Black Caesar

Caesar, later known as "Black Caesar" (fl. 1718), was a West African pirate who operated during the Golden Age of Piracy. He served aboard the Queen Anne's Revenge of Edward Teach (Blackbeard) and was one of the surviving members of that crew following Blackbeard's death at the hands of Lieutenant Robert Maynard in 1718. Myths surrounding his life - that he was African royalty and terrorized the Florida Keys for years before joining Blackbeard - have been intermixed with legends and fictional accounts as well as with other pirates.

The legend Black Caesar, according to traditional accounts, was a prominent African tribal war chieftain. Widely known for his "huge size, immense strength and keen intelligence", he evaded capture from many different slave traders. Caesar was finally captured when he and twenty of his warriors were lured onto a ship by a slave trader. Showing him a watch, the trader promised to show him and his warriors more objects, which were "too heavy and too numerous to bring on shore" if they came aboard his ship. He enticed them to stay with food, musical instruments, silk scarves and jewels, however, he had his men raise anchor and slowly sail away. When Caesar discovered what was happening, he and his men attempted to charge their captors but were driven back by the well-armed sailors using swords and pistols. Although it took a considerable length of time for him and his warriors to accept their captivity, he was eventually befriended by a sailor who was the only man Black Caesar would accept food and water from.

As they neared the coast of Florida, the sudden appearance of a hurricane threatened to destroy the ship on the Florida Reefs. Recognizing the ship's imminent destruction, the sailor snuck below decks and freed Caesar. The two then forced the captain and crew into a corner, most likely at gunpoint, and boarded one of the longboats with ammunition and other supplies. The wind and waves pushed them to shore where they waited out the storm, apparently the only survivors of the doomed ship.

They soon began using the lifeboat to lure passing ships which stopped to give assistance. While posing as shipwrecked sailors, they would sail out to the vessel offering to take them aboard. Once they were close to the vessel, they brought out their guns and demanded supplies and ammunition, threatening to sink the ship if they were refused. He and the sailor continued this ploy for a number of years and amassed a sizable amount of treasure which was buried on Elliott Key. However, he and the sailor had a falling out over a young woman the mate had brought back from one of the ships they had looted. Fighting over her, Caesar killed his longtime friend in a duel and took the woman for his own.

The myths surrounding Black Caesar's time in the Florida Keys cannot be verified by period sources. He was still with Blackbeard in 1718 when the pirates were cornered by Lieutenant Maynard. A General History of the Pyrates (1724) records that:

Taken prisoner by Virginian colonial authorities, Caesar (whom the General History refers to only as Caesar, not as Black Caesar) was tried for piracy but was acquitted. Despite his acquittal Caesar is often described as having been convicted and hanged. After his release the ex-slave Caesar may have returned to the possession of Chief Justice and Secretary of the province of Carolina, Tobias Knight, Caesar may also have survived piracy and slavery to work as a cooper past age 70.

In popular culture The "Black Caesar" character appeared in the 2005 mini series Blackbeard: Terror at Sea, the 2006 miniseries Blackbeard, an episode of Legends of Tomorrow titled "The Great British Fake-Off", and the 2021 Netflix documentary series The Lost Pirate Kingdom.

The 2011 film Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides featured Blackbeard with zombie crewmen, and one of them was intended to be based on Black Caesar by concept artist Miles Teves, but ultimately wasn't incorporated into the movie.

Vengeance Unchained: The Legend of Black Caesar, a five-issue comic series by Shaquille O’Neal, Stephanie Williams, and Ray-Anthony Height and published by Archie Comics was announced in June 2026, with the first issue scheduled to release in October 2026.