At the time of Woodes Roger's arrival in New Providence to
assume the Governorship of the island and reform the pirate haven,
Christopher Condent was quartermaster aboard a New York merchant's sloop.
Apparently, the ship was either a privateer or pirate at this time,
although the text is not very clear.
An Indian man, that the crew kept on board and much abused,
bent on revenge for the mistreatment threatened to blow up the ship from
the hold. Condent leaped into with a pistol and cutlass; the Indian fired
his pistol at Condent, wounding his arm. Condent in turn fired and killed
the Indian. Soon afterward the pirates took a merchantman, the Duke of
York, and after some dispute the two ships split company, with Christopher
Condent being elected captain of the sloop.
Setting course for the Cape Verd Islands Condent took a
merchant laden with wine from Madeira. Coming to the Isle of Mayo he took
the whole salt fleet, consisting of 20 sailing ships. It is at this point
that we his cruel side and possibly gather some glimpse of why he turn to
piracy. Condent set himself up over the salt fleet to administer justice
to the officers of the ships. If any crewman of the ships had complaint
against the officers' treatment of them, the officers were whipped and
pickled. Taking what provisions and valuables he desired and augmenting
his crew with forced men, he departed for St.Jago and captured a Dutch
privateer. Renaming the ship the Flying Dragon, he took it for the
pirate's use. The pirates headed next to the coast of Brazil where they
took several Portuguese prizes.
The next ship taken was the Wright galley, commanded by one
of Condent's townsmen, John Spelt. Condent kept the galley for some time
as a consort. Additional prizes included another Portuguese merchant and a
Dutch East Indiaman of 26 guns. With the three ships he made for the
Island of Ferdinando and careened. After this he released Captain Spelt
and several of the forced men, giving Spelt some cargo from the Portuguese
ship they had taken. After a failed attempt to take a 70 gun Portuguese
man of war, from which Condent's sailing skill helped them escape, they
took another Portuguese ship and turned for the Gold Coast. Not before he
practiced some more cruelty upon his Portuguese captives by cutting off
their ears and noses as vengeance for Brazil's treatment of pirates.
Off the Guinea coast the pirates took a ship the Indian
Queen and coming across a Dutch ship of 44 guns and English ship named the
Fame in Loanga Bay, frightened both into beaching. Salvaging the Dutch
ship they then headed for the East Indies taking an Ostend East Indiaman
and Dutch East Indiaman before setting course for Madagascar and the Isle
of St.Mary. After augmenting his crew with the stranded men of Captain
John Halsey and joining with tow other pirates from the Island of Johanna, he
took the Cassandra, an East Indiaman, and continued into the East Indies
taking much booty. Touching at the Isle of Mascarenes, the pirates took a
70 gun Portuguese ship with the Viceroy of Goa aboard as a prize and
sailed for Zanzibar where they took a Dutch fortification. Turning for
St.Mary's they shared out the booty and broke up the company.
They sent a ship to the French governor of Mascarenes to
petition for a pardon which was granted. Condent is said to have married
the Governor's daughter and subsequently retired to St.Malo France to
prosper as a merchant ship owner.
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