William Kidd, also Captain William Kidd or simply Captain Kidd (22 January 1654 – 23 May 1701) was a Scottish sailor who was tried and executed for piracy after returning from a voyage to the Indian Ocean. Some modern historians deem his piratical reputation unjust.
This famous Scottish pirate had a very unlucky career. From a great privateer he became an infamous pirate. Many historians today do not even consider Captain William Kidd a pirate. The people talk more about his fate, and less about his deeds. For his one and only act of piracy he paid with his very own life. However, beginning of his career looked very promising.
Kidd was born around 1645 in Greenock, Scotland. He loved the sea and sailing. Since the childhood, his dream had been to become a seaman, or even more, a great privateer and a pirate hunter. Later on, he left his homeland for New York where his career got underway. The success came almost instantly and Kidd's reputation as a privateer was growing rapidly. His prestige increased after many successful raids and a rank of a captain entitled him afterwards. He married Sarah Bradley Cox, a rich 20-years-old two-times widow. They had two kids. With successful career, wealth and family, his dreams were becoming reality.
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England heard of his success, and in 1695, the king called him to serve there. Kidd agreed, hoping to win more challenging contracts. Once in England, he met many prominent citizens, including the new governor of New York and Massachusetts, Sir George Bellomont. He had a proposal for Kidd, which later turned fatal. He was put in the command of the "Adventure", a specially designed galley-warship with 30 cannons and 100 skillful crewmembers. His backers counted a lot of influential people in England. Some rumor goes that the king himself included that group. His main task was to hunt the pirates of the Red Sea. Kidd acquired two commissions: one gave him the authority to capture the French ships, and the other made him the government's pirate hunter.
