18th Century Criminals

Rank the Most Wicked 18th Century Criminals

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 1 
Blackbeard
(One of History’s Most Famous Pirates Who Became an Imposing Figure in American Folklore)
Blackbeard
36
Birthdate: 1680 AD
Birthplace: Bristol, England, United Kingdom
Died: November 22, 1718

Blackbeard was a notorious English pirate who struck fear into the hearts of his opponents during the early 18th century. His life has inspired several video games, TV miniseries, and films. Tim Powers' novel On Stranger Tides houses a fictionalized version of Blackbeard; the novel was later adapted into a film titled Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides.

 2 
Anne Bonny
(Irish Pirate Operating in the Caribbean and One of the Few Female Pirates in Recorded History)
Anne Bonny
15
Birthdate: March 8, 1697
Sun Sign: Pisces
Birthplace: Cork, Ireland
Died: March 31, 1721

Irish pirate Anne Bonny is considered one of the most famous female pirates of all time. She operated in the Caribbean in the early 18th century. As a teenager, she became the partner and lover of the notorious English pirate captain Calico Jack Rackham. She was captured in 1720 when she was pregnant. Her fate remains unknown. 

 3 
Calico Jack
(British Pirate Captain Who Operated in Cuba and in the Bahamas During the Early 18th Century)
Calico Jack
10
Birthdate: December 26, 1682
Sun Sign: Capricorn
Birthplace: Bristol, England
Died: November 18, 1720

Calico Jack was a British pirate captain who operated in Cuba and in the Bahamas during the early 18th century. Active towards the end of the Golden Age of Piracy, Calico Jack is best remembered for having two female pirates, including his lover Anne Bonny, as part of his crew. 

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 4 
Delphine LaLaurie
(New Orleans Socialite and Serial Killer Who Tortured and Murdered Slaves in Her Household)
Delphine LaLaurie
54
Birthdate: March 19, 1780
Sun Sign: Pisces
Birthplace: New Orleans, Louisiana, United States
Died: December 7, 1849
Delphine LaLaurie, also known as Marie Delphine Macarty or Madame Blanque, was a socialite from New Orleans who tortured and killed countless slaves in her Royal Street mansion. Her crimes were discovered after a fire at her mansion. An outraged mob subsequently destroyed the house, while she left New Orleans.
 5 
Benjamin Hornigold
6
Birthdate: July 18, 1680
Sun Sign: Cancer
Birthplace: England
Died: 1719 AD
 6 
Mary Read
(One of the Famous Female Pirates of 18th Century)
Mary Read
2
Birthdate: 1685 AD
Birthplace: England
Died: April 28, 1721

A legendary female pirate of the early eighteenth century, Mary Read took to piracy when her ship was seized by Jack Rackham in West Indies. By then, she had started dressing as a man and had served in the military, which might have helped her to become a successful buccaneer. Captured in 1720, she died in prison five months later.  

 7 
Charles Vane
(English Pirate Renowned For His Cruelty)
Charles Vane
10
Birthdate: 1680 AD
Birthplace: England, United Kingdom
Died: March 29, 1771

Charles Vane was an English pirate who was active during the dusk of the Golden Age of Piracy. Renowned for his cruelty, Vane often tortured and killed the sailors from the ships that he captured. Charles Vane and his crew have been portrayed in films and video games like Treasure of Pirate's Point and Assassin's Creed IV: Black Flag. 

 8 
Bartholomew Roberts
(Pirate)
Bartholomew Roberts
5
Birthdate: May 17, 1682
Sun Sign: Taurus
Birthplace: Puncheston, United Kingdom
Died: February 10, 1722
 9 
Ching Shih
(Chinese Pirate Leader and Gambling House Owner)
Ching Shih
9
Birthdate: 1775 AD
Birthplace: Guangdong, China
Died: 1844 AD

Ching Shih went from being a prostitute who worked in a Canton brothel to a notorious pirate who controlled the Red Flag Fleet. Legend has it that pirate Zhèng Yi, or Cheng I, had married Ching Shih when he raided her brothel, and she had then taken over his fleet.

 10 
Robert-François Damiens
(French Criminal Whose Failed Attempt to Assassinate King Louis XV Resulted in His Public Execution)
Robert-François Damiens
2
Birthdate: January 9, 1715
Sun Sign: Capricorn
Birthplace: La Thieuloye, Artois, France
Died: March 28, 1757

Robert-François Damiens was a French domestic servant best remembered for his failed attempt to kill King Louis XV in 1757. Although the king was only slightly wounded, Damiens was sentenced to death. He was executed in public and was the last person in France to be executed by dismemberment.

 11 
Jonathan Wild
(Criminal)
Jonathan Wild
3
Birthdate: May 6, 1683
Sun Sign: Taurus
Birthplace: Wolverhampton, United Kingdom
Died: May 24, 1725
 12 
Olivier Levasseur
(French Pirate Who Left Behind a Cryptogram as a Path to Access His Treasure)
Olivier Levasseur
0
Birthdate: 1689 AD
Birthplace: Calais, France
Died: July 7, 1730

Known as La Buse, or the Buzzard, because of his speed of attacking his opponents, French pirate Olivier Levasseur was surprisingly born into an affluent family and was trained as an architect. He apparently threw a cryptogram toward the crowd, while being hanged, and challenged them to access his loot.

 13 
Louis Buchalter
(Gangster)
Louis Buchalter
6
Birthdate: February 6, 1897
Sun Sign: Aquarius
Birthplace: New York City
Died: March 4, 1944
 14 
Jack Sheppard
(English Thief and Prison Escapee)
Jack Sheppard
0
Birthdate: March 4, 1702
Sun Sign: Pisces
Birthplace: London, England, United Kingdom
Died: November 16, 1724
 15 
Samuel Bellamy
(Pirate)
Samuel Bellamy
5
Birthdate: February 23, 1689
Sun Sign: Pisces
Birthplace: Plymouth, England
Died: April 26, 1717
 16 
Lewis Hutchinson
(Serial killer)
Lewis Hutchinson
0
Birthdate: 1733 AD
Birthplace: Scotland
Died: March 16, 1773
 17 
Juraj Jánošík
(Soldier)
Juraj Jánošík
2
Birthdate: 1688
Sun Sign: Capricorn
Birthplace: Terchová, Slovakia
Died: March 17, 1713
 18 
Hezekiah Frith
(Successful shipowner during the 1780s and 1790s)
Hezekiah Frith
0
Birthdate: 1763 AD
Birthplace: Bermuda
Died: 1848 AD
 19 
William Brodie
(Criminal, Politician)
William Brodie
2
Birthdate: September 28, 1741
Sun Sign: Libra
Birthplace: Edinburgh, Scotland
Died: October 1, 1788

William Brodie was a Scottish cabinet-maker, Edinburgh city councilor, and deacon of a trades guild. Brodie was also a housebreaker, a secret which he maintained almost all his life. He used the stolen money to fund his gambling habit and to maintain the household of his two mistresses. He was captured in 1788 and was sentenced to death by hanging.

 20 
Henry Jennings
(Former privateer-turned-pirate, ship captain, landowner)
Henry Jennings
1
Birthplace: England
Died: 1745 AD
 21 
Marie-Josephte Corriveau
(Murderer and Well-known Figure in Québécois Folklore)
Marie-Josephte Corriveau
1
Birthdate: 1733 AD
Birthplace: Saint-Vallier, Canada
Died: April 18, 1763
Marie-Josephte Corriveau was a murderer and well-known personality in Québécois folklore. She was sentenced to death in 1763 for the murder of her husband and was hanged on April 18, 1763. Her life and career inspired several works of art, including novels, ballet, and plays.  
 22 
Stede Bonnet
(Pirate)
Stede Bonnet
0
Birthdate: 1688 AD
Birthplace: Bridgetown, Barbados
Died: December 10, 1718
 23 
Sally Basset
(Declared guilty and burned at the stake in June 1730 for the poisoning of three individuals)
Sally Basset
0
Birthplace: Unknown
Died: June 21, 1730
 24 
Darya Nikolayevna Saltykova
(Russian Noblewoman, Sadist and Serial Killer)
Darya Nikolayevna Saltykova
50
Birthdate: March 22, 1730
Sun Sign: Aries
Birthplace: Russia
Died: December 27, 1801

Darya Nikolayevna Saltykova was a noblewoman, serial killer, and sadist. She achieved notoriety for torturing and killing at least 38 female serfs. Since she was well-connected with the Russian nobility and with those in power at the royal court, Darya got away with many of her murders until she was found guilty in a trial organized by Empress Catherine II.

 25 
William Burke
(Criminal)
William Burke
6
Birthdate: 1792 AD
Birthplace: Urney, Ireland
Died: January 28, 1829
 26 
Olga Konstantinovna Briscorn
(Serial Killer)
Olga Konstantinovna Briscorn
11
Birthdate: 1776 AD
Birthplace: Russian Empire
Died: March 30, 1836
 27 
John Bowen
(Was a pirate of Créole origin active during the Golden Age of Piracy)
John Bowen
0
Birthplace: Bermuda
Died: 1704 AD
 28 
Samuel Hall Lord
(One of the most famous buccaneers on the island of Barbados)
Samuel Hall Lord
0
Birthdate: 1778 AD
Birthplace: Unkown
Died: November 5, 1844
 29 
Dick Turpin
(Highwayman)
Dick Turpin
12
Birthdate: September 21, 1705
Sun Sign: Virgo
Birthplace: Hempstead, United Kingdom
Died: April 7, 1739
 30 
William Fly
(Pirate)
William Fly
1
Birthdate: 1699 AD
Birthplace: Unknown
Died: July 12, 1726
 31 
Gesche Gottfried
(Murderer)
Gesche Gottfried
12
Birthdate: March 6, 1785
Sun Sign: Pisces
Birthplace: Bremen, Germany
Died: April 21, 1831
 32 
James Plaintain
(Pirate)
James Plaintain
0
Birthplace: Jamaica
 33 
Barbara Erni
(Known for stealing from inns throughout western Europe using a confidence trick)
Barbara Erni
1
Birthdate: February 15, 1743
Sun Sign: Aquarius
Birthplace: Feldkirch, Austria
Died: February 26, 1785
 34 
Samuel Terry
(Philanthropist)
Samuel Terry
5
Birthdate: 1776 AD
Birthplace: United Kingdom
Died: February 22, 1838
 35 
Thug Behram
(Serial killer)
Thug Behram
28
Birthdate: 1765 AD
Birthplace: India
Died: 1840 AD