The Death of Edward Teach

In November 1718, Governor Alexander Spottswood of Virginia, knowing that Blackbeard and his men had continued taking ships long after the period of amnesty had expired, sent the HMS Pearl, under the command of Lt. Robert Maynard, along with two other vessels to North Carolina in search of Teach. After a bloody battle, Blackbeard was killed at Ocracoke Inlet on November 22, 1718. During the action, Blackbeard received a reported 5 musketball wounds and more than twenty sword lacerations before dying. Blackbeard had captured over 40 ships during his piratical career, and his death virtually represented the end of an era in the history of piracy in the New World.