Robert Searle facts for kids

Robert Searle (also known as John Davis) was one of the first and most active English buccaneers based in Jamaica. Buccaneers were like privateers, sailors who attacked enemy ships or towns with permission from their government, but they often acted like pirates.

Early Life of Robert Searle

We don't know much about Robert Searle's early life. One famous writer about buccaneers, Esquemeling, said Searle was born in Jamaica. However, this is unlikely because Jamaica only became an English territory in 1655. Searle often had disagreements with Sir Thomas Modyford, who was the royal governor of Jamaica. Governor Modyford usually supported buccaneers, but Searle seemed to cause him trouble.

Searle's Adventures as a Buccaneer

The Ship Cagway

Searle's first known ship was called the Cagway. It was a 60-ton ship with 8 guns. This ship was one of four Spanish merchant ships captured by Sir Christopher Myngs in 1659.

Four years later, in 1663, Searle was the captain of the Cagway. He joined Sir Christopher Myngs's trip to attack Santiago de Cuba. This group had 1,300 men and twelve ships. They sailed from Port Royal in Jamaica on October 1, 1662. About two and a half weeks later, they landed near Santiago. The city was taken over the next day, and they brought a lot of treasure back to Jamaica.

Trouble with the Governor

By 1664, the situation in Europe and the Caribbean was tense. English buccaneers kept attacking Spanish ships and towns. This made Spain very angry, and their ambassador complained to King Charles II of England. The King then sent a letter to Governor Modyford. He said he was very unhappy about the attacks by Jamaican ships against the Spanish. The King ordered Modyford to stop these attacks and to punish those who broke the rules. He also said that anything taken from the Spanish must be returned.

This letter arrived in Jamaica in September, and it caused a big stir. At that time, Searle had two rich Spanish ships from Cuba anchored in Port Royal's harbor. He had already unloaded the Spanish coins so the King's share could be calculated. Governor Modyford quickly called a meeting with the Council of Jamaica and showed them the King's letter.

The Council was worried. They decided to tell the governor of Cuba right away that the captured ships and money would be returned. They also decided that anyone who attacked the Spanish again would be seen as a pirate and a rebel. Searle's permission to sail was taken away, and parts of his ship were removed so it couldn't move.

Back in Action

Searle's ship was returned to him in 1665 when the Second Anglo-Dutch War started. In March 1666, he and his crew joined an expedition led by Colonel Edward Morgan (who was Sir Henry Morgan's uncle). They sailed with nine ships and 650 soldiers to attack the Dutch islands of Sint Eustatius and Sabá. Governor Modyford described these men as "mostly former privateers, strong and well-armed." He was happy that they would only get paid if they found treasure, so it wouldn't cost the King much.

They landed successfully, but Colonel Morgan sadly died from heat exhaustion. He was a large man and chased the enemy too hard on a hot day. Even though the islands were quickly taken, the English group broke apart. They didn't find much treasure, and they couldn't agree on a new leader.

The next year, Searle and another captain named Stedman took two small ships and 80 men to the Dutch island of Tobago, near Trinidad. They attacked and took things from the whole island. Lord Willoughby, the governor of Barbados, also planned to take Tobago. But the Jamaicans arrived a few days before him. When Willoughby arrived, Searle and his men were busy taking treasure. Willoughby demanded the island in the King's name. The buccaneers agreed to leave the fort and governor's house standing only if Willoughby let them sell their treasure in Barbados.

The St. Augustine Raid

In June 1667, Governor Modyford again stopped all raids and took back all privateering permissions in Jamaica. Once again, he had to deal with Robert Searle. This time, Searle was to be punished for a revenge attack.

Soon after Sir Henry Morgan's raid on Maracaibo, Searle and his ship were at New Providence in the Bahamas. A Spanish force, seeking revenge, attacked the English settlement there. This made several privateers, including Searle, very angry. They sailed to Florida and attacked the Spanish fort of St. Augustine, Florida in May 1668.

This raid happened soon after Modyford had taken back all permissions. Since it was clearly an act of revenge, the governor decided he had to punish the leader, who everyone agreed was Searle. Henry Woodward, who later became the first settler of South Carolina, had been captured by the Spanish and held at St. Augustine. Searle's raid in 1668 helped Woodward escape. Woodward then worked as a surgeon on privateer ships for several years.

When Searle returned to Jamaica, he knew he might be in trouble. Instead of sailing into Port Royal, he took the Cagway to a bay on the southwestern end of the island, where the governor couldn't reach him. Governor Modyford reported to Lord Arlington, England's Secretary of State: "Captain Searle arrived at Port Morant with 70 strong men. Hearing I was very angry about his actions at St. Augustine, he went to Macary Bay and stays there out of my control. I will try my best to catch him without making his men desperate."

Searle's Arrest and Release

Shortly after, Searle went ashore and was caught by the governor. He was arrested in Port Royal. Weeks passed without new orders from England. The governor wrote to Arlington again, saying Searle was still in custody, waiting for his trial.

However, Searle was freed after a few months to join one of the buccaneers' biggest land battles: Sir Henry Morgan's famous attack on Panama City (Panama). Searle was one of Morgan's lieutenants during this famous event. He was given the important job of stopping any Spanish ships from escaping the port.

At the port, Searle and his crew found a ship that the Spanish had tried to burn. The buccaneers put out the fire before much damage was done. This ship turned out to be a valuable prize. In a few days, Searle captured three more ships. With this small group of ships, he searched the islands nearby: Perico, Taboga, Tobogilla, and Otoque. He bothered the refugees hiding there, taking many prisoners and much property.

The Missed Treasure Ship

Searle was mainly looking for ships full of valuables that were known to be hiding along the Panama coast or among the islands. On Taboga Island, while looking for people hiding, Searle and his crew found a hidden supply of Peruvian wine. The sailors immediately started drinking. By evening, they were too distracted to keep watch. So, they didn't notice a Spanish ship coming from the sea and anchoring. They also didn't see a boat being lowered and rowed to shore with barrels.

They only found out about this when they accidentally surprised and captured the boat's seven-man crew who were looking for fresh water. The Spanish men were taken to Searle, who questioned them. He discovered that the ship was the 400-ton Santissima Trinidad. This ship was very richly loaded with the King's silver and a huge amount of gold, pearls, jewels, and other valuable goods from the richest merchants of Panama. On board this ship were also the nuns from the city's convent, who had brought all the church decorations, which were also very valuable.

This single ship carried most of the gold, silver, and jewels that the government, private citizens, and the Church in Panama had sent away for safety. Instead of sailing to Lima (Peru), her captain, Don Francisco de Peralta, had simply gone out to sea. He probably planned to return to Panama with his cargo and passengers after the buccaneers had left, as he believed they had no ships.

Searle immediately ordered his men to capture the ship. But they were too distracted by the wine or simply unable to obey. Don de Peralta, worried when his men didn't return and suspicious of the ship nearby, managed to weigh anchor with some difficulty. He fled into the night and was out of sight by daybreak. When the main group of buccaneers found out about this missed chance a few days later, they were furious. Morgan strongly criticized Searle, and Searle never regained his favor. Years later, Captain de Peralta was captured by another English privateer, William Dampier, in the Pacific. He enjoyed telling the story of his narrow escape from Searle.

Death of Robert Searle

In his later years, Robert Searle moved to Honduras. He was killed in a fight with an Indigenous logwood cutter. He died near a small sandy island at the northern end of the Gulf of Campeache. This island was known to other pirates as "Serles's Key."