Bartholomew Roberts

Bartholomew Roberts was born John Roberts, a Welsh pirate who raided ships off the Americas and West Africa between 1719 and 1722. He was the most successful pirate of the Golden Age of Piracy as measured by vessels captured, taking over 470 prizes in his career. He is also known as Black Bart , but this name was never used in his lifetime, and also risks confusion with Black Bart of the American West.

Bartholomew Roberts was born in 1682 in CasnewyddBach, between Fishguard and Haverfordwest in Pembrokeshire, Wales. His name was originally John Roberts, and his father was most likely George Roberts. Its not clear why Roberts changed his name from John to Bartholomew, but pirates often adopted aliases, and he may have chosen that name after the wellknown buccaneer Bartholomew Sharp. He is thought to have gone to sea when he wasin 1695, but there is no further record of him until 1718, when he was mate of a Barbados sloop.

Source: Wikipedia