Battle of Martinique (1779) Battle of Martinique (1779) The Combat de la Martinique, or Battle of Martinique, was a naval encounter on 18 December 1779 between a British squadron under Admiral Hyde Parker and a French squadron under Admiral Toussaint-Guillaume Picquet de la Motte near the island of Martinique in the West Indies. In the fall of 1779, a British fleet under Admiral Hyde Parker was anchored at St. Lucia (which they had captured a year before), while a French fleet under Admiral Toussaint-Guillaume Picquet de la Motte was undergoing a refit at the nearby island of Martinique in the West Indies. Parker was
Piracy in the Caribbean meaning they asserted they were pregnant. The judge immediately postponed their death sentence because no English court had the authority to kill an unborn child. Read died in prison of fever before the birth of the child. There is no record of Anne being executed and it was rumored her wealthy father had paid a ransom and took her home; other accounts of what happened to her include that she returned to piracy or became a nun. In the Caribbean the use of privateers was especially popular for what amounted to legal and state-ordered piracy. The cost of maintaining a