and two reprieved. Another twenty were allowed to sign indentures with the Royal African Company; Burl comments that they "exchanged an immediate death for a lingering one". Seventeen men were sent to the Marshalsea prison in London for trial, while over a third of the total were acquitted and released.

Of the captured pirates who gave their place of birth, 42% were from Cornwall, Devon and Somerset and another 19% from London. There were smaller numbers from northern England and from Wales, and another quarter from a variety of countries including Ireland, Scotland, the West Indies, the Netherlands and Greece. After problems with mutinous Irishmen early in his pirate career, Roberts was known to generally avoid recruiting Irishmen, to the extent that captured merchant sailors would sometimes affect an Irish accent to discourage Roberts from forcing them into his pirate crew.

Captain Chaloner Ogle was rewarded with a knighthood, the only British naval officer to be honoured specifically for his actions against pirates. He also profited financially, taking gold dust from Roberts' cabin, and eventually became an Admiral.

This battle was to prove a turning point in the war against the pirates, and many consider the death of Roberts to mark the end of the Golden Age of Piracy.

The defeat of Roberts and the subsequent eradication of piracy off the coast of Africa represented a turning point in the slave trade and even in the larger history of capitalism. —Villains of All Nations: Atlantic Pirates in the Golden Age, Rediker (2004)