Mystic Wicks – April 26 2004
Divers find Morgan's lost pirate ship AN international dive team shivered in excitement when they spied the timbers of a wreck belonging to one of the most famous buccaneers of all time. They discovered the remains of Welshman Captain Henry Morgan's lost frigate, HMS Oxford, off the coast of Haiti. Oxford sank in 1669 as the result of an explosion believed to have been ignited by a celebratory pig roast. The 34-gun ship had been sent to Morgan by King Charles II following his appointment as Admiral in Chief of the Confederacy of Buccaneers. Having previously gained a fearsome reputation as a naval strategist and ruthless pirate operating against Britain's enemies, Spain, France and Holland, Morgan eventually become Lieutenant Governor of Jamaica. He died there in 1688. Rick Haupt and Bruce Leeming of Ocean Discovery Network led the team that discovered HMS Oxford, lying in 12 feet of water. The team found another of Morgan's ships, the Jamaica Merchant, in 1999 and this led them to search for Oxford.
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