Jolly Roger

Use of the term Jolly Roger in reference to pirate flags goes back to at least Charles Johnson's A General History of the Pyrates, published in Britain in 1724.[4]

Johnson specifically cites two pirates as having named their flag "Jolly Roger": Bartholomew Roberts in June 1721[5] and Francis Spriggs in December 1723.[6] While Spriggs and Roberts used the same name for their flags, their flag designs were very 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.[7]

Richard Hawkins, who was 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". This description closely resembles the flags of a number of Golden Age pirates.[8]

It is sometimes claimed that the term derives from "Joli Rouge" ("Pretty Red") in reference to a red flag used by French privateers. This is sometimes attributed to red blood, symbolizing violent pirates, ready to kill.[9]

Another early reference to "Old Roger" is found in a news report in the Weekly Journal or British Gazetteer (London, Saturday, October 19, 1723; Issue LVII, p. 2, col. 1):

Parts of the West-Indies. Rhode-Island, July 26. This Day, 26 of the Pirates taken by his Majesty Ship the Greyhound, Captain Solgard, were executed here. Some of them delivered what they had to say in writing, and most of them said something at the Place of Execution, advising all People, young ones especially, to take warning by their unhappy Fate, and to avoid the crimes that brought them to it. Their black Flag, under which they had committed abundance of Pyracies and Murders, was affix'd to one Corner of the Gallows. It had in it the Portraiture of Death, with an Hour-Glass in one Hand, and a Dart in the other, striking into a Heart, and three Drops of Blood delineated as falling from it. This Flag they called Old Roger, and us'd to say, They would live and die under it.[10]

Although it, most likely, was not called "Jolly Roger", usage of flag containing skull and crossbones go as early as 1588, in Basel's dance of death, Hulderich Frölich.

The first recorded uses of the skull-and-crossbones symbol on naval flags date to the 17th century. It possibly originated among the Barbary pirates of the period, which would connect the black colour of the Jolly Roger to the Muslim Black Standard (black flag). But an early reference to Muslim corsairs flying a skull symbol, in the context of a 1625 slave raid on Cornwall, explicitly refers to the symbols being shown on a green flag.[11] There are mentions of Francis Drake's flying a black flag as early as 1585, but the historicity of this tradition has been called into question.[12] Contemporary accounts show Peter Easton using a plain black flag in 1612; a plain black flag was also used by Captain Martel's pirates in 1716,[13] Charles Vane, and Richard Worley in 1718,[14] and Howell Davis in 1719.

An early record of the skull-and-crossbones design being used on a (red) flag by pirates is found in a December 6, 1687 entry in a log book held by the Bibliothèque nationale de France. The entry describes pirates using the flag, not on a ship but on land.[15]

1725 woodcut of Stede Bonnet with a Jolly Roger in Charles Johnson's A General History of the Pyrates

17th and 18th century colonial governors usually required privateers to fly a specific version of the British flag, the 1606 Union Jack with a white crest in the middle, also distinguishing them from naval vessels.[16] Before this time, British privateers such as Sir Henry Morgan sailed under English colours.[8] An early use of a black flag with skull, crossbones, and hourglass is attributed to pirate captain Emanuel Wynn in 1700, according to a wide variety of secondary sources.[17] Reportedly, these secondary sources are based on the account of Captain John Cranby of HMS Poole and are verified at the London Public Record Office.

With the end of the War of the Spanish Succession in 1714, many privateers turned to piracy. They still used red and black flags, but now they decorated them with their own designs. Edward England, for example, flew three different flags: from his mainmast the black flag depicted above; from his foremast a red version of the same; and from his ensign staff the English national flag. Just as variations on the Jolly Roger design existed, red flags sometimes incorporated yellow stripes or images symbolic of death.[18] Coloured pennants and ribbons could also be used alongside flags.

Marcus Rediker (1987) claims that most pirates active between 1716 and 1726 were part of one of two large interconnected groups sharing many similarities in organisation. He states that this accounts for the "comparatively rapid adoption of the piratical black flag among a group of men operating across thousands of miles of ocean", suggesting that the skull-and-crossbone design became standardized at about the same time as the term Jolly Roger was adopted as its name. By 1730, the diversity of symbols in prior use had been mostly replaced by the standard design.[19]

The Jolly Roger is a traditional flag used by pirates to identify their ship and intimidate their enemies. It typically features a skull and crossbones design, although variations exist. The term "Jolly Roger" itself may have originated from the French term "joli rouge," meaning "pretty red," which referred to a red flag used by early pirates.

Key elements commonly found on a Jolly Roger flag include:

Skull: The skull on the flag represents death and danger, emphasizing the pirates' ruthless and deadly reputation.

Crossbones: The crossbones are often positioned behind or beneath the skull and create an "X" shape. They symbolize crossed swords or bones, signifying violence and conflict.

Design Variations: While the basic design consists of a skull and crossbones, many pirate crews have personalized their Jolly Roger flags with unique additions or alterations. These variations can include different facial expressions, accessories, or additional symbols. [20]

The gallery below showing pirate flags in use from 1693 (Thomas Tew's) to 1724 (Edward Low's) appears in multiple extant works on the history of piracy.[21] All the secondary sources cited in the gallery below are in agreement except as to the background colour of Every's flag.

• 
  Emanuel Wynn's flag.[22]
• 
  A pirate flag used by Edward Low.[23]
• 
  Another flag used by Edward Low.
• 
  A flag often attributed to Blackbeard. Similar to flags reportedly flown by Edward Low, Charles Harris and Francis Spriggs.
• 
  Although referred to as the "John Quelch" flag, it is in fact closer to the description of pirate flag of John Phillips.
• 
  The flag of England used by John Quelch.
• 
  A flag often associated with John Phillips.
• 
  Bartholomew Roberts' first flag shows him and Death holding an hourglass.[24]
• 
  Roberts' new flag showed him holding a flaming sword and standing on two skulls, representing "a Barbadian's head" (ABH) and "a Martinican's head" (AMH) - two islands against whom he held a grudge.[24]
• 
  One of Roberts' several flags described in Johnson's General History, depicting a skeleton holding an hour glass and two bones standing next to a dart stabbing a bleeding heart.
• 
  One of Roberts' several flags described in the Boston Gazette, depicting a skull and a sword.
• 
  One of Roberts' several flags described in Johnson's General History, depicting an image of Roberts holding a flaming sword and intimidating Death.
• 
  Jolly Roger erroneously associated with Calico Jack Rackham.[25]
• 
  Flag flown by "Black Sam" Bellamy[26] and Edward England's mainmast flag.
  [27] Although it is unconfirmed, it is possible that it may have been flown by Blackbeard.[14]
• 
  Traditional depiction of Stede Bonnet's flag, though Bonnet was only described in trial documents as having flown a "death's head".[28]
• 
  Flag of pirate Christopher Condent.[29]
• 
  Popular version of Henry Every's Jolly Roger. Reportedly, Every also flew a version with a black background.[30]
• 
  Claes Gerritszoon Compaen's pirate flag.
• 
  Flag of Christopher Moody; described in the mid-1700s, though not attributed to Moody until 1933; Moody was a sailor under Bartholomew Roberts, not a captain, and would not have had his "own" flag.[26]
• 
  Possible flag of Thomas Tew.[31]
• 
  Richard Worley's flag.[32]
• 
  Jean Thomas Dulaien's Jolly Roger ensign (which was identical to the flag of Walter Kennedy).[33]
• 
  Other flag of Jean Thomas Dulaien.
• 
  Flag of Philip Lyne.
• 
  Flag of Captain Napin.
• 
  Flag of Olivier Levasseur.
• 
  Another flag of Olivier Levasseur.
• 
  The flag of New Granada used by Jean Laffite.
• 
  Flag of pirates captured from the Florida Straits.
• 
  Flag of Dutch pirates known as the "Bloedvlag".
• 
  The "Prinsenvlag" used by Dutch pirates.
• 
  The "Statenvlag" used by Dutch pirates.
• 
  The flag of the Netherlands used by Dutch pirates.

Sources exist describing the Jolly Rogers of other pirates than the ones above; also, the pirates described above sometimes used other Jolly Rogers than those shown above. However, no pictures of these alternate Jolly Rogers are easily located.

• John Phillips. At the hanging of two of John Phillips' pirates, the Boston News-Letter reported: "At one end of the gallows was their own dark flag, in the middle of which an anatomy, and at one side of it a dart in the heart, with drops of blood proceeding from it; and on the other side an hour-glass."[34]
• Edward Low. Low used at least two other flags besides his famous red skeleton. One was "a white Skeliton in the Middle of it, with a Dart in one Hand striking bleeding Heart, and in the other, an Hour-Glass."[6] The other was described by George Roberts, a prisoner of Low's, as a call to council among Low's ships: "a green silk flag with a yellow figure of a man blowing a trumpet on it."[35]
• Francis Spriggs is reported to have flown a Jolly Roger identical to one of Low's, from whom he had deserted: "a white Skeliton in the Middle of it, with a Dart in one Hand striking bleeding Heart, and in the other, an Hour-Glass."[6]
• Walter Kennedy. The Jolly Roger flag pictured above for Kennedy was flown at his ensign staff, i.e., at the stern of his ship. Kennedy also flew a jack (at the bow of the ship) and a pennant (a long narrow flag flown from the top of a mast). Both Kennedy's jack and his pennant had "only the head and cross bones".[36]
• Florida Straits pirates. On May 2, 1822, the Massachusetts brigantine Belvidere fended off an attack by a pirate schooner in the Florida Strait. The pirates "hoisted a red flag with death's head and cross under it". Neither the pirate schooner's name nor her captain was identified by the Belvidere.[37]
• In 1780, a pirate flag was captured in battle off the North African coast by Lt Richard Curry, who later became an admiral. The flag is red with a yellow skull and crossbones.[38]
• In 1783, William Falconer reported that the "[t]he colours usually displayed by pirates are laid to be a black field, with a death's head, a battle-axe and hour-glass," but does not state which pirate or pirates allegedly showed this device.[39]
• During the Eighty Years' War, the pirates who fought along with the Dutch Republic had flown the "Bloedvlag". The flag is a red with an arm holding a sword. It is flown alongside the "Prinsenvlag" and the "Statenvlag" (both flags were inspirations for the flag of the Netherlands).[40]

Pirates did not fly the Jolly Roger at all times. Like other vessels, pirate ships usually stocked a variety of flags, and would normally fly a false flag or no colours until they had their prey within firing range.[41] 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 decide to 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 their ships in panic.[42] It is claimed (without contemporary references) that if a ship then decided to resist, the Jolly Roger was taken down and a red flag (in the 20th Century sometimes called the "Bloody Red"[43]) was flown, indicating that the pirates intended to take the ship by force and without mercy. This claim comes from only one source: in the mid-18th century, Richard Hawkins suggested that pirates gave quarter beneath the black flag, while no quarter was given beneath the red flag.[44] However the cited content may simply relate to different pirate captains, their ships, their chosen flag and particular operating practices.

In view of these 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 if a crew resisted, but then surrendered, it 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.[45]

Flying a Jolly Roger was a reliable way of proving oneself a pirate. Just possessing or using a Jolly Roger was considered proof that one was a criminal pirate rather than something more legitimate; only a pirate would dare fly the Jolly Roger, as he was already under threat of execution.[46]

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

"Paul Jones the Pirate", a British caricature of the late 18th century, is an early example of the Jolly Roger's skull-and-crossbones being transferred to a character's hat, in order to identify him as a pirate (typically a tricorne, or as in this example, the later (1790s) bicorne).

The Jolly Roger flag became a cliché of pirate fiction in the 19th century.

The "Golden Age of Piracy" was over by the mid-18th century, and piracy was widely suppressed by the 1800s, although the problem of Barbary pirates persisted until the French conquest of Algeria in 1830.

By the Victorian era, the pirate threat had receded enough for it to become a topos of boyish adventure fiction, notably influenced by Robert Louis Stevenson's adventure novel Treasure Island (1883). Gilbert and Sullivan's comic opera The Pirates of Penzance (which debuted on 31 December 1879) introduced pirates as comedic characters, and since the later 20th century, pirates sporting the Jolly Roger flag were often depicted as cartoonish or silly characters. J.M. Barrie also used it as the name of Captain Hook's pirate ship in Peter and Wendy (1904 play and 1911 novel); it was thus used in most adaptations of the character, including ABC's television series Once Upon a Time (2011-2018). Additionally, the Jolly Roger is depicted in Eiichiro Oda's manga One Piece, in which the pirate crews in the series have different designs that reflects the appearance of the captain (Straw Hat Pirates for example, the protagonist crew, having the classic skull with cross bones wearing a straw hat like the main character, Monkey D. Luffy) or a personal theme of the crew (Black Cat Pirates for example, one of the antagonist crews, having the head of a black cat with cross bones).

Other uses

Variant version of the Sea Shepherd flag

The early development team of the Apple Macintosh used a pirate flag to portray a "rebellious" spirit.[73]

Anarchist and Pirate protest with the Jolly Roger flag in Hungary.

Before changing to a stylized "P", Sweden's Pirate Party used the Jolly Roger as its symbol, which is still used extensively in the Pirate movement. The Piratbyrån and its online database, The Pirate Bay also use either the skull and crossbones symbol, or derivatives of it, such as the logo of Home Taping Is Killing Music.

The flag of the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society is modelled to look like a classic Jolly Roger, with some alterations. The flag depicts a whale and a dolphin on the skull's forehead, and the crossed long-bones are replaced with a crossed trident and a shepherd's crook.

Ozlock Con, a conference about physical security, uses a logo inspired by the Jolly Roger. The skull is a lock and the bones are lockpicks.

Unicode uses a sequence of U+1F3F4 🏴 WAVING BLACK FLAG and U+2620 ☠ SKULL AND CROSSBONES[74] to display this flag.

• Ossuary
• Anarchist flag
• Black Standard
• Flag of Blackbeard
• Flag of the Netherlands
• Maritime flag
• Raven banner
• Totenkopf
• VF-61, VF-84 and VF-103, US Navy fighter squadrons nicknamed "Jolly Rogers"
• Pesthörnchen (CCC)