Queen Anne's Revenge
Beaufort Inlet, North Carolina
What happened
The ship was a French vessel called La Concorde, believed to have been built around 1710, and later used as a slave ship. On 28 November 1717 Blackbeard captured it near Martinique, renamed it Queen Anne's Revenge and added heavy cannon. On 10 June 1718 it ran aground on a sandbar at Beaufort Inlet, North Carolina.
Why it matters
It was the flagship of one of history's most famous pirates. The wreck lets archaeologists study what life aboard a pirate ship was really like.
What came next
A private research firm, Intersal, found the wreck on 21 November 1996, about a mile offshore under about 23 feet of water. Divers have recovered more than 300,000 artifacts, and in 2011 North Carolina confirmed the wreck as Queen Anne's Revenge. Many finds are shown at the North Carolina Maritime Museum in Beaufort.
Did you know?
In 2018 scientists found scraps of paper from a printed travel book stuffed inside one of the cannons, probably used as wadding for the gunpowder.
Timeline
- c. 1710The ship is believed to have been built in France.
- 28 November 1717Blackbeard captures it near Martinique.
- 10 June 1718It runs aground at Beaufort Inlet.
- 21 November 1996Intersal finds the wreck.
- 29 August 2011North Carolina confirms the wreck is Queen Anne's Revenge.