Edward Kenway

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"He's a fearsome dog that feeds off trouble and turmoil... I've seen him clear the deck of a Spanish galleon like it were nothing. Fighting like a devil, dressed as a man."

―Blackbeard speaking of Edward Kenway.

Edward Kenway (unknown - 1735) was a British privateer-turned-pirate, and a member of the Assassin Order. Early in his life, he joined the British Royal Navy, and once accepted, found himself stationed in the West Indies. However, a quick end to the war and the promise of gold, glory and fame eventually seduced him into a life of piracy; it was as a pirate that Edward first encountered the Assassin Order, and became embroiled in their struggle.

Edward was also the father of Haytham Kenway and the grandfather of Ratonhnhaké:ton; through this line, he was an ancestor of Desmond Miles.

Biography

Rise to infamy

Born in relative poverty to an English father and a Welsh mother, Edward was a charming and charismatic individual who aged to become a fairly reckless and selfish young man with a penchant for drinking.

During his early teens, Edward's family moved to Bristol, in south-west England, where he eventually met and married Caroline Scott, a woman two years his senior, and with whom he had a daughter, Jenny Kenway. Although a lively marriage by all accounts, Caroline soon grew tired of Edward's inability to find steady work or take his responsibilities as a husband seriously, though it was Edward's grandiose ideas about sailing as a privateer in the West Indies that ultimately destroyed their marriage.

Following this, Edward pursued his dreams of being a privateer; in late 1712 he boarded a ship chartered for Jamaica, with the intention of sailing under the renowned privateer, Benjamin Hornigold. He remained in Jamaica for six months until the Treaty of Utrecht in early 1713, which effectively ended all conflict between the major empires, and as such, British privateers were no longer needed or indeed tolerated in the West Indies, causing Edward to find himself out of work.

By 1715, Edward had two years of piracy under his belt, an experience that had made him deft with a ship and able to climb under even the most extreme conditions.

Later life

Edward eventually retired from his life at sea upon meeting Tessa Stephenson-Oakley, the woman who would later become his second wife. Using her family connections, Tessa assisted Edward in purchasing a manor in Queen Anne's Square in London, and by 1725, the two had a son, Haytham. Edward trained Haytham to become an Assassin from an early age, through things such as swordsmanship tutelage, despite Haytham barely being six years old at the time. Edward would also encourage his son to think for himself, and dispute others' opinions. Despite this, Edward kept his past a secret from his young son, though his former career as a pirate forever distanced the family from their neighbours in London.

On December 4, 1733, on Haytham's eighth birthday, the Kenway family was walking home from a trip to White's Chocolate House on Chesterfield Street, when the group was attacked by a mugger. When the mugger attempted to steal Tessa's necklace, he was swiftly repulsed by Edward, before being pounced upon by Reginald Birch. Edward adamantly refused to allow Birch to kill the attempted mugger, and was infuriated at Reginald's harsh vigilantism. When the family returned home that night, Edward asked his son whether he thought that the thief should have been allowed to go free. Haytham replied that he had initially held feelings to enact revenge, but would have offered the man clemency; Edward then presented Haytham with a steel short sword.

During one of Birch's visits, the two men engaged in a loud argument some time after Reginald had Haytham unknowingly reveal the location of Edward's most prized and hidden possessions. This argument ended with Birch storming out of the office.

On 3 December 1735, the Kenway household was infiltrated by masked men – under the command of Reginald Birch – who kidnapped his daughter, Jenny, and killed several of the servants. After making sure that his wife and son were safe, Edward raced to the games room and was confronted by two of the intruders; after a prolonged fight, one of the men managed to impale Edward through the chest with their sword, killing him instantly.

Personality and characteristics

As a result of being born into a life of relative poverty, whilst young, Edward was a reckless, albeit brave, individual who was infatuated with the idea of fame and glory. Such was his obsession that he left his first wife to become a privateer in the British Navy, hoping to score his fortune in the Caribbean. After the Treaty of Utrecht effectively made all privateers redundant, many turned to a life of piracy; Edward among them. He quickly became feared and respected for his skill at the helm of a ship and his combat prowess, with even the renowned Edward Thatch commenting upon his ability.

Once he joined the Assassin Brotherhood, however, Edward was conflicted between his life as a pirate, on a quest for treasure and infamy, and his sworn duty and loyalty to the ideals of the Assassin Order.

As a father, Edward encouraged his son to think for himself instead of believing everything his home-school teachers said. He also expressed pride towards his eight-year old son when Haytham said that he would have offered the thief who tried to mug his mother clemency, instead of acting on the impulse to kill him like Birch had attempted to. Edward could be quite conservative in other respects however, such as his decision to marry off his daughter to Birch, as was the tradition of the day.

Skills and equipment

During his time as a privateer, Edward wielded at least four flintlock pistols and two swords on him at one given time. He was also the first Assassin who dual-wielded swords in regular combat.

One of Edward's most invaluable pieces of equipment was his ship, the Jackdaw. She was equipped with a diving bell that Edward used to dive for treasure beneath the waves; during this maritime explorations, Edward was a strong swimmer who was capable of fending off sharks if he was attacked.

Romantic life

Edward was driven to prove himself as a "man of quality" to his family, but he was also a serial adulterer. His relationships proved useful, as he would sleep with courtesans to convince them to draw out his targets. Between his two marriages, Edward had other close relationships, including one with the pirate Anne Bonny.

Trivia

• "Edward" means "rich guard", derived from the Old English elements ead "rich, blessed" and weard "guard."
• "Kenway" is an Old English name meaning "brave royal fighter."
• Edward was the first member of the Kenway family to join the Assassins.
• Edward once took his son, Haytham, to The Beggar's Opera at the Theatre Royal in London.
• Edward was mentioned by Ratonhnhaké:ton during a conversation with Robert Faulkner while in an alternate universe brought on by an Apple of Eden. In it, Edward's grandson remarked that he had seemed to inherit his taste for maritime adventures from him.

Assassin's Creed IV: Black Flag

• Unlike many known Assassins, Edward did not wear a beaked hood.
• In Assassin's Creed: Forsaken, Edward is described as having dark hair, though he has been shown to have blonde hair in trailers for Assassin's Creed IV: Black Flag.
• Edward has been shown to bear multiple facial scars: one through his right eyebrow and the corner of his eye, another across the bridge of his nose, and a third from his right ear through his cheek.
  • However, unlike other Assassins such as Desmond Miles, Altaïr Ibn-La'Ahad, Ezio Auditore da Firenze and Aveline de Grandpré, Edward did not possess a scar across his lip, much like his son, Haytham, and his grandson, Ratonhnhaké:ton, who too did not possess scars on their lips.
• Edward's Hidden Blade possessed a small skull and Assassin insignia engraved on the mechanism, referencing the fact he was both a pirate and an Assassin.

Gallery

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  Edward aboard the Jackdaw as a whale breaches the water ahead
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  Edward searching for treasure underwater
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  Edward holding his two cutlasses
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  Edward gazing at Mayan ruins
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  Edward freerunning through the jungle
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  Edward in combat, wielding dual pistols
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  Edward shooting a soldier through his knee
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  Edward boarding an enemy vessel
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  Edward alongside Blackbeard
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  Edward assassinating a British soldier
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  Edward walking from amongst the water, with a slain British soldier on the sand
• Concept art of Edward Kenway by Eddie Bennun
  Concept art of Edward Kenway by Eddie Bennun
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