September 2018
southbristolvoice
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BRISTOL ARC UPDATE
From Bristol Animal Rescue Centre
Spuddy is finding life in our kennels rather difficult Some animals find living in our care hard – that’s why we want to find them a new home
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E ARE proud to rehome on average 500 animals every year from our site on Albert Road in Bristol. We are hoping that Spuddy will soon be one of these animals, as he is finding kennel life very hard. Spuddy suffers from separation anxiety and so he is looking for a home where somebody is home for most of the day. He is sometimes nervous meeting new people and so we would ask for any potential adopters to come in and spend time with him on several occasions so that he gets to know them. Spuddy is a Staffordshire bull
terrier who is estimated to be between 1 and 3 years old. He’s looking for a calm and adult-only home with owners who are experienced with his breed. Spuddy wouldn’t like to live with cats, but he could potentially live with another dog if the introductions went well. Spuddy absolutely loves playing with his toys – especially ones that squeak! His favourite toy is a plastic tyre which he loves to run around with. Since arriving with us, he has come a long way and we would be delighted for him to find the
Lacking confidence: Spuddy the staffie needs a new place to call home home that he deserves. If you are looking to welcome a four-legged friend into your life then check out his profile on our website – bristolarc.org.uk/rehoming – or you can call and chat to us about him on 0117 977 6043. We are only able to care for
animals like Spuddy thanks to the support from members of the public. If you would like to make a difference to Bristol’s animals in need you can set up a monthly or one-off donation at: bristolarc.org.uk/getinvolved/ donate
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n HISTORY Pirate tales: What’s behind the racy stories of adventure on the high seas?
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the difference is . . . Bristol’s Largest Indoor Windows and Doors Showroom
September 2018
HAT does a pirate read below decks? No, it’s not a pirate joke, it’s a serious question. Like a lot of things related to piracy, the answer leads back to Bristol. From the fictional Long John Silver to the real Blackbeard, from the real-life island castaway Alexander Selkirk to the storybook Robinson Crusoe, from the high officials who were sent to stamp out piracy, to countless pirates and privateers – many began or ended their voyages in Bristol. This feature was inspired by a walk around the harbourside on a guided tour called Blood, Booze and Buccaneers, an exploration of places associated with piracy (see review, page 34). The tour is devised by Sheila Hannon of South Bristol’s innovative theatre company Show of Strength, and presented with aplomb by either Gerard Cooke or Kirris Riviere, with interjections from Ted, a parrot with a sceptical view of the taller pirate tales. We’re not trying to duplicate this excellent tour – if you want to learn more of the many Bristol places with a part in the pirate story, there’s no substitute. The questions we ask here are: where does the truth lie between the children’s book adventures of Long John Silver and the terrifying image of the real Blackbeard, with smoke pouring from his hair? What’s the connection between pirates and slavery? And should we laugh about pirates, or think of them as murderous criminals?
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O what does a pirate like to read? Stories about piracy, that’s what. Early in 2018, the 300th anniversary of the death of Blackbeard, the most famous real pirate of them all, a surprising secret emerged from beneath the waves. The wreck of the ship thought
We’re close to the 300th anniversary of the death of the most famous pirate of all, Bristol-born Blackbeard. But were pirates rogues or heroes? And what was their relationship to slavery? to be Blackbeard’s, the Queen Anne’s Revenge, was discovered by private researchers a mile off Atlantic Beach, North Carolina, USA, in 1996. It was close to where the infamous pirate was known to have run the vessel aground – supposedly by misfortune but, according to some of his own crew, in reality to scatter his pirate band and leave himself a greater share of the treasure. It wasn’t until 2011, though, that the ship was officially recognised by the state of North Carolina as the Queen Anne’s Revenge. The proofs were small but they mounted up. The discoveries included a brass coin of Queen Anne’s reign, which ended in 1714, and part of a wine glass embellished with small crowns, made when King George I was crowned in 1714. There was also part of a French sword, dated around 1715, and a syringe used to treat venereal disease, thought to have been made in Paris between 1707 and 1715. And there were several cannon – more than would be
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PIRATES, BRISTOL AND SLAVERY
Your guide: Gerard Cooke is one of the leaders of Blood, Booze and Buccaneers, a new tour of sites around Bristol harbour with links to piracy. Ted, the parrot, is sceptical about some of the taller tales expected on a naval ship of this size. Of an estimated 44 cannon, 18 have been found, some of them loaded as if ready for use, and of different sizes, made in different countries – England, Sweden and possibly France. All these factors point towards a pirate ship. But it is what was revealed in January 2018, found inside one of the cannons that was most surprising. Preserved for 300 years, stuffed as wadding in one of the gun barrels, were 16 scraps of paper, the largest of them an inch across. The marine archeologists found only a few words they could read: “South of San,” “fathom” and “Hilo”. Hilo was a city in Peru. Eventually, after a year’s research in libraries, the scraps were identified as being from the book A Voyage to the South Seas and Round the World, by Captain Edward Cooke. This was a best-selling account of the real voyage of two ships, the Duke and the Dutchess, which sailed from Bristol in 1708. It was headed by Captain Woodes Rogers, who lived in Queen Square (where his old house today bears a blue plaque).
Woodes Rogers was a respectable figure; yet he had also been a kind of pirate, an officiallysanctioned privateer – and a slave trader. Why was Blackbeard, or a member of his crew, reading about Woodes Rogers? Perhaps for the thrill of his real-life adventure in the little-known South Seas – and perhaps to find a few tips for high-seas robbery. Rogers’ expedition had made him famous, partly for the plunder he stole from Spanish ships. As a privateer, he had the backing of the Crown, as long as he only robbed England’s enemies. Rogers was the first British commander to return from a circumnavigation of the world with both his ships intact, and most of his crew. But by the time the Queen Anne’s Revenge was wrecked, Rogers was no privateer. He had been sent to the Bahamas as governor of the new British territory, with a brief to clear the seas of pirates. And who would the main beneficiary be if the pirates were defeated? The slave traders. It’s well known that in the 17th and 18th centuries Bristol Continued overleaf
Got a story or any other inquiry? Call Paul on 07811 766072 or email paul@southbristolvoice.co.uk