10 Real Pirates Of The Caribbean More Bad-Ass Than Jack Sparrow

9. Benjamin Hornigold - Pirate-Turned-Hunter

As portrayed in Assassin's Creed IV Black Flag and the series Black Sails, Benjamin Hornigold's legacy is defined by the abandonment of his pirate brethren. Beginning a life of piracy in the aftermath of the Spanish War of Succession, Hornigold led a life of successful privateering, plundering Spanish merchant vessels and swelling the ranks of his crew - a crew in which he commanded Edward Thatch as quartermaster (a man who would later gain infamy as 'Blackbeard'). Hornigold directed his actions with caution, cooperating closely with the British navy, so as to only attack their Spanish rivals and maintain an aspect of 'legality' surrounding his piratical acts. During this time, he was one of the key figures to establish the Privateer's Republic that reigned in the Bahamas (c. 1706 - 1718), as the islands remained effectively independent of the British empire, fortifying the bay with several armed ships. His apathetic approach to attacking, however, would prove his downfall, as his crew sought greater returns and richer spoils - eventually overthrowing Hornigold as captain, in favour of attacking British vessels. Thus, Hornigold returned to accept the pirate's pardon from the new governor of the Bahamas, Woodes Rogers, who in turn expected Hornigold to help hunt down his former comrades. Although Rogers lauded Hornigold's efforts, they were ultimately in vain, as the pirate-turned-hunter was shipwrecked and killed by a storm.