Thursday, September 22, 2011

Jacquotte Delahaye

Jacquotte Delahaye (17th century), was a French pirate, or Buccaneer, and together with Anne Dieu-Le-Veut one of very few female buccaneers.
She was active in the 1660s, came from Haiti, her father was French and her mother Haitian. She is described as a great beauty who became a pirate after her father was killed. It is rumored that her mother died in childbirth. Her brother suffered from mild retardation and was left in her care after her father's death.

To escape her pursuers, she faked her own death and took on an alias, living as a man for many years. Upon returning she became known as "back from the dead red" because of her striking red hair.
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15 comments:

  1. Debbie MitchellSeptember 22, 2011 at 12:11 PM

    Sounds like she lived a very unhappy life. I guess most pirate's turned pirate due to a bad life. So sad. I wonder what happened to her and her brother.

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    1. AnonymousJuly 6, 2015 at 6:49 AM

      Disagree, i like to think they made the most of a bad situation and had their fun with it. I mean, if they didn't why would some of them go back to being pirates after being pardoned by the king?

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    2. AnonymousOctober 19, 2015 at 12:15 PM

      i dont think its that bad

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    3. ShreereeNovember 27, 2015 at 2:40 PM

      It is said she and her pirate brothers took their spoils and made a home by taking over the Caribbean Isles and had a good life until she eventually died trying to protect and keep her Caribbean home.

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    4. MaryLu TyndallNovember 27, 2015 at 4:43 PM

      Thanks Shiree! Sounds like a semi-happy ending to her life...

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  2. MaryLu TyndallSeptember 22, 2011 at 1:57 PM

    Thanks Debbie! Yes, most pirate's lives ended badly. These posts give me great ideas for pirate stories. I could do a whole series on lady pirates! Anyway, hope you are doing well!

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  3. Debbie MitchellSeptember 22, 2011 at 8:38 PM

    A whole series on lady pirates is a great idea! I want to read them now. :)
    All is well. Just waiting for Jackie to go into labor. It could still be a couple of weeks. Ugh.

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  4. Sheri SalatinSeptember 23, 2011 at 7:07 AM

    Is that really a picture of her? That is very RED hair. :)

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    1. MoniSeptember 26, 2016 at 11:21 AM

      Yes it is. Even though she lived (and died) almost two centuries before photography was invented, I am sure a time travelling photographer traveled back in time and took this photo of her just for this site.

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  5. Faith Hope and CherryteaSeptember 23, 2011 at 11:46 AM

    i declared myself a female pirate in Jamie's quiz, ending up as the Dread Pirate Cash! aaarrgh! what tales i could tell...

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  6. AnonymousSeptember 23, 2011 at 3:10 PM

    The picture is really creepy but really pretty at the same time--creepy.
    Well...her life was horrible!
    Outcast of society?

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  7. MaryLu TyndallSeptember 23, 2011 at 3:56 PM

    Faith.. ah yes,.the Dread Pirate Cash!! Glad you enjoyed Carie's quiz.

    Yes, this picture is creepy pretty, isn't it? There isn't much known about her. I imagine she was an outcast. Sort of sad. I wonder what happened to her?

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  8. AnonymousAugust 27, 2016 at 1:32 PM

    any idea on what year she was born??

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  9. AnonymousJune 26, 2017 at 4:09 PM

    Well behaved women seldom make history. I like the idea that at least she tried to live a fuller life, however defined and outside of the cultural norms of her times.
    YOU GO GRRL!

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  10. Ron DelahayeSeptember 3, 2017 at 12:51 PM

    I always knew it was a pirate's life for me... I'm finding out if I share a lineage with her :)

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