Black Sails Wiki
Register
Advertisement
Walrus
Bs101 0320
Vital statistics
Port Nassau
Owner James Flint
Jack Rackham
Captain James Flint
Crew Walrus Crew (60-70 men)
Passengers Richard Guthrie (Formerly; deceased)
Madi (Formerly)
Status Sunk at Skeleton Island
Type Square rigger
Weapons 26 cannon
4 swivel guns
Battles Boarding of Parrish's Ship
Boarding of the Andromache
Battle in Division Bay
Skirmish off the Coast of Carolina
Battle of the Maroon Island
Invasion of Nassau
Burning of the Walrus
Affiliation Pirate Republic
First appearance I.
"That ship flies the banner of Captain Flint."
Merchant Ship's Cook to John Silver[src]

The Walrus is the ship of the infamous pirate Captain James Flint during the Golden Age of Piracy.

History

Background

Flint became the captain of the Walrus shortly after his arrival in Nassau in February, 1706. He convinced her quartermaster, Hal Gates, to prop him up as captain and he was elected shortly thereafter. By June, they captured their first significant prize.

At some point, Flint convinced the crew to track down the Maria Aleyne, a prize he said would yield a tremendous haul. However, the ship proved to be a mediocre prize, and Morley became distrustful of Flint after witnessing him murder two passengers and report their deaths to Miranda Barlow upon their return.

By the spring of 1715, the crew of the Walrus became dissatisfied with Flint's leadership after he lead them on a string of prizes with poor profits. Singleton emerged as the main challenger to his leadership.

Season One

In 1715, the Walrus attacked Parrish's Ship, which refused to surrender, forcing the pirates to fight. The ship proved to be another disappointing prize, although Flint found something he was looking for in the captain's log, but Gates pointed out that they were still short of their goal. The crew also takes on a new cook, John Silver, from the merchant crew. Eventually, the pirates flee back to Nassau when a Royal Navy warship, the Scarborough, is spotted nearby. While the ship is anchored in the bay, Silver sneaks aboard and into Flint's cabin at night to figure out what the ripped page he stole means. The next morning, Singleton demands a vote for the captaincy be called. Flint reveals that he has been tracking a massive prize for them, but accuses Singleton of stealing the page from the log necessary to do so and turned the crew against him to cover his tracks. Singleton decides to duel Flint rather than face a trial overseen by Gates. Flint prevails, and hands Billy Bones, the ship's boatswain, a blank page, which Billy says is the stolen one. Flint then reveals that the prize they are tracking is the Urca de Lima, a Spanish treasure galleon carrying five million dollars worth of gold. The crew then votes to reelect Flint as captain[1].

Flint, Gates and Billy realize that Silver is the true thief, and try to apprehend him discreetly, but Silver is able to escape by joining the other crew members in going ashore[2].

At night, Billy Bones approaches Morley, the last close ally of Singleton's that posed a threat to Flint. Billy succeeds in convincing him that Singleton was the thief, however Morley explains that he is afraid that Flint and Miranda Barlow have a secret agenda, and will use the crew like pawns to achieve it[3].

In preparation of their voyage, Flint orders the ship be careened. However, the ship's master, De Groot, warns that the spot Flint chose is too unsafe, and they need to find another one. Flint counters that they don't have time to find another spot if they want to capture the galleon, and the crew votes in Flint's favor. At first, the careening seems to be going well, except for the fact that two crew members tied their rope to the wrong tree, and they ignore Billy's order to fix it. The winds then pick up, and the ship begins to tip over. De Groot declares that they have to cut the ship loose or they will lose the rigging entirely. However, Randall became trapped under the ship while looking for his cat, and Flint and Morley are forced to amputate his leg to save him. Unfortunately, Morley is killed as the ship rolls over, but no lasting harm is done to the ship. The crew is then forced to set sail after the Andromache, which was supposed to hand over her 12 pounder cannon, but ultimately reneged on the deal[4].

During the chase, Flint orders the t'gallants be raised in order to give them extra speed, but De Groot warns that it will put too much pressure on the masts. Flint overrules him, and with Billy's help they able to safely accomplish the task. They then sail straight at the Andromache, which turns to fire broadsides at them. However, Beauclerc kills their helmsmen, causing them to lose the wind, and the current brings the ship alongside the pirates. A fierce battle ensues on the decks of the Andromache, but ultimately the pirates prevail. During the sweep of the hold, the pirates discover that Captain Bryson and 20 of his men have retreated to a bunker that overlooks the lower gun deck, meaning that they cannot get the coveted 12 pounders. Furthermore, Bryson told the Scarborough of their route, and sure enough the ship soon appears on the horizon[5].

After nightfall, a stalemate ensues as the Walrus Crew repeatedly tries and fails to breach the bunker, while simultaneously trying to avoid doing anything that would give the British Navy and indication of their exact location in the dark. Eventually, the pirates realize that there are slaves being held in the hold below the bunker, and drop a tool into the hold to break their shackles. The slaves attack Bryson and his men and open the door to the bunker, allowing the pirates to flood in and finish them off. As they transfer the cannons, two pirates accidentally set off a powder trap rigged by Bryson that causes an explosion. The pirates flee as the Scarborough begins firing at them. After noticing that the Andromache's sprit sail brace got tangled with their bow and is dragging them down, Billy and Flint go to the bow to cut it loose. During this time, Flint asks Billy about a letter he found in Bryson's cabin written by Miranda Barlow. The ship is then hit by another barrage and Billy falls overboard. Flint and Gates rush to the stern to see if they can spot him in the water but they cannot, and have to leave him behind. A solemn funeral is then held on the decks of the Walrus for their fallen crew members, whose bodies are thrown into the sea. In lieu of a body, Billy's cutlass is thrown in by Captain Flint[6].

After returning to Nassau, Randall is nearly voted off the crew, but Silver is able to get them to agree to keep him on if Silver acts as his guardian. After acquiring supplies for the voyage, the ship sets sail alongside the Ranger to capture the Urca de Lima, the biggest Spanish treasure galleon in the Americas[7].

The two ships sail through a hurricane, during which Silver provides the final part of the schedule, which leads to Division Bay. However, they find the bay empty, and are soon confronted by a massive Spanish Man O' War that escorted the galleon. During the battle, the Walrus was heavily damaged, and ended up grounded on the coast of Florida[8].

Season Two

The crew sets up a temporary camp by the beached vessel. After Dufresne gives Flint the chance to come up with a plan to take the gold in exchange for sparing his life, Flint proposes that the thirty-odd surviving members of the crew instead take the lightly guarded Spanish Man O' War, refit , recuperate and return for the gold. Flint and Silver successfully lead the crew in boarding the warship, leaving the Walrus beached on the Florida shores[9].

When the Colonial Dawn arrived to Florida, its crew, led by Jack Rackham, defeated the Spanish soldiers and took the Urca gold. They also discovered the Walrus and repaired her, because only one ship did not have enough cargo capacity to carry all the gold to Nassau. Crewed by Rackham's men, the Walrus was brought back to Nassau, full of Spanish gold[10].

Season Three

After Flint's return to Nassau, Flint, Vane and Rackham made a deal to jointly lord over New Providence and keep the island protected from the British. As part of the deal, Rackham gave the Walrus back to Flint, while the Man O' War was to remain anchored in Nassau harbour to serve as a floating battery. Meanwhile, Flint proclaimed that any magistrate that hanged a pirates in the New World would be visited by him. The crew subsequently attacked St. Kitts, Nevis, Bridgetown and Martinique before sacking the town of Bath. En route back to Nassau, they encounter the Straight Arrow sitting at anchor with the Black flying. They decide to investigate, but this allows Captain Benjamin Hornigold, now a British privateer, to trap them, and demand that they surrender or be sunk. Flint convinces his crew to resist Hornigold's offer of pardons, and sails the Walrus into a massive storm to throw Hornigold off their tail[11].

The crew sails into the storm and succeeds in getting Hornigold to retreat. However, one of the t'gallants gets stuck and they are unable to furl it. The wind and waves cause the ship to nearly capsize. Flint is able to right the ship by cutting a support rope holding down the tops of the main and fore masts. The wind blows the tops of the masts into the sea. Meanwhile, Muldoon, who had been helping Silver, now quartermaster, patch up leaks in the hold, is killed when he is pinned against the hull and drowned by rising waters. Eventually, the storm dissipates, but it has blown the ship into the Doldrums, leaving them becalmed with little food or water. Hornigold finds the debris from the Walrus, and concludes that they sunk in the storm[12].

On day 12, the food stores have been empty for three days, and the fresh water is just about gone. Furthermore, the eel nets can't catch enough food for the crew. Flint suggests feeding only the men vital to sailing the ship. Silver is outraged by this idea, but Flint pulls rank. On day 18, two members of the crew, Palmer and Oates, accuse each other of stealing bread and neither is willing to confess. While John Silver tries to figure out what to do with them, Flint executes the two, telling Silver that if he isn't willing to do what is necessary, he will. On day 21, the crew finds a dead whale floating nearby. De Groot points out that they float when they rot, but Flint and Silver go out to investigate in a launch. While the whale is inedible, they harpoon several sharks to feed the crew. Shortly afterwards, the wind picks up, and the Walrus sails to the first island they find[13].

The crew makes landfall on the island, but are captured by the Maroons, escaped slaves, who call it home[14]. The crew is imprisoned by the Maroons until Flint makes a deal with the Maroons to retake Nassau from the British, and incite a rebellion across the New World to free it from colonial rule[15].

The Walrus sails to Ocracoke Island in order to regroup with and recruit the Pirate Fleet and Charles Vane. En route, tensions flare on the crew between pirates like Dobbs and the new Maroons that have joined and are being trained as sailors by the crew, but Flint and Billy keep them in check. When they arrive, they meet with Edward Teach, who took command of the fleet in Flint's absence. Teach refuses to cede command to Flint, and the two agree to a duel. Teach almost kills Flint, but is prevented from doing so by Vane. Teach orders them to leave the island. On the way back to the Maroon Island, Vane reveals that the Spanish plan to invade Nassau if the new British governor is unable to return the entirety of the Urca Gold, including the Cache of Gems belonging to Jack Rackham[16].

The pirates and Maroons come up with a new plan to steal the cache in order to weaken Governor Woodes Rogers. They sail to Nassau, where John Silver goes ashore to proclaim Captain Flint's return while Madi, the Maroon Queen's heir, secures a stockpile of weapons from her father, Mr. Scott's, agents[17].

Afterwards, the Walrus feigns sailing away, but in reality sails until the hull is below the horizon and with the sails furled, the ship appears out of sight of the island. Meanwhile, Flint, Vane and Anne Bonny lead the shore party in going after the convoy carrying Rackham and the gems. Aboard the ship, and incident occurs when Dobbs beats a young Maroon named Chidi, whom he believes responsible for choosing the men who were tortured to death at the Maroon Camp during their captivity. Dooley, Joji and Wayne learn of the event and keep it contained before informing Silver. Silver, fearing a civil war aboard ship if the Maroons learn of it, informs Madi of the incident. For the good of the crew, Madi orders Chidi to keep quiet about the event, and if pressed to say that he was beaten by Kofi for speaking rudely to her. The Walrus is then spotted by Captain Benjamin Hornigold and the Orion. They rush to pick up the shore party, which was successful in retrieving Jack and the cache at the cost of Vane's capture. Billy Bones, Ben Gunn and Wayne stay behind to lead the effort to free Vane. The Walrus then flees for the Maroon Island[18].

The Walrus sails to the Maroon Island, with the Orion on her tail. As they approach the shore, Silver leads the crew in performing a dangerous maneuver in shallow water using the anchors to rapidly turn their broadsides on the approaching Orion, which flees after a small army of Maroons emerges onto the beach. The pirates and the Maroons then prepare the beach for the impending battle, with Jack Rackham to command the Walrus[19].

At the battle, a massive British fleet pummels the beach with cannon fire before sending the Redcoats and militia ashore. The Walrus is to try and disrupt the British naval line, but both Jack and Anne are uneasy about the prospect of going against seven ships with their one. However, a second British fleet is spotted sailing towards them. After hearing a description of the fleet, Jack realizes that it is in fact the Pirate Fleet being led by Edward Teach. After rendezvousing with the fleet, Teach and Jack lead it towards the British line flying false colors. Jack convinces Teach to raise the Black early, to lure the British commander into a sense of false confidence. As the two lines exchange fire, Anne leads the vanguard in swimming onto the Orion, killing its crew and turning its stern chasers on the HMS Milford, the British flagship, causing the commander to signal the line to retreat. Ashore, Flint leads the pirates and Maroons in ambushing the Redcoats, routing them[20].

Season Four

The Walrus, Eagle, Defiant and the Revenge sail into the Bay of Nassau in order to finally topple Governor Woodes Rogers. Seeing only five, two-masted vessels and an unarmed fort to defend it, they proceed to sail into the bay while the Revenge begins to fire at the fort. However, the three ships are grounded by Scuttled Ships at the mouth of the harbor, leaving them at the mercy of the fort's previously hidden guns. The Walrus is able to readjust to return fire, but Flint realizes it is hopeless and orders the men to abandon ship. During the chaotic retreat, Silver gets dragged below the water, but Flint and Madi are forced to flee when they are attacked by Rogers' sloops. The Revenge sails away with three sloops in pursuit, while the survivors in the longboats try to make to the fallback position on the eastern shore. Flint, Madi and a handful of their men make it, where they link up with Billy Bones and the Pirate Resistance[21].

After retaking Nassau town from the British, Eleanor Rogers makes a deal with Flint to exchange the Cache of Gems for the evacuation of British forces and allies from Fort Nassau. While they wait for the cache to arrive, the pirates try and tow the damaged Walrus, the only ship of the original fleet in decent shape, off the scuttled hulk. They are observed by Long John Silver and Billy Bones, who muse about how the ship persists despite all they have put her through[22].

As Havana's Fleet approaches Nassau, Augustus Featherstone and Idelle lead De Groot and a number of other pirates in sailing out of the harbor, sending word to Long John Silver and the other pirates at the Underhill Estate via Dooley that they will wait off the southern coast. After escaping the Spanish, they find Jack Rackham and the Lion. They agree to wait for survivors. Hours later, Flint and Julius, the leader of the slave rebellion on the island, arrive with their battered forces. As they sail to the Maroon Island to regroup, Jack and the Lion split off and head north. When they arrive at the island, they are surprised to find several vessels anchored off the coast. At the camp, they find that dozens of pirate crews and Maroon tribes have rallied to join the fight against the British[23].

After learning that Madi is alive and in Rogers' captivity, with Rogers demanding the cache as ransom, the Walrus sails for Nassau, with Silver having the cache brought with them against Flint's wishes[24].

The Walrus sails into the harbor under the cover of night, and Kofi is sent ashore with a small group of men to find out where Madi is being kept so they can launch a rescue mission. The next morning, they find that Rogers has sailed the Eurydice behind them in the night, and he displays Madi, Kofi and his men on deck. Rogers begins executing them one by one, and Flint orders them to attack. Silver belays the order and has the cache brought on deck and signals Rogers, who sails for Skeleton Island. When they arrive, Flint and Dooley kill the guard and flee ashore with the gems. Silver informs Rogers of what has happened, and that he has sent his six best men to recover the chest and kill Flint[25].

While Silver joins his men in hunting for Flint ashore, De Groot and Ben Gunn are left in command, with a truce between them and Rogers in place until sunrise. While they wait, Rogers breaks the truce and has his men set fire to the Walrus' stern. De Groot and Ben try to flood the hold in order to put out the fire, but it is too far gone and De Groot orders them to abandon ship. As the pirates try to swim ashore, Rogers leads his men in longboats in picking them off, killing De Groot and many others. The fire eventually reaches the powder magazine, which explodes, sinking the ship[26].

Flint, Silver and Hands, with all their men dead, rally the struggling survivors and try and help them ashore. The Lion arrives, and picks up the survivors, and Flint subsequently leads the pirates to victory over the British[27].

Crew

Walrus Crew

The Walrus was largely manned by the crew under the leadership of the infamous Captain Flint

Colonial Dawn Crew

The ship is briefly used by the crew of the Colonial Dawn, led by Jack Rackham, to transport the Urca de Lima prize gold.

Jolly
The Black Sails wiki has a collection of images and media related to Walrus.

Passengers

Trivia

  • In the latter half of Season Four, it is clear that a different prop ship is being used instead of the usual one. This is evidenced by the absence of the Walrus's unique red and black paint scheme, as well as a lion figurehead in the place of the woman, and a far lower and less ornate stern.
  • In the original book, a piece of wood with the ship's name is found inside the hole where the treasure was buried.
  • The number of swivel guns is often inconsistent, but the most common configuration is a pair at the poop deck, quarterdeck and forecastle.

Appearances

Season One
I. II. III. IV.
V. VI. VII. VIII.
Season Two
IX. X. XI. XII. XIII.
XIV. XV. XVI. XVII. XVIII.
Season Three
XIX. XX. XXI. XXII. XXIII.
XXIV. XXV. XXVI. XXVII. XXVIII.
Season Four
XXIX. XXX. XXXI. XXXII. XXXIII.
XXXIV. XXXV. XXXVI. XXXVII. XXXVIII.

References

Advertisement