The Cache of Gems was originally a large portion of the Urca de Lima prize gold that was set aside by Jack Rackham, Anne Bonny and Max after it became clear that their position in Nassau was unstable. After British forces under Governor Woodes Rogers took back New Providence Island for the British Empire, it was revealed that Spain demanded their return, for they were furious over their very existence. This knowledge made them coveted by the British and pirates alike, as each side wanted to use it in their war for control over Nassau.
History[]
Season Three[]
After returning form Charles Town, Flint, Vane and Rackham work out a pact over possession of the gold from the Urca de Lima, which is kept in the vaults below Fort Nassau. Rackham uses money from the prize in order to secure other crews’ allegiance in the event of a threat to the island, as well as to fund fort repairs. In the event of an attack, Vane would lead the militia on the beach, while Flint would lead their naval forces[1].
However, the men paid to work on fort repairs refuse to work, forcing Rackham to rely on slave labor. Meanwhile, his crew recklessly spends large sums of money. Max tries to convince him that Anne and them should set aside a portion of the gold for themselves, which they would convert into more easily transportable commodities, such as pearls and gems. Rackham refuses at first, but after Max tells him to do it for Anne’s sake, combined with the arrival of Edward Teach to the island, Rackham agrees[2].
Max arranges for various deals that convert a significant amount of the gold into aforementioned commodities, which is then split into two separate caches, one for Max and the other for Jack and Anne. They then learn that a new governor is sailing to Nassau, with a fleet of eight ships and 700 soldiers. Newly appointed Governor Woodes Rogers sails to Nassau with Eleanor Guthrie at his side as an advisor, due to her intimate knowledge of Nassau and its workings. In order to defeat any resistance, Rogers plans on offering a universal pardon. Eleanor eventually learns that as part of deal with Spain to lend him money for his expedition, Rogers had to promise to return all of the prize gold within eight weeks, or a fleet of ten ships and 1,500 soldiers would be sent from Havana to raze Nassau. When they arrive, they find a fleet of ships guarding the bay and men assembled on the beach. Hornigold, now a privateer in the service of the Crown, is sent to read Rogers’s address, promising pardons for all save for Charles Vane, upon whom they place a £10,000 bounty. The address works, the majority of the pirates surrender[3].
With the success of Hornigold’s speech, the only holdouts are the Pirate Fleet under Teach’s command and the Colonial Dawn Crew in the fort. After Jack’s men vote to expel Vane in the hopes that it would ingratiate them with Rogers, allowing them to keep the fort and the gold. In order to facilitate their escape, they blow up the powder magazine, allowing Vane to escape to the jetty and Jack and Anne to run away with their cache. With the fort walls destroyed yet again, Hornigold is able to take over the fort[4].
After the Pirate Fleet escapes, Rogers and his men take full control over Nassau Town. Hornigold informs him that the entirety of the gold has been secured, and Rogers orders it to be handed over to Commodore Chamberlain and prepped to be shipped to Havana. In order to get a seat on the Governor’s Council and ingratiate herself with the new regime, Max offers her share of the gems to Rogers. Eleanor realizes it’s from the Urca gold, but Max tells them that no one knows that it was originally part of the Urca treasure. Rogers seems poised to accept the deal, remarking that it is equivalent to five years’ worth of tax revenue without any of the resentment that usually comes with it. However, Mrs. Hudson, Rogers’s chambermaid, reveals that she is a spy for the Colonial Intelligence wing of the Casa de Contratacion, and that Spain knows about the exchanges of gold for gems and is furious about them. Rogers agrees to send over the gems, but Hudson warns that based on their calculations, Max’s cache represents only half of it. Meanwhile, Rackham resolves to obtain a pardon so he won’t have to change his name while living a life of luxury with the cache[5].
While they search for the remaining cache, the gold from the fort, along with Max’s cache, is stowed in the fleet and under Chamberlain’s command, is shipped back to Havana. Eleanor explains to Rogers that she learned from Mrs. Hudson that the Spanish view the capture of the gold and subsequent transfers as an insult to the Empire. Rogers reaffirms his desire to find Jack and his cache lest war break out. Jack Rackham later returns to town seeking a pardon, unaware that Rogers and his men are searching for him. When he gives his name to the Pardon Clerk, he is taken by Redcoats to the Governor’s Mansion. There, Rogers informs him of the situation with Spain, and Rackham agrees to write a letter to Anne explaining that she should hand the cache over. Further, he says to only send one messenger, so as not to spook her. After Lieutenant Hersey is sent on his way, Rackham reveals privately to Max that he instructed Anne to run with the cache, hoping to force Rogers to flee in failure or allow the Spanish to raze Nassau, allowing room for a Second Pirate Republic to be born, where everyone will know it is because of him. When Hersey finds Anne and she reads the note, she kills him and flees, evading the Redcoats and militia scouring the island for her[6].
Max attempts to approach Anne by herself and convince her to give up the cache peacefully in order to secure Jack's release, explaining why Rogers needs the cache given to him. She lies and tells Anne that Jack is being tortured in order to further persuade Anne. Meanwhile, Flint and Vane explain to the Maroon Queen, the leader of a community of escaped slaves now allied with Flint and his crew, that they plan to find Jack and the cache and use it as bait to lure Rogers' forces to the Maroon Island, which the pirates and Maroons can use to their advantage and strike a decisive blow against the British. When they return to Nassau, Vane learns from Featherstone that the British actually plan on handing Jack over to the Spanish with the gems. He tracks Anne down and tells her about the British treachery, but tells her to hand over the cache anyway, that way they can grab both Jack and the jewels in one fell swoop[7].
Rogers departs Fort Nassau in a caravan with a guard of eight dragoons, having leaked a number of potential routes to his ship waiting on the southern coast in order to confuse his enemies. With Idelle's help, the pirates are able to learn the correct route. Flint, Vane and Anne ambush the caravan with a small party of men on horseback, killing Rogers' guards and crashing the carriage. Flint and Billy take the cache and ride to the shore where the Walrus is to retrieve them while Vane and Bonny stay behind to free Jack, who is shackled to the floor of the carriage. They succeed in breaking his chains, but as Vane mounts his horse he is shot in the leg by Rogers. Jack and Anne flee at Vane's behest while he and Rogers fight until the New Providence Militia arrive and take Vane into custody[8].
The Walrus flees to the Maroon Island under pursuit by Hornigold aboard the Orion. On the way there, Rackham throws the key to the chest over the side, not trusting the other men not to steal it. After forcing Hornigold to break off his pursuit, they move the cache ashore to the camp. Meanwhile, an ailing Rogers and Eleanor plan on sending a force to reclaim it. After Rogers's illness takes a turn for the worse and he needs to be sequestered, Eleanor takes over planning, and orders Commodore Peter Chamberlain to take along additional forces, including Hornigold and the militia[9].
The night before the battle, Flint, the Maroon Queen and Rackham agree to bury the cache in a secret location, however the Queen insists that Silver be one of the people who knows the location. Flint, Silver and Rackham go deep into the forest and bury the cache, with Jack noting the irony that the Maroons trust Silver above all of them not to betray them for money. The next day, the pirates and British do battle. In the end, the land forces are slaughtered in an ambush led by Flint, while the fleet is routed by Rackham and Teach, who arrived with the Pirate Fleet.[10]
Season Four[]
After the pirates' Invasion of Nassau is badly defeated, Flint and Madi lead their surviving men to rendezvous with the Pirate Resistance led by Billy Bones. At their base at the Barlow Estate, the three discuss potential next moves, with Billy and Flint divided over who should command and whether to attack Nassau Town immediately or try and free slaves from the interior plantations for more men. Flint tries to leverage his position by reminding Billy that of the three men who know the location of the cache, which is to provide Nassau's treasury if the pirates reclaim it, he may be the last one alive, given that Silver fell overboard and Rackham was last seen under heavy pursuit. Madi breaks the stalemate by saying that Silver told her the location, and sides with Billy[11].
After Nassau falls to the pirates, Eleanor Guthrie offers Flint and Silver a deal where she will surrender Fort Nassau and depart with all her and Governor Rogers's men if they give over the cache of gems. Over Silver's objections, Flint surrenders himself as collateral until the cache is delivered[12].
Mrs. Hudson is sent to inform Governor Woodes Rogers, who is returning to Nassau after taking Edward Teach's ship in battle, and tells him to retire to Port Royal while the deal is carried out. Rogers refuses and continues to sail into the bay, but relents after Eleanor fires warning shots from the fort. Meanwhile, Silver informs Billy and Madi. Billy is furious at this idea, while Madi accepts that it was a difficult decision but it is the right one in the end. Kofi is sent to the Maroon Queen to retrieve the cache, knowing that he would be trusted enough by her. Billy continues to try and persuade Silver to side with him, and eventually he relents.
After a few days, a two masted vessel is seen approaching from the south. Eleanor and Flint are told to exit the northwest tunnel where they will be escorted overland to the ship with the cache. Meanwhile, Silver and Billy plot an ambush outside the tunnel in order to kill Flint and Eleanor. However, Silver has double crossed Billy, and has Israel Hands kill Jacob Garrett and subdue Billy, whom he orders brought to the Underhill Estate. Meanwhile, Eleanor and Flint are met at their tunnel by Madi and her guards, and they travel to southern coast, and are shocked to find Jack Rackham and his men, his ship having been confused for Kofi's[13].
However, instead of going to the Port Royal, Rogers arrives with Havana's Fleet, having convinced them that the Fort is in control of his men and will stand down if ordered by him, they are free to wipe out the pirates, lest they foment a slave rebellion in Cuba as they are trying to do in the British colonies. Many of the pirates and their allies are killed, but some are able to retreat to the Walrus and the Lion, which waited off the coast for survivors. The Walrus returns to the Maroon Island where they find it filled with pirates and Maroons from across the New World. The Queen then explains that they had arrived to join the fight after hearing of Nassau's fall which is why she couldn't send Kofi to deliver the cache[14].
As the Pirate-Maroon alliance plan their next steps, Rogers sends word that he has Madi, who was thought killed in the Spanish invasion, is in his custody and he demands the cache for her safe return. The Queen and Flint know it would divide the fragile alliance to give up their treasury, while Silver argues for trading it. Flint promises that they will return to Nassau and free her by force. However, Silver has the chest dug up secretly and placed in the hold, where it is guarded by Kofi and Obi.[15]
Flint's rescue plan fails when the recon team led by Kofi is captured and displayed along with Madi on deck of Rogers's ship, the Eurydice, and he begins executing them one by one. In order to save Madi, Silver has the cache brought up on deck and signals Rogers not to execute Madi. When Rogers sees that they have the chest, he sets sail for Skeleton Island. Once at the island, Flint and Dooley conspire to steal the cache. They ambush the guard and prepare to jump overboard and swim ashore but the guard, who was merely wounded, prepares to fire his pistol at them but he is killed by Israel Hands. Hands says he will let them go in order to prove to Silver how treacherous Flint is. Once the cache's theft is revealed, Silver goes to Rogers's ship himself and explains the situation and that he sent his six best men after Flint to reclaim the treasure and kill the Captain[16].
Silver is given a day to find Flint and the chest. He joins his men on the island, where the search has stopped because the tracks split up. Silver orders Adams, Colin and Pirate 1 on one path and Joji and Pirate 2 on another. The first group is all killed by Flint, and the bodies found by Silver and Hands, and Silver realizes that the cache was left behind for it was too heavy. Flint and Dooley retrieve it from its hiding place and begin trekking through the island but are stopped by Joji and the other pirate. Dooley is wounded by Joji, but Flint kills him and the other pirate. They then find a cave and bury the cache. Silver eventually confronts Flint, who kills Dooley when he tries to kill Silver. Silver and Flint duel, but are stopped by the sound of explosions. They rush to the riverbank, where they see the Walrus going down in flames while Rogers and his Redcoats pick off the pirates swimming to shore[17].
The Walrus survivors are picked by Jack Rackham aboard the Lion. There, Flint and Silver inform him of the situation with the chest, and agree that it will only be dug up when Rogers is defeated. After a fierce battle, the pirates capture Rogers, his ship and his remaining men. The three then agree that Featherstone will ferry Madi back to the Maroon Camp aboard the Eurydice, and Rackham will stay aboard the Lion while Flint and Silver go to dig up the cache. As they trek through the jungle, Flint demands that they stop to rest. Aside, Flint tells Silver that he will not lead them to the cache unless he knows what happens next, believing that Silver has other plans than returning to the Camp and resuming the war. In the end, Silver has Flint apprehended, and brought to Savannah, where he is to live out the rest of his days in humane but secure internment with Thomas Hamilton.
The cache remains buried in the cave on Skeleton Island, its location only known to Captain Flint. After Rogers is deposed, Featherstone becomes the new governor, and piracy is officially outlawed, although Jack and a few other crews are allowed to still discreetly go out on the Account, in order to drive up prices for Nassau's merchants. After taking on Mark Read as a new recruit, Anne Bonny voices her concern that the new men he brings on will try to convince him to search for the treasure. Jack remarks that he has chased after and even possessed the cache and that it never ends well. Rather than chase after it again, he says he is content with just trying to be a pirate for a little while longer[18].
Quotes[]
“Money, separated from the Urca gold within the fort and rendered into a new form... a cache of gems for which Spain is holding the new governor accountable. A cache which, if used creatively, could be the key to defeating British forces in Nassau. The only question is, can we find it before he does?”
- Charles Vane to Flint in XXIV.
“There's treasure inside that box, a handful of which could provide a lifetime of prosperity. Facing that kind of temptation, there are few men I would trust to self-deny. But it is not the treasure that concerns me most. Charles Vane's sacrifice is in that box. If your man is unsuccessful in seeing to his rescue, Charles Vane's death is inside that box. Along with my good name. Along with her lost love. Along with your late quartermaster's life. All the awful sacrifices made to assemble that box are now part of its contents, and those things... are sacred things that I trust in no man's hands. The next time that chest is opened will be after Anne and I walk away with it, And once the smoke is cleared... and all is done.”
- Jack Rackham to Flint in XXVII.
"I've chased Captain Flint's treasure. I've had Captain Flint's treasure. It never ends well."
- Jack Rackham to Anne Bonny in XXXVIII.