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| Port Royal, Jamaica 1690 |
First, a
little history of the town…
Port Royal (changed
in 1660 from Point Cagway) was a village in Jamaica, taken by the English in
1655. The town had a natural deep harbor
perfect for ships, but there was little to defend it. Houses dotted the
landscape up the hills and down to the water, some with stilts in the sand,
their houses standing in the tidal swells.
A couple
forts were built, but that was not enough to keep the Spanish at bay, so the
inhabitants contacted the Brethren of the Coast, a pirate union of sorts, and
invited them to settle there. Port Royal boomed. Soon 6,500 souls resided
there. Ships in the harbor and a lively town with men known for their
swashbuckling, rough ways were a deterrent for anyone thinking to come ashore
and cause havoc.
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| Port Royal After quake |
Before long
Port Royal became a haven for pirates with brothels and lawlessness. Merchants
bought and sold what the pirates dragged ashore, but this wild life had its
comeuppance, with a final, deadly end.
June 7, 1692
life in Port Royal changed forever. Just before noon a magnitude 7.5 earthquake
hit Jamaica, its epicenter in the hills above the town. The ground suffered
liquidation, sinking buildings, animals, trees and streets. Geysers erupted. When
the town collapsed, a large tsunami crashed onto the island, taking a ship with
it. 40 feet high on the wall of water the ship throttled inland to rest on a
ruined building. Unearthed corpses floated amongst the debris. Landslides
prevailed. Except for the ship perched on an old building, what remained of Port
Royal sank into the sea.
Over 5000 died. Looting and violence took over. Of those who survived the initial destruction, many later succumbed to their injuries or illness.
Over 5000 died. Looting and violence took over. Of those who survived the initial destruction, many later succumbed to their injuries or illness.
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| Port Royal Before the quake |
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| Port Royal After the quake |
As a species, people are enduring. They usually rebuild after a catastrophe, and many tried to rebuild Port Royal, but one disaster after another struck, hurricanes, fire, more earthquakes. What remains today is insignificant compared to the late 17th century.
Today, you
can swim over the sunken city, and see rooftops not far below. In the past
years, archaeological digs have explored the remains. Interesting finds have
surfaced. “In 1969, Edwin Link discovered the most
famous artifact: a pocket watch dated 1686, stopped at exactly 11:43 (a.m.).”
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Many
thanks to:
Wikicommons
public domain.
‘Port
Royal, Jamaica, Sunken Pirate City
at Port Royal, Nature took her revenge on the
"Wickedest City in the World."’ https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/sunken-pirate-stronghold-at-port-royal
History
Channel:
“Earthquake
destroys Jamaican pirate haven”
‘The History
of Port Royal, Jamaica”
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