Jean Fleury
Encyclopedia
Jean Fleury (died 1527) was a 16th century French naval officer and privateer. He is best known for the capture of two out of the three Spanish galleons carrying the Aztec
treasure from Mexico to Spain in 1522. This was one the earliest recorded acts of piracy
against the new Spanish Empire and encouraged the French Corsairs, Dutch Sea Beggars and English Sea Dogs
to begin attacking shipping and settlements
in the Spanish Main
during the next several decades.
in Normandy
, Fleury served as a pilot under Jean Ango
and commanded a small squadron during the Four Years' War. He was involved in long range naval warfare, operating as far as 2,000 kilometres from his base with only a few hundred men, and was an active privateer during the conflict. In early 1522, three Spanish ships were sighted off the southwest coast of Portugal, somewhere between the Azores
and Cape St. Vincent
, and Florin ordered his five-ship squadron to attack. The small Spanish fleet, under Captain Quiñones and Alonso de Ávila, was on the last leg of their journey from Havana, Cuba to Seville, Spain carrying a large gold shipment taken from Hernando Cortez's recent conquest of Mexico and was to be presented as a tribute
to Charles V
. It is unknown whether Florin was aware of the Spaniard's cargo, however he decided to give chase and overtook them within a few hours.
Although the Spanish responded to the raid by fortifying nearly all their major ports and cities in the Caribbean, it was only a matter of time before the rest of Europe became aware of the treasure Spain was bringing back from the New World. Besides the gold bullion, among the treasures captured by Florin included exotic animals, enameled gold and jade, ornaments, emeralds, pearls, works of art, masks in mosaic of fine stones and other rare items which were presented to Francis I
.
The following year, he and Jean Terrian set out on another expedition against Spain with a fleet of eight ships capturing over 30 Portuguese and Spanish vessels by the end of the year. Fleury was eventually captured by the Spanish and, held captive for a time, was tried in Toledo
along with two of his officers, Michel Fere and Mezie de Irizar, and hanged as a pirate in 1527.
Aztec
The Aztec people were certain ethnic groups of central Mexico, particularly those groups who spoke the Nahuatl language and who dominated large parts of Mesoamerica in the 14th, 15th and 16th centuries, a period referred to as the late post-classic period in Mesoamerican chronology.Aztec is the...
treasure from Mexico to Spain in 1522. This was one the earliest recorded acts of piracy
Piracy
Piracy is an act of robbery or criminal violence at sea. The term can include acts committed on land, in the air, or in other major bodies of water or on a shore. It does not normally include crimes committed against persons traveling on the same vessel as the perpetrator...
against the new Spanish Empire and encouraged the French Corsairs, Dutch Sea Beggars and English Sea Dogs
Sea Dogs
Sea Dogs received mixed views from critics on its release. IGN were impressed with it, calling it "one booty call you won't want to miss". Gamespot were also positive about the game saying it's "an adventure that can be enthralling despite its many problems"....
to begin attacking shipping and settlements
Piracy in the Caribbean
] The era of piracy in the Caribbean began in the 16th century and died out in the 1830s after the navies of the nations of Western Europe and North America with colonies in the Caribbean began combating pirates. The period during which pirates were most successful was from the 1690s until the 1720s...
in the Spanish Main
Spanish Main
In the days of the Spanish New World Empire, the mainland of the American continent enclosing the Caribbean Sea and the Gulf of Mexico was referred to as the Spanish Main. It included present-day Florida, the east shore of the Gulf of Mexico in Texas, Mexico, Central America and the north coast of...
during the next several decades.
Biography
A French corsair and naval officer from DieppeDieppe, Seine-Maritime
Dieppe is a commune in the Seine-Maritime department in France. In 1999, the population of the whole Dieppe urban area was 81,419.A port on the English Channel, famous for its scallops, and with a regular ferry service from the Gare Maritime to Newhaven in England, Dieppe also has a popular pebbled...
in Normandy
Normandy
Normandy is a geographical region corresponding to the former Duchy of Normandy. It is in France.The continental territory covers 30,627 km² and forms the preponderant part of Normandy and roughly 5% of the territory of France. It is divided for administrative purposes into two régions:...
, Fleury served as a pilot under Jean Ango
Jean Ango
Jean Ango was a French ship-owner who provided ships to Francis I for exploration of the globe. A native of Dieppe, Ango took over his father's import-export business, and ventured into the spice trade with Africa and India...
and commanded a small squadron during the Four Years' War. He was involved in long range naval warfare, operating as far as 2,000 kilometres from his base with only a few hundred men, and was an active privateer during the conflict. In early 1522, three Spanish ships were sighted off the southwest coast of Portugal, somewhere between the Azores
Azores
The Archipelago of the Azores is composed of nine volcanic islands situated in the middle of the North Atlantic Ocean, and is located about west from Lisbon and about east from the east coast of North America. The islands, and their economic exclusion zone, form the Autonomous Region of the...
and Cape St. Vincent
Cape St. Vincent
Cape St. Vincent , next to the Sagres Point, on the so-called Costa Vicentina , is a headland in the municipality of Sagres, in the Algarve, southern Portugal.- Description :This cape is the southwesternmost point in Portugal...
, and Florin ordered his five-ship squadron to attack. The small Spanish fleet, under Captain Quiñones and Alonso de Ávila, was on the last leg of their journey from Havana, Cuba to Seville, Spain carrying a large gold shipment taken from Hernando Cortez's recent conquest of Mexico and was to be presented as a tribute
Tribute
A tribute is wealth, often in kind, that one party gives to another as a sign of respect or, as was often the case in historical contexts, of submission or allegiance. Various ancient states, which could be called suzerains, exacted tribute from areas they had conquered or threatened to conquer...
to Charles V
Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor
Charles V was ruler of the Holy Roman Empire from 1519 and, as Charles I, of the Spanish Empire from 1516 until his voluntary retirement and abdication in favor of his younger brother Ferdinand I and his son Philip II in 1556.As...
. It is unknown whether Florin was aware of the Spaniard's cargo, however he decided to give chase and overtook them within a few hours.
Although the Spanish responded to the raid by fortifying nearly all their major ports and cities in the Caribbean, it was only a matter of time before the rest of Europe became aware of the treasure Spain was bringing back from the New World. Besides the gold bullion, among the treasures captured by Florin included exotic animals, enameled gold and jade, ornaments, emeralds, pearls, works of art, masks in mosaic of fine stones and other rare items which were presented to Francis I
Francis I of France
Francis I was King of France from 1515 until his death. During his reign, huge cultural changes took place in France and he has been called France's original Renaissance monarch...
.
The following year, he and Jean Terrian set out on another expedition against Spain with a fleet of eight ships capturing over 30 Portuguese and Spanish vessels by the end of the year. Fleury was eventually captured by the Spanish and, held captive for a time, was tried in Toledo
Toledo, Spain
Toledo's Alcázar became renowned in the 19th and 20th centuries as a military academy. At the outbreak of the Spanish Civil War in 1936 its garrison was famously besieged by Republican forces.-Economy:...
along with two of his officers, Michel Fere and Mezie de Irizar, and hanged as a pirate in 1527.
Further reading
- Rogozinski, Jan. Pirates!: Brigands, Buccaneers, and Privateers in Fact, Fiction, and Legend. New York: Da Capo Press, 1996. ISBN 0-306-80722-X
- Solnick, Bruce B. The West Indies and Central America to 1898. New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 1970.