William Knight (pirate)

Knight may have lived in Port Royal, Jamaica since 1675,[1] but by September 1684 he and 50 men set out to raid the Spanish, crossing the Isthmus of Panama, building canoes once they reached the Pacific coast.

[2] Some of his sailors became separated, joining with Francis Townley, Edward Davis, and Charles Swan, as well as French buccaneers under Francois Grogniet and Jean L’Escuyer.

After dividing their loot at the Juan Fernandez Islands on November (where each man received 5000 pieces of eight, or £1,250), Knight returned to the Caribbean via Cape Horn.

[5] Davis’ crew elected to stay in the Pacific and continue their raids, having lost much of treasure gambling; they looted Arica in Chile then assisted a French contingent under Pierre Le Picard in taking Guayaquil.

[3] English explorer and buccaneer William Dampier (who had sailed with Davis) reported a “Captain Knight” active in the Indian Ocean in 1689, who consorted with some of Swan's crew from the Cygnet.