In relation to historic reveals, they usually prioritize drama over precise historical past, which is smart since most are fictional. Few reveals handle to stability each historical past and storytelling. “Black Sails,” a 2014 Starz sequence, combines drama, motion, and fiction with actual historic occasions.
The present acts as a prequel to Robert Louis Stevenson’s 1883 novel Treasure Island, whereas additionally that includes historic pirates. Some occasions from the 18th century, such because the sinking of the Urca de Lima, are handled within the present, albeit with an adventurous twist.
What occurs to the Urca de Lima in ‘Black Sails’?
The illustration of the Urca de Lima differs significantly from the precise ship. In “Black Sails” the ship was constructed earlier than 1715 to move the treasure of the King of Spain from the Spanish Important to Spain. Because the flagship of the fleet it carried many of the gold, protected by two smaller ships.
The ship’s shops include roughly 5 million Spanish {dollars} in gold. The primary season of “Black Sails” revolves round Captain James Flint’s (Toby Stephens) seek for the Urca de Lima and its treasure.
Within the second season, the treasure of the Urca de Lima is revealed, which has run aground on the coast of Florida. The surviving Spanish sailors and troopers have arrange camp there to protect the treasure.
Flint makes an attempt to get the treasure again in trade for a pardon for his crimes, however fails. The gold is finally stolen by pirate Jack Rackham (Toby Schmitz) and his crew, who return to the Bahamas with it after a violent confrontation with Spanish troopers.
What was the true treasure of the Urca de Lima?
The actual Urca de Lima was a wooden-hulled crusing ship within the 1715 Treasure Fleet, one of many Spanish fleets that sailed between Spain and its American colonies. In contrast to the present, the true ship didn’t carry gold and silver, however items corresponding to vanilla, chocolate and incense.
Though it didn’t carry a big treasure, the Urca de Lima did carry chests of personal silver. Sadly, after leaving Havana, the fleet encountered a hurricane that swept them towards the coast of Florida, inflicting all however the Urca de Lima to sink or run aground. The Urca de Lima ran aground on the Fort Pierce sandbar, however was largely unhurt, with its treasure secure.
Finally, the Spanish salvaged the remaining items and silver earlier than burning the ship’s hull to cover its location from English pirates and privateers. The ship’s location didn’t stay a secret for lengthy, nonetheless. In December 1715, pirates Henry Jennings and Charles Vane captured the Spanish salvage camp and stole the treasure.
The ship’s wreck remained hidden till 1928, when it was rediscovered by William J. Seashore. Over the following fifty years, the ship was extensively salvaged. Within the Nineteen Eighties, Florida stopped issuing salvage permits and opened the positioning to the general public. At present, the Urca de Lima is a part of Florida’s Underwater Archaeological Protect, which is open to the general public year-round.
The actual Urca de Lima might not be as grand as depicted in “Black Sails,” nevertheless it performed an necessary position in historical past. It’s the solely remaining shipwreck of the 1715 fleet and remains to be nicely preserved in its underwater setting.
Whereas it didn’t include the identical treasure that Captain Flint sought within the present, it’s nonetheless a unprecedented piece of historical past. The legacy of the Urca de Lima continues to fascinate historians and fans. Whereas “Black Sails” takes inventive liberties, it additionally brings renewed curiosity within the true story behind the ship.
The combo of reality and fiction invitations viewers to understand each the thrilling story and the true historical past that impressed it. The enduring fascination with such tales ensures that the story of the Urca de Lima, each actual and fictional, might be proven for years to come back.
You may at the moment stream “Black Sails” on Netflix within the US
