Henry Morgan

Henry Morgan (1635 - 1688) was a privateer of Welsh birth, who built a name in the Caribbean as a leader of buccaneers and roughnecks. His career included an audacious escape from Spanish warships blockading the Bar of Maracaibo in 1669 and a cross-land expedition to sack Panama in 1670.

The politics of the time were complex, however, and despite having previously received royal support for his actions against Spanish holdings, Morgan was arrested and conducted to England in 1672. His fortunes turned again, and in 1674 Morgan was knighted before returning to Jamaica the following year to take up the post of Deputy Governor. He remained in Jamaica until his death.