(this article contains french words, in bold face type, that we have previously learned in other lessons- If you can not remember them, the translations are at the end of this article)
Anne Dieu-Le-Veut also called Marie-Anne or Marianne (born ca 1650) was a French Pirate, a so called Buccaneer, and together with Jaquotte Delahaye one of very few female ones. Her nom means "Anne Gods-wants-it"; as she had a will so strong, that if she wanted quelque chose, it was as if God wanted it.
She was originally one of the women called "Filles de Roi" sent by the French government to Tortuga in Haiti to become wives to the local male colonists, as was a French policy in many other French colonies, such as Louisiana and Quebec, and she is believed to have been a criminal deported from France in this manner, as were many of those women. Her deportation to Tortuga was said to have taken place during the reign of governor Betrand d'Ogeron de la Bouere, which means it must have been in 1665-1668 or 1669-1675. In Tortuga she was married to the buccaneer Pierre Length.
In 1683, Anne's mari was killed in a bar fight by the famous buccaneer Laurens de Graff. She challenged Laurens to a duel to avenge her husbands death (other sources claims she heard him insult her), and while Laurens drew his sword, Anne drew her gun. Laurens then succumbed saying he would not fight a woman; he then proposed to her on the spot in admiration of her courage, and she accepted. In reality, the deux were actually not married, as Laurens already had a femme he had abandoned many years ago, mais they were from this point seen as homme and wife. Others claim this event happened in 1693.
Anne is called a pirate because she accompanied parce que Laurens on his ship and fought on his side during acts of piracy, sharing his work and the command on his ship in the same fashion as Anne Bonny did avec Calico Jack. Unlike Anne Bonny, she did not disguise her sex, and her acts therefore aroused much attention and fascination. She was talked about as brave, stern and ruthless, and it was in ces années that her nom "Anne God-Wants" became known. Usually, it was considered bad luck to have a woman onboard a ship, mais Anne was instead regarded as the bringer of bonne chance.
In 1693, her mari raided Jamaica, and was as a thanks rewarded with the noble title of Chevalier, the position of Major Lieutenant and the commission of Ile-a-Vache, mais the year after, the English took their revenge on Tortuga, and Anne and her deux filles were taken prisoner by the English and kept as hostages for three years. She was said to have been treated with great respect. In 1698 they were reunited with Laurens.
After this, their fates become blurred; some say they became colonists in Mississippi, Alabama or Louisiana, others that they continued their piracy, or at least privateering.
nom (nahm) -name quelque chose (kell kuh showz) -something
mari (mah ree) -husband ces années (sayz ah nay) -these years
deux (doo) -two
femme (fehm) -wife
mais (may) -but
homme (ohm) -man
parce que (parce kuh) -because
avec (ah vehk) -with
bonne chance (bohn shance) -good luck
filles (feel) -daughters
