The first notice separated colors from authority
The July notice said Every had acted under English colors but possessed no royal commission to command the ship. It directed officials to seize him and his company and offered a reward and conditional pardon to those helping the search. [1]
A national flag was therefore not accepted as proof of government permission. The proclamation’s purpose was partly to make that denial public.
The later notice added intelligence
A subsequent English notice supplied the alias Henry Bridgman, named companions and reported the company’s return through Ireland after leaving the ship at Providence. It attributed information to the East India Company and captured associates. [2]
The update shows an investigation changing as reports arrived. It does not establish that every named person was found or that every location was confirmed afterward.
Coins could become an identifying clue
The notice suggested that quantities of foreign gold and silver might help identify returning men. The commercial product of a voyage became part of the information used against it. [2]
This is evidence of an intended clue, not permission to identify any isolated old coin as pirate treasure. Context, provenance and other records are still necessary.
Scotland had its own publication machinery
The Scottish proclamation addressed sheriffs, burgh magistrates, military officers and other subjects. It ordered public notice at Edinburgh’s market cross and other principal towns, and it specified rewards for Every and named companions. [3]
The order relied on people and local institutions carrying information outward. Printing was one stage in making the search known and actionable.
The documents need separate dates and scopes
The reward language, named groups and instructions are not identical across the notices. Combining them into one timeless poster would lose the changing information and jurisdiction. Accused companions in a proclamation are also not automatically the people later convicted. [1][2][3]
Follow the actual proceedings and the different 1717 pardon policy. Rewards, prosecution and forgiveness were related tools with distinct conditions.
Questions, answered.
Does a name on a wanted proclamation establish a conviction?
No. A proclamation identifies accusations and orders for apprehension, not the outcome of every person’s case.
Were the English and Scottish notices identical?
No. They addressed different institutional settings and included different details and instructions.
Sources & reading notes
Source checks distinguish an artifact, a reported account and a modern interpretation. They do not constitute independent historian review.
- Lords Justices’ proclamation against Henry Every,17 July 1696Open the keyboarded source transcriptionContemporary English or Scottish printed record; EEBO–TCP keyboarded transcription · Public-domain 1696 text; CC0 transcription
17 July 1696 proclamation, ship identity, denial of authority, instructions and reward. A proclamation states authorities’ information and demands; a trial print records allegations, witnesses and judgments. Neither makes every accusation an independently established fact. Named suspects are not automatically convicted defendants. TCP gaps and spelling variations remain.
- Lords Justices’ further proclamation against Henry Every,1696Open the keyboarded source transcriptionContemporary English or Scottish printed record; EEBO–TCP keyboarded transcription · Public-domain 1696 text; CC0 transcription
Subsequent proclamation, Henry Bridgman alias, named companions, reported Irish arrival and identifying coins. A proclamation states authorities’ information and demands; a trial print records allegations, witnesses and judgments. Neither makes every accusation an independently established fact. Named suspects are not automatically convicted defendants. TCP gaps and spelling variations remain.
- Scottish proclamation for apprehending Henry Every,18 August 1696Open the keyboarded source transcriptionContemporary English or Scottish printed record; EEBO–TCP keyboarded transcription · Public-domain 1696 text; CC0 transcription
18 August 1696 Scottish proclamation, magistrates, reward schedule and ordered publication at Edinburgh and other market crosses. A proclamation states authorities’ information and demands; a trial print records allegations, witnesses and judgments. Neither makes every accusation an independently established fact. Named suspects are not automatically convicted defendants. TCP gaps and spelling variations remain.
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