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Gunsway


The Ganj-i-Sawai (Persian/Hindustani: گنج سواہی, Ganj-i-Sawai, in English "Exceeding Treasure", often anglicized as Gunsway) was an armed Ghanjah dhow (trading ship) belonging to the Mughal emperor Aurangzeb which, along with her escort Fateh Muhammed, was captured on 7 September 1695 by the English pirate Henry Avery en route from present day Mocha, Yemen to Surat, India.

In August 1695, Avery, captaining the Fancy, reached the Mandab Strait, where he teamed up with four other pirate ships, including Thomas Tew's 8 gun, 46 man sloop-of-war Amity, Richard Want in the Dolphin, Joseph Faro in Portsmouth Adventure, Thomas Wake in Susannah, and William Maze in the Pearl. Although a 25-ship Mughal convoy bound for India had eluded the pirate fleet during the night, the following day they encountered the Gunsway, and her escort Fateh Muhammed, both stragglers passing the straits en route to Surat.

Avery and his men attacked the Fateh Muhammed, which had earlier repulsed an attack by Amity, killing Captain Tew. Perhaps intimidated by Fancy's 46 guns or weakened by their earlier battle with Tew, Fateh Muhammed's crew put up little resistance, and Avery's pirates sacked the ship for £600,000 worth of treasure.

Avery now sailed in pursuit of the Gunsway, overtaking her about eight days out of Surat. The Gunsway was a fearsome opponent, mounting 40 to 60 guns and a musket-armed guard of four to five hundred as well as six hundred other passengers. But the opening volley evened the odds, as one of the Indian ship's cannons exploded, killing some of its gunners and causing great confusion and demoralization among the crew, while Avery's broadside shot his enemy's mainmast by the board. The larger Fancy drew alongside, and a number of her 113 man crew clambered aboard, overpowering the crew, passengers and slaves of the Gunsway.


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