Pirate flags are legendary, but what do they mean?

Pirate flags are not only legendary, they were also real. In the real world of pirates, flags were customized for the pirate captain and crew. Each ship went out of its way to differentiate itself by having its own pirate flag design.

Everyone has heard and seen the famous Jolly Roger pirate flag, but there were countless variations on this design theme. Flags in the open sea had great significance for all ships during the age of exploration. It was very important that ships could distinguish friendly ships from enemy ships, and flags were the indicator.

Eventually, the pirates began to fly their own flags. Pirate culture had its own codes of conduct and pirate ships flew their own flags for intimidation purposes. The backgrounds of the pirate flags were red or black, but most people think of a black background as the traditional background color of the pirate flag. But before the black flags came the red flags. Both colors were symbolically important.

Red symbolized bloodshed and that pirates would have no mercy on those captured. But it didn’t take long for black pirate flags to become more popular. The black background symbolized death and was also carried on ships carrying plague victims to warn other ships. Finally, pirate flags added symbols to their flags, including the famous skull and crossbones and other symbols like swords and hourglasses (to signal to other ships that their time is up).

Blackbeard’s flag was and is one of the best known. On a black background, it presents a skeleton that pierces a heart with a spear, while holding in its other hand a toast to the devil. Blackbeard certainly got the intimidation factor right!

Christopher Moody was an 18th century pirate off the coast of South Carolina, and not much else is known about him except that he was captured and hanged. Its pirate flag is memorable because it uses mostly gold on a red background. From left to right, the flag features a golden hourglass with black wings (symbolizing the enemy’s time is up), a white arm and hand holding a dagger and a traditional skull over the crossbones. The red background symbolized blood and that Moody and his men had deadly intentions.

Emanuel Wynn was a French pirate and some believe that he was the first pirate to fly the Jolly Roger flag, although there is no definitive evidence. His flag had a skull over the crossbones and an hourglass underneath.

The Black Bart flag is attributed to Bartholomew Roberts. It has a pirate balanced on skulls. Below the skulls are the letters “ABH” and “AMH”, which are the abbreviations for “A Barbadian’s Head” and “A Martiniquan’s Head”.

Pirates, as most people think of them, were real and are a source of fascination to this day, as evident in the number of pirate-themed games, movies, and Halloween costumes. The most widespread use of pirates today is in team sports. There are pirate mascots in almost every city, from t-ball to professional sports teams. Pirate flags are an integral part of the pirate tradition, with their ability to intimidate and clever designs, often carrying many layers of meaning due to the symbols depicted on them.