Blackbeard

 


The notorious Blackbeard (1680—1718) is probably the most famous pirate of all time. Learn a little more about his life here then have some fun exploring our Blackbeard activities - we've got colouring pages, story starters, notebooking pages and more useful activities below - and you can even learn to draw him too.

Blackbeard

Blackbeard gained a notorious reputation in a short span of time as he and his crew attacked settlements around the Caribbean Sea, during what many describe as the 'Golden Age of Piracy'. As his reputation grew, it was said his appearance alone was enough to strike fear into the hearts of his enemies and make them surrender. He would attack merchant ships, stealing all kinds of valuable goods such as gold, jewels, liquor and weapons.

Fun fact: To make himself look more terrifying in battle, he would attach lit fuses to his hair, slowly burning and creating sparks and smoke. No wonder Blackbeard became so famous!

A Short Biography of Blackbeard

Blackbeard was born around 1680, and his real name was Edward Teach (or Edward Thatch). It's believed he was born in Bristol, although this isn't known for sure. Many think he was part of a wealthy family as he could read and write well.

His pirate career began in 1716 when he joined the crew of Captain Benjamin Hornigold, an English pirate. When Hornigold retired from piracy, he gave Blackbeard command of a captured ship.

A year later, Blackbeard and his crew attacked a French merchant ship the 'Concorde', and converted it to a pirate ship and the legend of Blackbeard began.

Perhaps his biggest victory was against the powerful warship, HMS Scarborough. This brought him even more notoriety and respect amongst fellow pirates as a great pirate and leader.

In 1718, after receiving a pardon from the Governor of North Carolina, he tried to give up piracy -  but he didn't stay reformed for long. He just couldn't stay away from piracy! By November the Governor of Virginia placed a bounty on his head.

He was killed in a huge naval battle off the coast of North Carolina by Robert Maynard. Maynard later said that Edward Teach was shot at least five times and cut around twenty. Blackbeard's head was cut off and hung on the mast of the ship!

Blackbeard himself may be long gone, but he has appeared in many works of fiction including Treasure Island by Robert Louis Stevenson. He also appears in cartoons, movies and even video games!

Our Blackbeard Activities

A Letter to Blackbeard Worksheet

A Letter to Blackbeard Worksheet

Can the kids imagine that they are looking for a pirate crew to join and write to Blackbeard asking to become one of his shipmates? They might need to use some persuasive language skills...

Blackbeard Colouring Page

Blackbeard Colouring Page

Yo ho ho! Younger children will enjoy colouring in this cartoon-style picture of the notorious pirate Blackbeard!

Blackbeard Colouring Page 2

Blackbeard Colouring Page 2

This colouring page of Blackbeard the pirate, designed for older kids, shows a rather debonair pirate with smoking hair and a dangerous weapon! We've based the colouring on an etching done for a history book in the 18th Century.

Blackbeard Interview Worksheet

Blackbeard Interview Worksheet

Can the kids imagine they are a talk show host and that they are interviewing the famous pirate Blackbeard? What sort of questions would they ask? He might be a tricky person to get to talk, so how would they encourage him to give some good answers, and what would the audience want to hear?

Blackbeard Newspaper Writing Prompt

Blackbeard Newspaper Writing Prompt

Here's a fun activity for the kids to try. Can they use our Blackbeard newspaper writing prompt to a write about an event in his life - maybe the one time he gave up piracy, or a report on his final battle?

Blackbeard Notebooking Page

Blackbeard Notebooking Page

We have two Blackbeard notebooking pages for the children to choose from for their project work - both pages feature an illustration of the fearsome pirate. Perfect for older children, they come in a choice of lined or with a box for pictures.

Blackbeard Poster

Blackbeard Poster

We've got a fun, cartoon-style poster to print out of the most notorious of all pirates, Blackbeard! Simply print and put up on the wall as part of a pirate-themed display.

Blackbeard Story Paper

Blackbeard Story Paper

The kids can use our Blackbeard story paper to write a description of the fearsome pirate, or perhaps write about his adventures. We have lined and handwriting lines versions available.

Blackbeard Story Paper

Blackbeard Story Paper 2

Kids can use this story paper to write down what they have learned about Blackbeard, the notorious pirate! Alternatively they could do some creative writing and come up with a new adventure for him and his dastardly pirate crew.

Blackbeard Worksheet

Blackbeard Worksheet

Here's a fun worksheet all about the infamous pirate Blackbeard (available in colour and black and white). The children need to find out a few facts and also think about if they would have liked to meet him and what they would talk about (would they be brave enough?)...

Blackbeard Writing Page

Blackbeard Writing Page

Younger children can record what they've learned about the famous pirate Blackbeard using our fun writing page - we've got two versions to download, colour or black and white.

Learn To Draw Blackbeard

Learn To Draw Blackbeard

Blackbeard was a famous and frightening pirate, with a very distinctive beard! Kids can learn to draw him here - it's quite tricky, but we've broken the drawing process down into steps to make it easier.

More Famous Pirates

Anne Bonny
Anne Bonny

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