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 A contemporary image of theFancy (shown in background) attacking Every's prey | |
 Spanish Empire | |
|---|---|
| Name | Charles II |
| Namesake | Charles II of Spain |
| Renamed | renamed toFancy on May 7 1694 |
| Pirates | |
| Name | Fancy |
| Fate | May have ceased to be a pirate ship in 1695 |
| General characteristics | |
| Class & type | Man-of-war |
| Complement | 150 |
| Armament | 46 guns |
Fancy was a 46-gun frigate commanded by pirateHenry Every between May 1694 to late 1695.
Fancy was initially a 46-gunprivateer namedCharles II – afterCharles II of Spain – in Spanish service, commanded by a Captain Gibson, and was anchored atA Coruña, Spain. On 7 May1694,Henry Every and a few other conspirators organised and carried out a successfulmutiny and, setting Captain Gibson ashore, left A Coruña for theCape of Good Hope. At this time,Charles II was renamedFancy.
Upon arriving at the Cape, Every sailed to the island ofJohanna (Anjouan) in theComoros Islands, where he hadFancycareened, removing barnacles and weed from the section of the hull that was permanently below water, increasing her speed. He also hadFancyrazeed, intentionally removing parts of the ship'ssuperstructure in order to increase her speed. Following this work,Fancy became one of the fastest ships active in theIndian Ocean, and Every used this speed to attack and take a French pirate ship, looting the vessel and recruiting approximately 40 of the crew to his own ship, leaving him with a total complement of around 150.
Every continued to be active in the Indian Ocean, where he worked alongside other famous pirates of his time, includingThomas Tew. Most notable in his captures wasGanj-i-Sawai, aMughal ship under the command ofIbrahim Khan during EmperorAurangzeb's era. SinceGanj-i-Sawai mounted 62 cannons and had four to five hundred musket-armed guards, cannon fire fromFancy was instrumental in Every's victory – the first salvo caused a cannon aboardGanj-I-Siwai to explode, killing a number of gunners. Every's career ended when the crew returned toNassau in April 1696, inthe Bahamas. He returned to Britain aboard thesloopSea Flower, arriving in Ireland in June 1696 and promptly disappearing.
Although the fate ofFancy is unknown, it was rumored that Every gave her to the governor of Nassau as a bribe. There is supporting documentary evidence thatFancy ran aground onNew Providence and Governor Trott had the guns and everything of value stripped.[1]
