What was the name of the 1695 treasure ship captured by Henry Every?

The story behind the answer

The 1695 treasure ship captured by Henry Every was Ganj-i-Sawai.

Ganj-i-Sawai was a large armed Mughal vessel returning from Mecca toward Surat when Every and his crew attacked it in the Indian Ocean. Every commanded the pirate ship Fancy, formerly the privateer Charles II. The capture produced an enormous haul and made Every one of the most wanted pirates in the world.

The attack had major diplomatic consequences. Mughal Emperor Aurangzeb’s officials demanded action from the English authorities, and the East India Company feared that its trading privileges in India would be destroyed. England issued a proclamation offering a reward for Every’s capture.

Sources differ on the precise value of the treasure and on some details of the violence aboard the ship. The ship’s name, however, is consistently given as Ganj-i-Sawai, also spelled Gang-i-Sawai in some historical accounts.

Source: Wikipedia · fact-checked Sept. 2026

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