Jolly Roger

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Wingdings version of the Jolly Roger (character 'N'). Many pirates created their own individualized versions.

The Jolly Roger is the name now given to any of various flags flown to identify a ship's crew as pirates. The most popularised Jolly Roger today is the Skull and Crossbones, being a flag consisting of a skull over two long bones set in an X arrangement on a black field. This design, shown at right, was used by pirate captain Edward England. Despite its appearance in popular culture, regular black flags were often employed by most pirates in the 17th-18th century. ^[1] Historically, the flag was flown to induce pirates' victims to surrender readily.

Since the decline of piracy, various military units have used the Jolly Roger, usually in skull-and-crossbones design, as a unit identification insignia or a victory flag to ascribe to themselves the proverbial ferocity and toughness of pirates. It has also unofficially been used to signify Electric Hazard. The background is blood red and the Skull and Bones are black in colour.

[edit] Origins of the term

Pirate flag often called the "Jolly Roger."

The name "Jolly Roger" goes back at least to Charles Johnson's A General History of the Pyrates, published in 1724. Johnson specifically cites two pirates as having named their flag "Jolly Roger": Bartholomew Roberts in June, 1721^[2] and Francis Spriggs in July, 1723. While Spriggs and Roberts used the same name for their flags, their flag designs were quite different, suggesting that already "Jolly Roger" was a generic term for black pirate flags rather than a name for any single specific design. Neither Spriggs' nor Roberts' Jolly Roger consisted of a skull and crossbones.

Richard Hawkins, captured by pirates in 1724, reported that the pirates had a black flag bearing the figure of a skeleton stabbing a heart with a spear, which they named "Jolly Roger". ^[3]

An old engraving of Capt. Rogers, armed with a boarding pike.

Despite this tale, it is assumed by most that the name Jolly Roger comes from the French words "Jolie Rouge"; meaning pretty red ^{[4] [5]} Another theory states that "Jolly Roger" is an English corruption of "Ali Raja", the name of a Tamil pirate.^[6]

Yet another theory is that it was taken from a nickname for the devil, "Old Roger". ^[6] The "jolly" appellation may be derived from the apparent grin of a skull.

[edit] Templar hypothesis

The Jolly Roger raised in an illustration for Gilbert and Sullivan's The Pirates of Penzance.

In his book Pirates & The Lost Templar Fleet, David Hatcher Childress claims that the flag was named after the first man to fly it, King Roger II of Sicily (c.1095-1154). Roger was a famed Templar and the Knights Of The Temple were in conflict with the Pope over his conquests of Apulia and Salerno in 1127.^[7] Childress claims that, many years later, after the Templars were disbanded by the church, at least one Templar fleet split into four independent flotillas dedicating themselves to pirating ships of any country sympathetic to Rome, thus the flag was an inheritance, and its crossed bones a reference to the original Templar logo of a red cross with blunted ends.

[edit] Origins of the design

Black flags are known to have been used by pirates at least five years before the earliest known attachment of the name "Jolly Roger" to such flags. Contemporary accounts show Captain Martel's pirates using a black flag in 1716,^[8] Edward Teach, Charles Vane, and Richard Worley in 1718^[9], and Howell Davis in 1719.^[10]

An even earlier use of a black flag with skull, crossbones, and hourglass is attributed in 1700 to pirate captain Emanuel Wynn, according to a wide variety of secondary sources.^[11] Reportedly, these secondary sources are based on the account of Captain John Cranby of the HMS Poole and are verified at the London Public Record Office.

[edit] Use in practice

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Pirates did not fly the Jolly Roger at all times. Like other vessels, pirate ships usually stocked a variety of different flags, and would normally fly false colors or no colors until they had their prey within firing range. When the pirates' intended victim was within range, the Jolly Roger would be raised, often simultaneously with a warning shot.

The flag was probably intended as communication of the pirates' identity, which may have given target ships an opportunity to change their mind and surrender without a fight. For example in June 1720 when Bartholomew Roberts sailed into the harbour at Trepassey, Newfoundland with black flags flying, the crews of all 22 vessels in the harbour abandoned them in panic.^[12] If a ship then decided to resist, the Jolly Roger was taken down and a red flag was flown, indicating that the pirates intend to take the ship by force and without mercy. Richard Hawkins reports that "When they fight under Jolly Roger, they give quarter, which they do not when they fight under the red or bloody flag."^{[citation needed]}

In this view of models, it was important for a prey ship to know that its assailant was a pirate, and not a privateer or government vessel - as the latter two generally had to abide by a rule that a crew that resisted, but then surrendered, could not be executed:

"An angry pirate therefore posed a greater danger to merchant ships than an angry Spanish coast guard or privateer vessel. Because of this, although, like pirate ships, Spanish coast guard vessels and privateers were almost always stronger than the merchant ships they attacked, merchant ships may have been more willing to attempt resisting these "legitimate" attackers than their piratical counterparts. To achieve their goal of taking prizes without a costly fight, it was therefore important for pirates to distinguish themselves from these other ships also taking prizes on the seas."^[13]

Flying a Jolly Roger was a reliable way of proving oneself a pirate, as just possessing or using a Jolly Roger was considered proof that one was a criminal pirate (and not something more legitimate); only a pirate would dare fly the Jolly Roger, as they were already under threat of execution.^[14]

[edit] Use by submarines

The Free Polish submarine ORP Sokół returning from a World War II patrol flying her Jolly Roger to signify a successful combat mission; the swastika flag indicates the sinking of a German ship

Admiral Sir Arthur Wilson VC, the Controller of the Royal Navy, summed up the opinion of the many in the Admiralty at the time when in 1901 he said submarines were "underhand, unfair, and damned un-English. ... treat all submarines as pirates in wartime ... and hang all crews."^[15][16] In response, Lieutenant Commander (later Admiral Sir) Max Horton first flew the Jolly Roger on return to port after sinking the German cruiser SMS Hela and the destroyer SMS S-116 in 1914 while in command of the E class submarine HMS E9.^[17][18]

During World War I, the submarine service came of age, winning five of the Royal Navy's fourteen Victoria Crosses, the first by Lieutenant Norman Holbrook, Commanding Officer of HMS B11.

In World War II it became common practice for the submarines of the Royal Navy and Royal Australian Navy to fly the Jolly Roger on completion of a successful combat mission where some action had taken place, but as an indicator of bravado and stealth rather than of lawlessness. The Jolly Roger is now the emblem of the Royal Navy Submarine Service.^[19]

The Jolly Roger was brought to the attention of a post World War II public when HMS Conqueror flew the Jolly Roger on her return from the Falklands War having sunk ARA General Belgrano. In May 1991 Oberon class submarines HMS Opossum and her sister HMS Otus returned to the submarine base HMS Dolphin in Gosport from patrol in the Persian Gulf flying Jolly Rogers, for their part in Operation Granby during the Gulf War in 1991.^[20][21][22] In 1999 HMS Splendid participated in the Kosovo Conflict and became the first Royal Navy submarine to fire a cruise missile in anger. On her return to Faslane, on July 9, 1999, Splendid flew the Jolly Roger.^[23][24]

After Operation Veritas, the attack on Al-Qaeda and Taliban forces following the 9/11 attacks in the United States, HMS Trafalgar entered Plymouth Sound flying the Jolly Roger on March 1, 2002. She was welcomed back by Admiral Sir Alan West, Commander-in-Chief of the fleet and it emerged she was the first Royal Navy submarine to launch tomahawk cruise missiles against Afghanistan.^[25] HMS Triumph was also involved in the initial strikes and on returning to port had a Jolly Roger emblazoned with two crossed Tomahawks to indicate her opening missiles salvoes in the "war against terrorism" and HMS Superb's whose flag had a dagger, for force protection, a bee for her nickname (the Super B), and two communications flashes.^[18]

More recently, on April 16, 2003, HMS Turbulent, the first Royal Navy vessel to return home from the war against Iraq, arrived in Plymouth flying the Jolly Roger after launching thirty Tomahawk cruise missiles.^[26]

[edit] Use by United States Army Air Corps

Four squadrons of the 90th Bombardment Group of the Fifth Air Force under General George C. Kenney, commanded by Colonel Art Rogers were known as the Jolly Rogers. Easily distinguished by the white skull and crossed bombs, from 1943, the four squadrons all displayed the insignia on the twin tail fins of their B-24 heavy bombers (heavies) with different color backgrounds for each squadron. The 319th's tail fin background was blue, the 320th's red, the 321st, green, and the 400th, the most graphic of the four, black.^[27]

[edit] Other uses

• The Jolly Rogers is a successful Renaissance Faire performance group based out of Kansas City.^[28]
• There are various movies of this name, including one publicized by Science Fiction Channel in June, 2006, & July, 2006.^[29]
• Steve Capps, from the original Macintosh development team,^[30] hoisted a Jolly Roger flag designed by Susan Kare on the newly founded Macintosh Division HQ, after a meeting where Steve Jobs said that it was "better to be a pirate than join the navy".^[31]
• The Jolly Roger & The Great Books is a books portal that was founded in 1995.^[32]
• Jolly Roger is the name of an amusement park located in Ocean City, MD.^[33]
• Jolly Roger is the main antagonist in the Pirates of the Caribbean Online Game.^[34]
• Jolly Roger is a character in the Banjo-Kazooie series of games. He was first seen at Jolly Roger's Lagoon in Banjo-Tooie, and has since appeared in Banjo Pilot. He is rumoured to be in Banjo-Threeie, too.
• "Raise the Jolly Roger" is said by Pittsburgh Pirates announcer Greg Brown after every Pirates win.
• Several U.S. Navy fighter squadrons have used the nickname "Jolly Rogers", including the current VFA-103.

[edit] References