'Why install this monument to two criminals guilty of cruelty and thievery when we're questioning statues with links to slavery..... it's ludicrous'

Plans have been unveiled for an art installation on Burgh Island which represents two of Britain’s forgotten pirates, Anny Bonny and Mary Read.

The pair were among the most notorious pirates as they wreaked havoc throughout the Caribbean during the golden age of piracy in the early 1700s.

Some historians have claimed the two became lesbian lovers while others suggest they formed a three-way relationship with Anne’s husband, the English pirate captain Jack Rackham – more commonly known as Calico Jack.

Subject to planning permission being granted by South Hams District Council, the sculpture will measure approximately 2.4m high and will sit on plinths that are 50x30cm and 25x30cm, respectively.

But some locals have registered their outrage over the proposals, questioning the lack of local link to the island and why a monument to ‘two criminals guilty of cruelty and thievery’ should be installed, and Bigbury parish council, when they met to discuss the scheme, voted to object to it.

Michele Knight-Waite in her objection said: “Burgh Island is an iconic beautiful natural space. I love walking and looking at it and imagining its history. I am also a big fan of the tale of these two legendary pirates. However, I feel that this statue will detract from the historic site. It brings nothing of value and indeed takes away the original historic view of the island. I strongly object as I feel it will impact the environment. It is totally inappropriate.

“On top of that, the statue itself does not depict the energy of the two female pirates in any way, who dressed as men and were powerful sailors. The statue seems to be a very patriarchal view of two skinny women with holes cut out, I really don’t get it. How is this in the spirit of the actual women? It will be a blot on the landscape.”

John Elliott said: “It would be entirely inappropriate to install this statue on the Burgh Island Rocks, especially as it is planned in a position visible from the Beach, Car Parks and local homes.

“To install this monument to two criminals guilty of cruelty and thievery at a time when folk who actually did good things for the nation are being questioned for links, and sadly activity relating to slavery is ludicrous.”

Jan Davies said: “I’m a supporter of increasing the number of statues/art works of women but if anyone should be celebrated in this area it’s the generations of hard-working fishing and farming families rather than a couple of violent criminals who contributed nothing to the local heritage.”

Gilbert Snook added: “I have to say I am astonished that such a proposal has got this far when statues of people who have done good in the country but at the time benefited from the system of slavering are being removed.

“I’m sorry but pirates were not like Robin Hood or the Pirates of the Caribbean films. They were brutal, cruel and destructive.”

But island owner Giles Fuchs said he thought the 8.2ft tall statue on the island’s rocky shoreline, was a ‘brilliant idea’, while Annika Connelly said: “I think this is an exciting and interesting potential addition to the landscape of Burgh island. It’s a beautiful piece of art, with historical influences, and where it’s planned to be situated will add to the romance and beauty of Burgh Island – a landmark I view all day every day from my home.”

Victoria Last added: “The proposed sculpture would be a stunning addition to the island. It would have minimal impact, if any, on the ecology of the area and be very in keeping with the ethos of the hotel.

As of Tuesday morning, three of the 16 comments had been in favour of the application, with the other 13 objecting.

The sculpture has been created by artist Amanda Cotton and is inspired by new original drama, ‘Hell Cats’, which is available from Audible, with the concept for the sculpture which will provide permanent homage to “two of history’s greatest swashbucklers”, with a statue that honours their boundary pushing, gender defying lives.”

The statue has been unveiled at Execution Docks, London, famous for its pirate history, and if planners grant permission, it will make its journey to its intended home on the shores of Burgh Island, of which the application says is a ‘fitting location on the basis of the island’s heritage and its historic links to pirates and smugglers’.

The works would be implemented in a short timeframe and the site is located on land within the ownership of Burgh Island Limited. The installation will be placed on exposed rock on a natural level platform that is accessible from the grounds of the Hotel.

Calling for the application to be approved, a statement with the application says: “Having reviewed the policy content of both the Local Plan and Neighbourhood Plan, we believe there are strong grounds on which this art installation can be supported on this site.

“The justification can be supported and recognised as compliant with the spirit of the Neighbourhood Plan which supports development on Burgh Island where that development can be said to help preserve and enhance the function of the island as a tourist attraction and add to the Island’s value as an important area of open green space.”

South Hams District Council planners will determine the fate of the application at a later date.

WHO WERE ANNY BONNY AND MARY READ?

Mary Read was born in England in 1685. Her mother had previously married a sailor and had a son, but after her husband disappeared at sea, Mary’s mother became pregnant with Read after an extramarital love affair.

Shortly thereafter, her son died, and she gave birth to Mary, and in financial distress, her mother decided to disguise Mary as her dead son, in order to receive monetary support from her late husband’s mother. The grandmother was apparently fooled, and mother and daughter lived on the inheritance into Mary’s teen years.

Dressed as a boy, Read found work as a foot-boy, and, then, employment on a ship. She later joined the British military, in male disguise, proved herself through battle, but fell in love with a Flemish soldier.

They married, but upon her husband’s early death, Read resumed male dress and military service in the Netherlands, but with peace, there was no room for advancement, so she quit and boarded a ship bound for the West Indies.

Anne Bonny was an Irish pirate operating in the Caribbean, and one of the most famous female pirates of all time, although the little that is known of her life comes largely from Captain Charles Johnson’s ‘A General History of the Pyrates’.

Bonny was born in the Kingdom of Ireland around 1700 and moved to London and then to the Province of Carolina when she was about 10 years old.

Bonny’s father William Cormac first moved to London to get away from his wife’s family, and he began dressing his daughter as a boy and calling her “Andy”.

It is recorded that Bonny had red hair and was considered a “good catch” but may have had a fiery temper, and at age 13, she supposedly stabbed a servant girl with a knife.

She married a poor sailor and small-time pirate named James Bonny, but her father did not approve of him as a husband for his daughter, and he kicked her out of the house, and allegedly she set fire to her father’s plantation in retaliation, but no evidence exists to support the claims.

Between 1714 and 1718, she and James Bonny moved to Nassau, on New Providence Island, known as a sanctuary for English pirates called the Republic of Pirates.

But while in the Bahamas, Bonny began mingling with pirates in the taverns and met John “Calico Jack” Rackham, and he became her lover.

He offered money to her husband if he would divorce her, but he refused and apparently threatened to beat John, so Bonny and Rackham escaped the island together, and she became a member of Rackham’s crew.

She disguised herself as a man on the ship, and only Rackham and Read, who had joined the crew as part of a munity, were aware that she was a woman] until it became clear that she was pregnant.

Having given birth to a son, she rejoined Rackham and continued the pirate life, having divorced Bonny, Rackham, and Read stole the ship William. Rackham and the two women recruited a new crew and spent years in Jamaica and the surrounding area, with Bonny taking part in combat alongside the men, and Governor Rogers named her in a “Wanted Pirates” circular

But in October 1720, Rackham and his crew were attacked by a sloop captained by Jonathan Barnet under a commission from Nicholas Lawes, Governor of Jamaica, and most of Rackham’s pirates put up little resistance, as many of them were too drunk to fight.

They were taken to Jamaica where they were convicted and sentenced to be hanged, and according to Johnson, Bonny’s last words to Rackham were: “Had you fought like a man, you need not have been hang’d like a dog.”

Read and Bonny both asked for mercy because they were pregnant and the court granted them a stay of execution until they gave birth.

But Read died in prison, most likely from a fever from childbirth, and a ledger from a church in Jamaica lists her burial on April 28, 1721, “Mary Read, pirate”.

However, there is no record of Bonny’s release, and this has fed speculation as to her fate. A ledger lists the burial of an “Ann Bonny” on Dec. 29, 1733, in the same town in Jamaica where she was tried.

Professor Kate Williams, a prominent historian, had told The Independent it was critical to unearth the “hidden voices and histories” of women and LGBT+ people, and she noted history books have scant information about the pair – despite them being two of the most famous pirates in the 18th century.

Professor Williams added: “They broke gender boundaries and stunned people at the time. They were trailblazers in an incredibly male-dominated society who forged their own way. They were lovers and both fluid – moving between living as men and living as women and it is true, they have been forgotten from history.

“They lived determinedly and followed their hearts – both in being pirates and seeking their own destiny but also following their desire to love each other – when society demanded marriage.

“They were written about at the time, but you see a fear of them creeping in, a desire to downplay or ignore their story in the history of piracy, and I think that it’s because writers in the later 18th century and the 19th century worried that women – supposed to know their place as wives or servants – might get some ideas about living as men’s equals and love for each other.”