Sir Henryi Morgan lived a life
of rags to riches. In his time,
he first was an indentured slave.
When freed, he drifted into crime.
The century was seventeenth,
The New World under Spanish rule.
A pirate Morgan had become,
and to the Spaniards he was cruel.
Sir Morgan managed to become
the captain of his own large crew,
controlling many ships and men.
This Welshman had a lot to do!
With Mansfield, Morgan sailed southwest,
there plundering St. Catherine.
Escaping, he sailed elsewhere then
assembling seven hundred men.
A raid in Cuba yielded him
A very hefty sum of gold.
To Portobelo he then sailed.
Five hundred men they were, all told.
Four hundred men marched forth with him
To Portobelo; then again
he raided other towns and gained
himself prestige plus ships and men.
At last he made his boldest move.
On Panama he set his sight.
In jungle land, he cunningly
took risks and won this major fight.
A pillager and murderer,
in England he was later tried.
Yet in the end, he saw crime pay.
Respectable and rich he died!
For Joe Maverick's "A storm on the Spanish Main" Poetry Contest
Categories:
henryi, history,
Form: Quatrain