By June of 1718, Blackbeard was riding the high tide of his own legend. He had blockaded Charles Town, secured the medicine his surgeons desperately needed, and sailed north with a fleet that made every Carolina settlement tremble. But the sea has a way of humbling even the boldest captains, and at Topsail Inlet — modern Beaufort Inlet — the Devil’s Ship met her end.

Queen Anne’s Revenge did not die in battle. She died in silence.

And aboard her, three surgeons watched the beginning of Blackbeard’s fall.

Jean Dubou. Marc Bourgneuf. Claude Deshayes.

Forced men. Frenchmen. Witnesses.

The Shoal That Should Have Been Avoided

The inlet was treacherous, but not unknown. Local pilots could navigate it. Experienced captains could read the water. Yet Blackbeard steered his flagship directly toward a shoal that any cautious sailor would have avoided.

Some say it was an accident. Some say the charts were wrong. Some say the tide betrayed him.

And some — even in his own time — whispered that Blackbeard wrecked the ship on purpose.

A captain with too many men, too many mouths to feed, too many shares to divide… might find a wreck convenient.

But whatever the truth, the Devil’s Ship struck hard.

Timbers screamed. Masts shuddered. Men were thrown across the deck. The hull tore open like a wound.

And the surgeons were suddenly very busy.

Chaos in the Surgeons’ Cabin

The wreck could not have been gentle. Bones probably broke. Hands crushed between timbers. Feet mangled in the rigging.

Dubou, Bourgneuf, and Deshayes were probably very busy while the ship pitched, groaned, and finally settled into the shoal: Their instruments clattering across the table, bandages damp with seawater, their patients’ screaming over the roar of the surf.

They had treated horrible wounds and diseases from their time aboard the La Concorde when it was full of slaves. As Blackbeard’s surgeons, they had undoubtedly treated cannon wounds, musket shots, drunken brawls, and scurvy. But a shipwreck was different.

It was sudden. It was violent. It was indiscriminate.

And it probably made the surgeons (and others) take pause in the realization that Blackbeard’s armor of fear and intimidation had just cracked. In fact, it was a BIG crack.

The Abandonment

When Blackbeard knew that the Queen Anne’s Revenge could no longer be saved, he made a decision that shocked even his own crew.

He abandoned most of them.

Left them stranded. Left them injured. Left them furious.

Left them.

But he kept a small, hand‑picked group — men he trusted, men he needed, men who would not question him.

And among those he kept?

Undoubtedly, the surgeons.

Dubou, Bourgneuf, and Deshayes were too valuable to leave behind. Blackbeard could replace sailors. He could replace gunners. He could replace carpenters.

But surgeons? Surgeons were treasure.

So while dozens of men were left to fend for themselves, the surgeons were taken aboard the smaller sloop that would carry Blackbeard into the next phase of his unraveling.

The First Fracture in the Legend

The wreck at Topsail Inlet was more than a maritime disaster. It was the first visible crack in Blackbeard’s power.

He lost:

• his flagship
• his fleet
• his reputation for invincibility
• and the loyalty of many of his men

But, he most likely kept the surgeons — the quiet trio who had stitched his crew back together since the day he captured La Concorde.

They probably sailed with him toward Bath, toward the King’s Pardon, toward marriage, toward schemes, and ultimately toward Ocracoke — the place where the Devil’s Ship would break for good.

The surgeons were there for Blackbeard’s last days.

And yet history never records their fate.

Until next time, Fair Winds!

To the ghosts that guide us, the storms that test us, and the gold that waits for those who dare — may our ink never run dry and our courage never fade. Raise your tankards, mates… for the sea still remembers our names.

Author’s Note: This plunder is part of my ongoing exploration of pirate history. More pirate research, lore, and updates will be shared through the upcoming Virginia Chandler Newsletter: Chandler Uncharted— sign‑up details coming soon!