John Quelch commanded the brigantine Charles in 1703.
Quelch was an English pirate who began his career as a privateer during Queen Anne’s War. He took command of Charles after its original captain, Daniel Plowman, became ill and died during the voyage from New England toward the Portuguese-controlled Azores.
Instead of pursuing authorized enemy targets, Quelch’s crew attacked ships linked to Portugal, even though Portugal was not then an enemy of England. The crew captured valuable cargo and returned to Boston in 1704, where authorities arrested them.
Quelch and several associates were tried under a special Admiralty court in Boston. He was convicted and hanged on June 30, 1704. His case is notable because it was among the first colonial American piracy trials conducted under English admiralty authority, and because the Charles expedition began as a legal privateering voyage.