Howell Davis
Howell Davis was a Welsh pirate who operated in West Africa. He was best known as mentor of the Sage Bartholomew Roberts.
Biography
Howell Davis was born in Pembrokeshire, Wales, in the city of Milford Haven. He became the captain of the sloop Saint James and operated in the Cape Verde Islands and West Africa, raiding Portuguese ships. During this time, he recruited Bartholomew Roberts into his crew when he captured the ship that Roberts was working on. Roberts became Davis' right-hand man and a navigator aboard the Saint James.
In May 1719, Davis and Roberts landed on the island of Príncipe, a Portuguese colony, with Davis planning to kidnap the Portuguese governor. However, they were ambushed, with Davis killed during the attack, and most of his crew captured or killed as well. Roberts managed to survive the ambush, and was subsequently chosen as the captain by the surviving crew members, after they were freed from their imprisonment by Edward Kenway, who came to the island in search of the Sage.