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Sir Henry Morgan (Welsh: Harri Morgan; c. 1635 – 25 August 1688) was a Welsh privateer, plantation owner, and, later, Lieutenant Governor of Jamaica. From his base in Port Royal, Jamaica, he raided settlements and shipping on the Spanish Main, becoming wealthy as he did so. With the prize money from the raids, he purchased three large sugar plantations on the island.
Much of Morgan's early life is unknown. He was born in an area of
Monmouthshire that is now part of the city of
Cardiff. It is not known how he made his way to the
West Indies, or how the Welshman began his career as a privateer. He was probably a member of a group of raiders led by Sir
Christopher Myngs in the early 1660s during the
Anglo-Spanish War. Morgan became a close friend of Sir
Thomas Modyford, the
Governor of Jamaica. When diplomatic relations between the
Kingdom of England and Spain worsened in 1667, Modyford gave Morgan a
letter of marque, a licence to attack and seize Spanish vessels. Morgan subsequently conducted successful and highly lucrative raids on
Puerto del Príncipe (now Camagüey in modern
Cuba) and
Porto Bello (now Portobelo in
modern Panama). In 1668, he sailed for
Maracaibo and
Gibraltar on
Lake Maracaibo in modern-day Venezuela; he plundered both cities before destroying a large Spanish squadron as he escaped. In 1671, Morgan attacked
Panama City, landing on the Caribbean coast and traversing the
isthmus before
he attacked the city on the Pacific coast. This occurred after the signing of a
peace treaty, and to appease the Spanish, Morgan was arrested and summoned to London in 1672, but the Welshman was popularly celebrated as a hero, and soon recovered the favor of the government and King
Charles II. (
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