John Ireland

John Ireland (fl. 1694–1701, occasionally spelled Yarland) was a pirate active in the Indian Ocean. He is best known for sailing with Thomas Tew.

History

Ireland was sailing between New York and Boston in 1694 when he was hired by privateer Thomas Tew to pilot his ship Amity up the coast. Ireland testified that the crew mutinied, demanding Tew take up piracy instead, and forcing Ireland to act as navigator. The crew told them “they came out for money and money they would have before they went home again.” After Every and the others defeated Gunsway and Fateh Mohammed both, the Amity was freed. They sailed to Adam Baldridge's pirate trading post near Madagascar to repair and refit in December 1695. Baldridge tipped them off that the Charming Mary under captain Richard Glover left shortly before and was still nearby. Tew was already dead by the time Kidd received his commission, and Kidd turned to piracy before encountering any of the others.

Ireland's own testimony regarding the end of his piracy career differs from other records: he claims that in late 1696 their ship (presumably Charming Mary) was lost in a storm. The remaining crew took over a Portuguese ship a few months later, marooning Ireland and others, who escaped in small boats. He claimed he spent months making his way back to Malacca, where he was wounded in a quarrel with a former crewmate, imprisoned, and eventually sent back to London.