Israel Hands

Israel Hands was an 18th-century pirate, also known as Basilica Hands. He is best known for being second in command to the infamous pirate Edward Teach, better known as Blackbeard.

Hands' first historical mention was in 1718, when Blackbeard gave him command of David Herriot's ship Adventure after Herriot was captured by Teach in March 1718. During the winter of 1717-1718 Blackbeard harassed shipping sailing to and from the port of Vera Cruz, Mexico and traversing the Bay of Honduras. On April 4th or 5th of 1718, at Turneffe Atoll, Blackbeard captured the ten gun logwood cutting sloop Adventure and forced its captain Herriot to join him. Also on board was Edward Robinson, the ship’s gunner, who would later be involved in the Battle of Cape Fear River. Blackbeard then made Israel Hands captain of the Adventure and began sailing for North Carolina. Later, in June 1718, Teach ran his flagship, the Queen Anne's Revenge, aground at Beaufort Inlet, NC. He requested assistance from Hands and the Adventure in an effort to kedge the Queen Anne's Revenge off the bar. But the Adventure also grounded and was abandoned. Teach, Hands and Stede Bonnet then took approximately half the pirates, marooning the rest, and set sail for Ocracoke, NC.

Captain Charles Johnson wrote that Hands was shot in the knee by Teach after Teach fired at another of his crew, missing him but striking Hands. Hands supposedly asked Teach for his reasons, whereupon Teach remarked that, "if he did not now and then kill one of them, they would forget who he was." Another theory is that Teach shot him so that he would not die in the battle against Lt. Robert Maynard.

On November 22, 1718, Teach was killed by troops dispatched from Virginia and led by Maynard. At the time Hands was in Bath, North Carolina, recuperating from his permanently disabling pistol wound. However he was unable to escape the roundup of pirates in Bath that followed Blackbeard's death. Following his capture, he and fifteen others were taken to Williamsburg, Virginia to stand trial. In exchange for a pardon, Hands testified against corrupt North Carolina officials with whom Teach had consorted.

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