- Roche Braziliano
Roche Braziliano (sometimes spelled "Rock", "Roch", "Roc", "Roque", "Brazilliano", or "Brasiliano") (c. 1630 – disappeared c. 1671), was a Dutch
pirate born in the town ofGroningen . His pirate career lasted from 1654 until his disappearance around 1671. He was first eternalized in 1678 in the famous book about pirates byExquemelin ; Exquemelin wrote not to know the pirate's real name but historians have found out he was probably born as Gerrit Gerritszoon and that his parents and he moved to Dutch-controlled Brazil (see Arne Zuidhoek, "Piratenencyclopedie"(book in Dutch), 2006, pp.20-24). He is known as "Roche Braziliano", which in English becomes "Rock theBrazil ian", due to his long exile in Brazil. [cite book
last = Platt
first = David
authorlink =
coauthors =
title = Eyewitness Guides to Pirates
publisher = Dorling Kindersley
year = 1995
location = London
pages = 64
url =
doi =
id =
isbn = 0-7513-6035-X]Pirate career
Roche Braziliano was a notoriously cruel
buccaneer who operated out of Port Royal,Jamaica . He was aprivateer inBahia ,Brazil , before moving to Port Royal in 1654. He led amutiny and adopted the life of a buccaneer. On his first adventure he captured a ship of immense value and brought it back safely to Jamaica. He eventually was caught and sent to Spain, but he escaped with threats of vengeance from his followers.Pyle, Howard. "Howard Pyle's Book of Pirates". ISBN 1-603-03278-9] He soon resumed his thieving career, buying a new ship off his fellow-pirateFrançois l'Olonnais and later sailing in company with Sir Henry Morgan among others.Atrocities
Drunken and debauched, Braziliano would threaten to shoot anyone who did not drink with him. He roasted alive two Spanish farmers on wooden spits after they refused to hand over their pigs. He treated his Spanish prisoners barbarously, typically cutting off their limbs or roasting them alive over a fire. [ Pickering, David. "Pirates"]
Popular culture
Roche Braziliano is one of the pirates featured in the game Sid Meier's Pirates!
References
*Pickering, David. "Pirates". CollinsGem. HarperCollins Publishers, New York, NY. pp-52, 201. 2006.
*Ritsema, Alex (2008), "Pirates and Privateers from the Low Countries", Lulu.com, ISBN 978-1-4092-0171-7Notes
External links
* [http://pirateshold.buccaneersoft.com/roster/roche_braziliano.html Pirates Hold]
* [http://www.privateerdragons.org/pirates_famous.html Privateer Dragons of the Caribbean]
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