UNE 26, 1680
L A G UAIRA, V ENEZUELA
O n the night of June 26, 1680, the buccaneers came ashore at La Guaira with a mere forty-seven men. The pirates were vastly outnumbered. Rather than attacking, they slipped unseen into the city. They infiltrated the garrison and managed to capture the 150 soldiers stationed there without raising an alarm. That morning the civilians woke as usual, only to discover that their city was occupied by buccaneers.
De Grammont and Paineâbold but not stupidâknew that their position was weak. They began to loot as fast as they could, knowing that more Spanish troops would soon be on the way. As successful as the buccaneers traditionally were in such raids, they knew that there was only so much that forty-seven men could do.
Nor were the 150 soldiers they captured the only troops in the area. A Spanish officer, Captain Juan de Laya Mujica, and his company managed to escape. The captain sent a warning to Caracas of the buccaneer attack, and at the same time rallied what soldiers and militia he could from the area around La Guaira.
When word of the raid reached Caracas, the usual panic ensued. The inhabitants loaded valuables on wagons and sent them inland. At the same time, the governor, Francisco de Alberró, organized a large contingent of militia and marched them off toward the occupied port city.
By daylight, it became clear to the Spanish that they had been attacked by a very small band of filibusters. Captain Juan de Laya Mujica, apparently an active and responsible officer, was emboldened by this. He led his troops in a counterattack against the pirates.
In the face of this assault, knowing that Governor Alberróâs forces, now numbering two thousand men, were marching for La Guaira, de Grammont and Paine decided it was time to go. Still, the Spaniards did not rout the pirates despite their fifty-to-one advantage in the area. De Grammont and the others fought an organized rearguard action, retreating to the harbor with booty and prisoners and then out to their waiting ships in an orderly fashion.
De Grammont (and most likely Paine) personally covered the retreat of the men, holding off the Spanish troops. Dampier reports, âThis movement was executed with difficulty, and for two hours de Grammont with a handful of his bravest companions covered the embarkation from the assaults of the Spaniards.â 1
Of the forty-seven men who attacked La Guaira, only eight or nine were lost, but de Grammont was nearly one of them. A lucky Spanish swordthrust severely wounded him in the neck, and the Chevalier barely escaped with his life. Despite the kidnapping of the governor of La Guaira and many other prisoners, the piratesâ take was small, particularly considering the hazard involved. In less than twenty-four hours they had probably endured more desperate fighting than they had in six months at Maracaibo.
De Grammont and the rest proceeded to Las Aves, where the Frenchman intended to convalesce. In the meantime the Chevalier turned command of the small buccaneer squadron over to Paine.
While at Las Aves, de Grammont reported that on âthe 2nd of August I left the command of the Kingâs subjects to Capt. Pain [sic] with orders to conduct them to the coast [of French Hispaniola] and give an account of our actions to the governorâ¦.â 2 Just which monarch de Grammont thought them to be subjects of is not clear. Presumably the Sun King, Louis XIV, from whom their commissionsoriginated. Whether or not Louis was happy to have them as subjects is unknown.
A N I LL -F ATED E XPEDITION
A year or so after the La Guaira raid we find Paine ranging the Spanish Main. In May, 1681, a number of captains came together at Springerâs Key in the Samballoes Isles, near the coast of Panama, eager to cooperate in a joint raid. This was typical of the ad hoc nature of filibuster armadas. Present were ships and men of English, French, and Dutch extraction, most of whom
L A G UAIRA, V ENEZUELA
O n the night of June 26, 1680, the buccaneers came ashore at La Guaira with a mere forty-seven men. The pirates were vastly outnumbered. Rather than attacking, they slipped unseen into the city. They infiltrated the garrison and managed to capture the 150 soldiers stationed there without raising an alarm. That morning the civilians woke as usual, only to discover that their city was occupied by buccaneers.
De Grammont and Paineâbold but not stupidâknew that their position was weak. They began to loot as fast as they could, knowing that more Spanish troops would soon be on the way. As successful as the buccaneers traditionally were in such raids, they knew that there was only so much that forty-seven men could do.
Nor were the 150 soldiers they captured the only troops in the area. A Spanish officer, Captain Juan de Laya Mujica, and his company managed to escape. The captain sent a warning to Caracas of the buccaneer attack, and at the same time rallied what soldiers and militia he could from the area around La Guaira.
When word of the raid reached Caracas, the usual panic ensued. The inhabitants loaded valuables on wagons and sent them inland. At the same time, the governor, Francisco de Alberró, organized a large contingent of militia and marched them off toward the occupied port city.
By daylight, it became clear to the Spanish that they had been attacked by a very small band of filibusters. Captain Juan de Laya Mujica, apparently an active and responsible officer, was emboldened by this. He led his troops in a counterattack against the pirates.
In the face of this assault, knowing that Governor Alberróâs forces, now numbering two thousand men, were marching for La Guaira, de Grammont and Paine decided it was time to go. Still, the Spaniards did not rout the pirates despite their fifty-to-one advantage in the area. De Grammont and the others fought an organized rearguard action, retreating to the harbor with booty and prisoners and then out to their waiting ships in an orderly fashion.
De Grammont (and most likely Paine) personally covered the retreat of the men, holding off the Spanish troops. Dampier reports, âThis movement was executed with difficulty, and for two hours de Grammont with a handful of his bravest companions covered the embarkation from the assaults of the Spaniards.â 1
Of the forty-seven men who attacked La Guaira, only eight or nine were lost, but de Grammont was nearly one of them. A lucky Spanish swordthrust severely wounded him in the neck, and the Chevalier barely escaped with his life. Despite the kidnapping of the governor of La Guaira and many other prisoners, the piratesâ take was small, particularly considering the hazard involved. In less than twenty-four hours they had probably endured more desperate fighting than they had in six months at Maracaibo.
De Grammont and the rest proceeded to Las Aves, where the Frenchman intended to convalesce. In the meantime the Chevalier turned command of the small buccaneer squadron over to Paine.
While at Las Aves, de Grammont reported that on âthe 2nd of August I left the command of the Kingâs subjects to Capt. Pain [sic] with orders to conduct them to the coast [of French Hispaniola] and give an account of our actions to the governorâ¦.â 2 Just which monarch de Grammont thought them to be subjects of is not clear. Presumably the Sun King, Louis XIV, from whom their commissionsoriginated. Whether or not Louis was happy to have them as subjects is unknown.
A N I LL -F ATED E XPEDITION
A year or so after the La Guaira raid we find Paine ranging the Spanish Main. In May, 1681, a number of captains came together at Springerâs Key in the Samballoes Isles, near the coast of Panama, eager to cooperate in a joint raid. This was typical of the ad hoc nature of filibuster armadas. Present were ships and men of English, French, and Dutch extraction, most of whom
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