KING CHARLES II ~ The "merry monarch" who epitomized the "eat, drink and be merry"
lifestyle of Restoration England. Father of at least 35 bastards that he acknowledged. The
man for which Charleston is named.
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LORD ANTHONY ASHLEY COOPER ~ The most important of the eight Lords Proprietors.
Cooper was described as being "addicted to the brothels." Charles II called Cooper "the
greatest whoremaster in England." Takes one to know one. Cooper was later arrested for
treason.
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NELL GWYNN ~ The king's self-proclaimed "protestant whore" who lived in the court and
became the favorite of the common people. Nell was described as a "bold merry slut."
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COUNTESS BARBARA PALMER CASTLEMAINE ~ The sexually deviant and politically
underhanded mistress of Charles II. Infamous for despoiling the corpse of a priest by
devouring "as much of the priviteeas [penis]" she could get in her mouth.
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SAMUEL PEPYS ~ The famous writer who commented on Charles' court. Pepys described
the king's sexual appetite by saying, "A man with an erection heeds no advice."
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CAPT. JOSEPH WEST ~ One of the first governors of Charles Town who complained that
most of the early settlers were "so addicted to the Rum, that they will do little whilst the
bottle is at their nose."
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REV. GIDEON JOHNSON ~ An early minister who missed his ship to make the
trans-Atlantic crossing due to his drunkenness in a tavern. He was such an obnoxious
drunk that when he finally did book passage to the colonies he was stranded by the ship's
crew on a island 100 miles off shore.
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JUDGE NICHOLAS TROTT ~ The "hanging" judge who conducted several witch trials and
sentenced hundreds to the gallows.
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COL. WILLIAM RHETT ~ The head of the Charles Town militia and called the "scourge of
the pirates." He was also a fierce Indian fighter.
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BLACKBEARD ~ The most famous of the Caribbean pirates who blockaded Charles Town
harbor for three days in 1718. He too several locals hostage and threatened to be-head
them if the city did not meet his demands.
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STEDE BONNET ~ The "gentleman pirate" who was a favorite among the Charles Town
elite merchant class. Bonnet was out smarted by Blackbeard during the blockade and
ultimately arrested by Col. Rhett, who then turned around and defended Bonnet at his
trial, to no success. Bonnet was hanged at White Point Gardens in November 1718.
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ANN BONNY ~ Born Ann Cormack, daughter of a prominent Charles Town lawyer, who
married a second rate pirate, James Bonny. Ann dumped her husband in Nassau and
hooked with several men sexually before being smitten with Calico Jack Rackham. Ann
became the most notorious female Caribbean pirate and was arrested in Jamaica.
Pardoned (with the help of a bribe from her father) she returned to Charles Town, married
and settled down into a life of domesticity.
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CHRISTIAN GEORGE & PETER ROMBERT ~ Two flim-flam religious scam artists who
became the leaders of the first "Free Love Religious Cult" in the American colonies. The
two men convinced a Charles Town family of French protestants that they were "God's
chosen family" and they needed to procreate for the approaching Apocalypse. The two
men began to have sex with each female in the family and convinced the family it was
approved by God that "father sleep with daughter, mother with son, and brother with
sister." Both were hanged by local authorities.
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REV. DOCTOR ALEXANDER GARDEN ~ A religious leader who was horrified by the crude
nature of religion in the Carolinas. He fought against a "tide of sin among the clergy",
dismissing several dozen ministers from their churches for "debauchery, public
drunkenness and bastardy."
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HUGH BRYAN ~ An early convert to Methodism, Bryan was arrested for assembling blacks
to organize a "slave rebellion for the Destruction of Charles Town."
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REV. CHARLES WOODMASON ~ Another minister who was horrified by the lack of
religious piety. He preached a sermon urging his congregation to "not consume alcohol
during divine services."
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LAVINIA FISHER ~ Innkeeper who was convicted with her husband for the murder of
several of her guests. She was the first white woman executed by the state of South
Carolina.
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DENMARK VESEY ~ Vesey was a free black who spoke several languages. He was
convicted (with 31 more blacks) for organizing a slave rebellion in 1822.
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GEN. DANIEL SICKLES ~ One of the most colorful characters in American history. Sickles
served as Union General of South Carolina after the Civil War. Infamous for his sexual
appetite and being the first man acquitted of murder using the "temporary insanity"
defense, Sickles was loathed by Charleston locals due to his heavy-handed edicts against
the white population.
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