Edward "Blackbeard" Teach was undoubtedly one the most feared and most despised pirates of all time. Edward Teach is thought to have lived in England before his pirate career, although his exact origins are unknown. He was named "Blackbeard", for his large black beard that almost covered his entire face. To strike terror in the hearts of his enemies Blackbeard would weave hemp into his hair, and light it during battle. Edward Teach was an unusually large man, carrying two swords, numerous knives, and pistols- he was feared by his own crew.
At the sight of this pirate, many of his victims were quick to surrender without a fight. If they did, he would often times just take their valuables, rum, and weapons— allowing them to sail away. However, if the vessel resisted capture, he would either kill the crew, or maroon them. Blackbeard needed to maintain his devilish image in order to maintain the respect of his crew (very few members of the crew doubted that he was the devil himself, very few didn’t fear him, and therefore they obeyed him).
Blackbeard began his pirating career sometime after 1713, as an ordinary crewmember aboard a Jamaican sloop commanded by the pirate Benjamin Hornigold. In 1716, Hornigold supplied Teach with a small crew, and a small captured vessel to command. By 1717 Hornigold and Teach were partners and feared throughout the seas. However, Hornigold decided to retire in comfort, taking advantage of an offer of general amnesty from the British Crown. Teach rejected the offer and resolved to convert a captured French vessel Concorde into his flagship, re-naming her the Queen Anne's Revenge.
Soon Teach met and added another pirate vessel, the ten-gun pirate sloop Revenge from Barbados. In the winter of 1717-1718, Blackeard sailed the Caribbean with his two ships. By 1718, Teach commanded four pirate ships and well over 300 pirates. In late May, Blackbeard’s flagship Queen Anne's Revenge was lost at Beaufort Inlet, and a smaller vessel of his fleet was lost that same day trying to assist. Meanwhile, Teach and his crew had sailed to Bath, and then to the capital of North Carolina, where Governor Charles Eden pardoned them. However, he did not stop pirating and continued to take ships after the period of amnesty had expired. A fleet of Royal Navy ships surprised Blackbeard at Ocracoke Inlet on November 22, 1718, where he was killed. Before dying, he allegedly had five bullet wounds and more than 20 sword cuts. As a show of victory, the Royal Navy captain decapitated Blackbeard and hung his head on the ships rigging. Blackbeard had captured over 40 ships during his career, and caused the deaths of hundreds of people. Although Blackbeard's lawless career lasted only a few years, his fearsome reputation has long outlived him.