| Florida | |
 | |
| Continent | North America |
| Interest | St. Augustine |
| Population | Spanish citizens Slaves Tequesta |
| Affiliation | Spanish Empire |
- "The Urca has a planned stop to take on water somewhere on the coast of Florida. That's the point where they're most vulnerable to attack."
- ―James Flint to John Silver[src]
Florida is a peninsula between the Gulf of Mexico, the Atlantic Ocean, and the Straits of Florida. It is a territory of the Spanish Empire.
Geography[]
Florida is a peninsula in southern North America. It is bordered to the north by the Province of Georgia, a colony of the British Empire, the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean and to the south by the Straits of Florida. 110 miles south is the Spanish island of Cuba.
People[]
Florida is not as populated nor as wealthy as other territories of the Spanish Empire. Florida was of strategic military importance, not economic. Most of the citizens are concentrated in the garrison towns like St. Augustine and on the farms that feed them. There are also native tribes in the area, such as the Tequesta, who inhabit southeastern Florida.
History[]
Background[]
Spanish colonization of Florida began in 1513 with an expedition led by Juan Ponce de Leon. He named the land "Florida," which means "full of flowers." For years, the colonists struggled to survive due to attacks by hostile natives and the French.
In 1565, the city of St. Augustine was founded. It became a large and important port. The boundaries of Spanish Florida would continually be pushed further and further back by British colonists to the north and French colonists to the west, with hostile Indian tribes remaining a problem.
Season One[]
When John Silver transcribes the Urca de Lima schedule for Captain Flint and Eleanor Guthrie, Flint reveals he knows Silver has not given the complete schedule. Flint says he knows from his own reconnaissance that the Urca has a scheduled stop off the coast of Florida to take on water. Silver says he will give the rest of the schedule in increments to prevent Flint from murdering him before they capture the ship[1].
As they approach Florida in the midst of a hurricane, Silver prepares to give the final coordinates of the schedule. Flint produces his own notes about which bays and inlets that the Urca is most likely to stop at. When Silver gives the coordinates, Flint checks his notes and reveals that the Urca is to stop at Division Bay and tells Silver to give the coordinates to De Groot so they can alter course accordingly.
As the Walrus and the Ranger approach Division Bay, Flint gives a rousing speech to his crew, but when they approach the bay, they see it is empty. Flint tells De Groot to check the course again but De Groot insists that it is the correct course.
After an inventory of their stores, the crew agrees to Flint's plan and give him two days to send out scouts to locate the treasure galleon. Dufresne reveals to Gates that De Groot wants Flint tried as soon as they make landfall, but Gates tells him it's a bad idea and will lead to infighting. Dufresne questions Gates' loyalties, and Gates gives him a signed letter detailing Flint's crimes.
Sails are spotted to the south and Logan reveals it is a Spanish Man O' War. Flint plans to have the Walrus pose as an attacked Spanish merchant ship, while the Ranger sails away flying the Black. They will lure the Spanish warship between them and then fire on her from both ends, sinking her before she can bring her broadsides to bear. Gates refuses to follow the plan, saying that the plan is suicide, the Urca is nowhere to be found, and all he sees is an empty bay and a Guardacosta warship. Flint says that the ship isn't on patrol, it's an escort for the Urca. Gates says the whole reason for this endeavor was that the Urca had no escort. When Gates refuses to fall in line, Flint kills him.
Flint tells his crew that Gates died of a heart attack and he tells them the plan. They agree, and Dufresne tells Flint to say that they are from St. Augustine, as they will be asked their last port of call. Dufresne also advises to say their trade is anything but tobacco, as Seville regulates the trade heavily.
When the Man O' War arrives, Flint has Silver, who is fluent in Spanish, communicate with the Spanish Officer. When asked, Silver says that they are the Cazadora, and their captain is named Marco Fernandez. He also says that they are from St. Augustine and are a tobacco ship. Dufresne tells De Groot that Flint is trying to prove that the warship is not merely Guardacosta.
The warship follows the Ranger, confirming Flint's suspicions. Dufresne chooses at that moment to launch a mutiny against Flint. Flint attempts to fire on the warship but is shot by Dufresne, however Silver manages to sneak off to a nearby cannon and fire it, causing the Spanish Man O' War to respond with their own cannons.
The two pirate ships fire on the Spanish warship, but she is able to bring her broadsides to bear on the pirates. The Ranger's powder magazine is hit and it explodes, going down with all hands. The Walrus is able to limp away heavily damaged, where the crew beaches her on the shores of Florida.
Flint is woken up by Dufresne and Silver, who take him with them. They show him the Urca de Lima, wrecked on the shores, her crew gathering up the gold. Flint also sees the Spanish Man O' War standing guard in the bay[2].
Season Two[]
The Walrus crew sets up camp by the wreck of their ship. When Flint returns, he tells the crew his plan. The Urca wreck is defended by a full complement of soldiers and reinforced batteries with 18-pounder cannons. There is no way to approach from the land and with the man o' war guarding the bay, there is no way to approach by the sea either. However, they can take the warship. Flint explains that there are too many soldiers on the beach, meaning the watch on the ship is spare. He proposes that two men swim to the ship while the sun is failing, but before the night watch arrives, and eliminate the watch on the mainmast. They will then hoist their signal, after which the remaining pirates in longboats will board.
The plan, despite a rocky start, is successful and the pirates take the ship. The new watch arriving in longboats and the Spanish batteries on the beach try to stop the pirates but the pirates are able to flee[3].
Flint says that the wreck of the Urca is four days from St. Augustine, meaning they have two weeks at most before the gold is reclaimed by the Spanish. Flint and Silver send Vincent and Nicholas to watch the Spanish soldiers and the gold. Flint orders them to return to Division Bay and approach the Spanish camp from the south. Flint hopes to meet with them in two days, and then they will plan their final assault on the camp[4].
Vincent and Nicholas return and tell Flint that the gold is gone. They tell him that there were two Guardacosta men of war in the bay when they arrived, and they watched the Spanish soldiers take all the gold off the beach. However, Silver reveals to Max that in fact, the gold is still there, most of the Spanish soldiers having died of a plague[5].
She relays this news and the location to Jack Rackham, whose crew successfully takes the gold after a bloody fight. They return to Nassau with the gold and the Walrus, which they refitted because they needed the hold space.[6]
Season Four[]
After the Fall of Nassau to the pirates, John Silver asks Max where she planned to send him that he would never return. She explains that when Anne Bonny was recruiting spies for her in Port Royal, she learned of a man with an estate in the wilderness north of Spanish Florida who uses convicts as laborers. This man also was paid by wealthy families in England to take on family members they wanted out of sight, and they would live on his estate out of sight and out of mind[7].
Places of Interest[]
- St. Augustine (capital city)
- Division Bay
- Urca de Lima wreck
Gallery[]
