William B. Pordobel, better known as One-Eyed Willy, was the pirate captain of the ship, Inferno. He was Flemish from Flanders, a region in present day Belgium (Then the Spanish Netherlands).
Rahmah ibn Jabir al-Jalahimah, once the most well known pirates in the Persian Gulf, was also the first known to wear an eyepatch after losing an eye in battle. Ex-sailors, ashore, were sometimes portrayed as having an eyepatch to cover the loss of an eye.
Edward Teach aka Blackbeard
Probably the most famous real-life pirate ever, Blackbeard (real name Edward Teach) preyed on shipping vessels in the West Indies and along the east coast of America. He was Benjamin Hornigold's second-in-command and a key member of the Flying Gang before going out alone.
John Ward was the inspiration for the character of Captain Jack Sparrow in the Pirates of the Caribbean films. Ward's nickname was 'Sparrow' and he was known for his flamboyant style – much like the Hollywood icon. Ward so ingratiated himself with Uthman Dey that he was given a large plot of land in Tunis.
Barbossa's man
At some point in his early pirate career, Ragetti lost his right eye in battle, and he covered his empty eye socket with an eyepatch. As a compensation for his lost eye, Ragetti received 300 pieces of eight.
He's one-eyed Ned Low (Vikings' Tadhg Murphy), who's based on one of the 18th century's most feared pirates. Murphy lost his own eye when he was hit with a homemade arrow as a child in Ireland. But that's about all they have in common.
Blind Pew is not the first pirate encountered in the novel. However, he is the one who is more threatening and gives Billy Bones the black spot. He, along with the later antagonist Long John Silver, both have disabilities that mark them as different. Pew is blind and he uses that disability to get close to Jim.
The oldest active pirate during the Golden Age of piracy was Captain William Kidd (born c. 1645, d. 23 May 1701), who plied his trade until the age of 54; owing to the many occupational hazards, the majority of pirates only lived into their mid-30s.
Due to the crisis in Bolivarian Venezuela, issues of piracy returned to the Caribbean in the 2010s, with the increase of pirates being compared to piracy off the coast of Somalia due to the similar socioeconomic origins.
The Black Pearl (formerly known as the Wicked Wench) is a fictional ship in the Pirates of the Caribbean film series. In the screenplay, the ship is easily recognized by her distinctive black hull and sails.
Don Pedro, the handsome, ruthless Spanish pirate, apparently didn't get the memo in 1832 that piracy was over in the Atlantic Ocean. He made a reckless move on the high seas against a brig from Salem, Mass., and he paid for it with his life.
François or Francis Le Clerc, known as "Jambe de Bois" ("Peg Leg"), (died 1563) was a 16th-century French privateer, originally from Normandy. He is credited as the first pirate in the modern era to have a "peg leg".
Behind the scenes
When asked about some of the characters' health, screenwriter Terry Rossio said the likeliest cause of the yellow eyes is jaundice, a close cousin to scurvy; or, in the case of pirate captains Hector Barbossa and Chevalle, both considered ladies men, hepetitis.
Pirates actually wore eye patches to help them see better in the dark! Our eyes take quite a while to adjust properly from light to dark – up to 25 minutes in fact! So pirates kept an eye patch over one eye at all times so they were already adjusted.
Indonesia's 17,500 islands and their surrounding waters now take the title as the world's most heavily pirated.
18 U.S. Code § 1651 says, “whoever, on the high seas, commits the crime of piracy defined by the law of nations, and is brought into or found in the United States, shall be imprisoned for life.”
Thousands of pirates were active between 1650 and 1720, and these years are sometimes known as the 'Golden Age' of piracy. Famous pirates from this period include Henry Morgan, William 'Captain' Kidd, 'Calico' Jack Rackham, Bartholomew Roberts and the fearsome Blackbeard (Edward Teach).
The Pirate King (海賊王 Kaizoku-Ō, also called King of the Pirates in the English versions) is a title applied to the strongest pirate alive. Its latest—perhaps only—universally-acknowledged holder was Gol D. Roger, who inextricably linked it with the mythical treasure known as One Piece.
John King (c. 1706/09 – April 26, 1717) was an 18th-century pirate. He joined the crew of Samuel "Black Sam" Bellamy while still a juvenile, and may have been the youngest known pirate on record.
The Hidden Pirates are a crew from World Reversion. They have members with unique abilities. They operate out of North Blue.
One Eyed Jack is the name of the undead pirate captain of The Flying Dutchman, and primary antagonist in Alone in the Dark II. He is also the lover of Elizabeth Jarret. A feared pirate, he was summoned by Elizabeth Jarret to free her from her imprisonment aboard the Flying Dutchman.