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Weatherby Swann was appointed by the King of England as the Governor of the British colony at Port Royal, Jamaica.

Weatherby Swann was appointed by the King of England as the Governor of the British colony at Port Royal, Jamaica.

"Mr. Swann!"
"Governor Swann, still. Do you think I wear this wig to keep my head warm?"
―Carruthers and Weatherby Swann[src]

Governor, or governour, was the title given to a governing official, usually the executive (at least nominally, to different degrees also politically and administratively) of a non-sovereign level of government, ranking under the head of state; furthermore the title applied to officials with a similar mandate as representatives of a chartered company which had been granted exercise of autonomy, even with its own armed forces, in a colonial area.

England appointed governors to its colonies in the Caribbean. Other colonies, French, Spanish, and Dutch, were also ruled by governors.[citation needed]

History

European powers, such as the British Empire in England and the Spanish Empire in Spain, gave their top representatives in their colonies the title of governor. In the British Empire, a governor was an official appointed to oversee a colony and was the head of the colonial administration.[1] By the Golden Age of Piracy, it was a common tactic of the royal and colonial governments, since it was true that pirates had sailed in the waters around the New World as well as the Caribbean. It was also a way to weaken the enemy's fleet and protect one's own from the dangers of piracy on the open sea. Governors typically enjoyed a piece of the pirate booty in order to look the other way.[2]

The French governor of Tortuga cut lines with France and made his own laws, which turned a kind eye towards pirates. The governor also imported 1,700 wenches in hopes of controlling these scurvy sea dogs.[2] As head of Jamaica's buccaneers and for his victory in Panama, Sir Henry Morgan was knighted by Charles II and, much to the dismay of the Spanish rulers, he was made lieutenant governor of Jamaica, and Morgan brought many a pirate to a hastened death on the gallows.[3] Captain Kidd, the famous Scottish privateer who turned pirate, sought a pardon from the governor of New York, the Earl of Bellomont,[3] who was responsible for Kidd's original commission as a privateer. But instead, the governor arrested Kidd, who was sent to England as the only pirate to be tried before the House of Commons, condemned to death, executed and hanged at Execution Dock.[4] Edward "Blackbeard" Teach was granted a pardon by North Carolina Governor Eden, because his pirating brought commerce to a poor area with no cash crops, but then immediately continued his pirating ways.[2] Lieutenant Robert Maynard was sent by his captain, on behalf of the governor of Massachusetts, to track down Blackbeard.[4] In his life, Bartholomew Roberts may have been the most successful pirate ever, having become rich from his plunders of more than 400 ships. He sailed the Caribbean waters, once capturing the governor of Martinique and hanging him from the yardarm. Pirate-friendly towns received a boost to local economies, so some governors showed more leniency to pirates.[2]

Weatherby Swann was appointed by the King of England as the proud Governor of the British colony at Port Royal on the vibrant and prosperous island of Jamaica.[5][6][7][8] Governor Swann, though surely an enemy to pirates, partnered with them where it suited his needs,[2] namely his daughter Elizabeth.[6] Following the arrival of Lord Cutler Beckett and the East India Trading Company, Governor Swann was imprisoned after being caught helping his daughter Elizabeth to flee the island. Swann assumed that Beckett wanted to govern Port Royal himself, but Beckett was more clever than Swann realized.[9][10] Beckett wanted Swann to stay on as governor, but wanted him to send good reports to the King in exchange for Elizabeth's safety.[11]

Notable Governors

Behind the scenes

Governors would first appear in media relating to Walt Disney's Pirates of the Caribbean.[12][13] The term "governor" would first be published in the souvenir book.[3] Governors made their first appearance through Governor Weatherby Swann in media relating to the 2003 film Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl,[6] notably Irene Trimble's junior novelization.[5]

In one of the first drafts of the script Xavier "X" Atencio wrote pre-"Yo Ho" in 1965, in which the Pirate Captain sang a duet with a parrot on shoulder as the "gov'ner" took his dunking. The Captain would sing each verse as the governor went down ("The gov'ner won't tell us where he's hid the golden treasure, so we'll dunk 'im in the well again, besides, it gives us pleasure!") and the parrot would join his master for the chorus as the stubborn politico came back up. By the final draft, the song was removed and the governor was demoted to a magistrate,[13] though was only identified as "Carlos" in the ride.[12]

In the "Below Deck" bonus feature, originally included in the DVD release of The Curse of the Black Pearl, maritime historian David Cordingly stated that Lieutenant Maynard was sent by his captain, on behalf of the governor of Massachusetts, to track down Blackbeard.[4] Historically, however, it was Alexander Spotswood, Governor of the Colony of Virginia, orchestrated Maynard's expedition. "Virginia's governor Spotswood" was mentioned in Tim Powers' 1987 novel On Stranger Tides,[14] which was later used as inspiration for the 2011 film Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides.[15]

Lord Cutler Beckett, who first appeared in the 2006 film Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest, was often mistaken as holding the title of "Governor" despite being described as the "supreme head" or "executive" of the East India Trading Company in most media, namely Pirates of the Caribbean: The Visual Guide and Pirates of the Caribbean: The Complete Visual Guide,[9][10] though such titles were never used for Beckett in the film.[11] Beckett was only described as "Governor of the East India Trading Company" in the 2019 video game Kingdom Hearts III.[16]

Appearances

Sources

External links

Notes and references

  1. ↑ WP favicon Governor on Wikipedia
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 2.5 2.6 2.7 Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl: "Scoundrels of the Seas"
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 Walt Disney's Pirates of the Caribbean: The Story of the Robust Adventure in Disneyland and Walt Disney World
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl: "Below Deck: An Interactive History Of Pirates"
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl (2003 junior novelization)
  6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 6.3 Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl
  7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 Pirates of the Caribbean: The Visual Guide, pp. 16-17 "Governor Swann"
  8. ↑ 8.0 8.1 Pirates of the Caribbean: The Complete Visual Guide, pp. 18-19: "Governor Swann"
  9. ↑ 9.0 9.1 Pirates of the Caribbean: The Complete Visual Guide, pp. 44-45: "Lord Beckett"
  10. ↑ 10.0 10.1 Pirates of the Caribbean: The Complete Visual Guide, pp. 44-45: "Lord Beckett"
  11. ↑ 11.0 11.1 11.2 Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest
  12. ↑ 12.0 12.1 Disneyland: From the Pirates of the Caribbean to the World of Tomorrow
  13. ↑ 13.0 13.1 Pirates of the Caribbean: From the Magic Kingdom to the Movies, p. 92
  14. ↑ On Stranger Tides, Chapter Twenty
  15. ↑ Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides
  16. ↑ Kingdom Hearts III