Pedro Gilbert facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Pedro Gilbert
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| Born | c. 1797 |
| Died | June 11, 1835 (aged 38) |
| Cause of death | Execution by hanging |
| Piratical career | |
| Nickname | Don Pedro Gibert |
| Type | Pirate |
| Years active | 1832-1834 |
| Rank | Captain |
| Base of operations | Caribbean |
Pedro Gilbert or Don Pedro Gibert (c. 1797 – June 11, 1835) was an early 19th-century pirate, who was one of the few remaining pirates continuing to raid shipping on the Atlantic coast.
Biography
A former privateer in the service of the Colombian government, Gilbert began raiding American merchant vessels off the eastern coast of Florida with his schooner, the Panda in early 1832. On September 21, 1832, off the coast of what is now Stuart, Florida, Gilbert chased then boarded the Mexican, an American brig bound from Salem to Rio de Janeiro carrying $20,000 in silver.
Gilbert was also a slave trader who made several voyages to Africa to pick up slaves.
Gilbert was eventually captured in West Africa when his ship was sunk in a naval engagement with the British brig sloop HMS Curlew, commanded by Henry Dundas Trotter. Extradited to the United States, he was tried with 11 of his crewmen in Boston, Massachusetts. Seven of them, including Gilbert, were found guilty and received mandatory death sentences. Five of them: Pedro Gilbert, Maneul Boyga, Manuel Castillo, Angel Garcia, and Juan Montenegro, were executed on June 11, 1835. Another, Francisco Ruiz, was hanged on September 18, 1835, after initially receiving a stay of execution. The remaining convict, Bernardo de Soto, the first mate and owner of the Panda, was pardoned by President Andrew Jackson on July 6, 1835. There had been public pressure to spare his life since he'd helped save the lives of American passengers of a sunken ship several years back.
Memorial
A sandbar off Stuart which the pirates often used to lure unsuspecting ships is marked on nautical charts as "Gilbert's Bar."
