by Nancy Houser

Created on: October 06, 2008

Familiarly known as "Long Ben" or the "Arch Pirate", the notorious English Captain John Avery's real birth name was Henry Every, born 1683 in Plymouth, England. A heavy-set man on the verge of being fat with an extremely jolly complexion, very little was known about him in the early years other than being a pirate and marooner whose career was due to his wife's infidelity. Later documentation would publically portray him to the masses more than any pirate in history.

Captain John Avery would live to have many aliases - John Avary, John Avery, Benjamin Bridgeman, Long Ben, and the Arch Pirate - with the DICTIONARY OF NATIONAL BIOGRAPHY citing his real name as John Avery. Yet he always signed off in documentation or letter-writing as Henry Avery. But to his close and intimate friends, he was always called "Long Ben". According to tales, he was never caught or arrested but able to retire with his captured treasures. But actually in truth his ending is a complete mystery.

CAPTAIN JOHN AVERY'S CLAIM TO FAME

At one time, pirates were considered to be rather glamorous and romantic creatures who were tremendously brave and daring, yet not one drop of evidence supported this theory. History shows us truthfully that pirates were abominable individuals who were far from the glorious gentlemen that early writers had made of them. Instead they were known to be rapists, thieves, brutes and killers with an occasional pirate known for his chivalry. Hundreds of books and documentation have been done on pirates, with most of them exaggerated enough to sell the writer's works. And the story of Captain John Avery is no different other than the fact his fame surpassed all other pirates, with a legend that has lasted for years.

The first claim to fame ever written about the pirate Captain John Avery was in 1700 when an anonymous writer wrote a book called "The Life and Adventures of Captain John Avery, now in possession of Madagascar." In 1712 a play called "The Successful Pirate" was considered to be a successful play also. Yet most of the books and stories were not true about the famous pirate, yet brought forth a lot of general information about pirating that had previously been unknown.

JOHN AVERY AT SEA

When John Avery first set sail, it was first with the English Navy and then with the merchant service. He was considered an honest man, noted from a statement made by a Dutch sailing buddy. And it was also known in the memories of Henry Bruce, a West Indian merchant, that in the years

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