Contents
Pig hunter today Pirate tomorrow?
Some Europeans who came to the Caribbean Sea became hunters. They saw. beautiful islands full of animals that were raised in freedom, cows, goats, pigs, etc. abandoned by the Spaniards above all on the Island called Hispaniola.
The Buccaneers who became Pirates
Curiously, some of the newcomers to the New World, known today as America, began hunting animals hidden in the undergrowth or in the forests and ended up dedicating themselves to Piracy. The expulsion of all Europeans who were not Spanish, especially English, French and Dutch from the islands, encouraged them to be pirates.
Expert hunters
Expelled from the islands
As the Spaniards proceeded to gather on the Island of Hispaniola, for a better defense, they abandoned farms. Escaped or abandoned pigs from these Spanish farms became wild. Other animals followed their luck, free in the field. His job was to locate and hunt them down. For the buccaneers, the farm animals that roamed the island were an easy target, since many had lived with the men, and they were not surprised by their presence.
From Pig Hunters to Pirates
They discovered almost unpopulated lands with large numbers of wild or domestic animals in freedom. His life was hunting
Some were hunters first. Little by little they became expert shooters. They improved their aim and skills, as they had to shoot wild animals, which were often on the move. When preparing the hunted meat in the indigenous style on a grill called Bucán, they became known to the Buccaneers long before this word was applied to distinguish some types of Pirates.
On some islands, game and pigs abounded
They descended from farm animals abandoned by the Spanish years before.
There were many farms abandoned by the Spanish. A Royal Order asked that the population be concentrated in an area of the island of Hispaniola, to better defend it against the arrival of other Europeans. For this reason, a large part of the territory was depopulated and the farm animals escaped to the field.
El Bucán, the buccaneer grill
The indigenous people of the islands taught it to him
Grill to prepare the meat Bucán style
The indigenous people of the islands in the area, used this method of smoking on a grill to preserve the meat for longer. The European hunters who came to the island learned the technique. Thanks to this method, they could keep the meat for longer without spoiling.
The Europeans saw that animals abandoned when they were free and with rare deaths reproduce easily and in large numbers. They needed to preserve the meat to sell it to the ships but it was spoiled.
Hunt pigs and others
And everything that moved, goats, rabbits, chickens etc.
Groups of hunters who began to be called buccaneers dedicated themselves to it. The meat to the bucán was sold to the galleons that made the route towards Europe. They were meat products that were highly appreciated on long journeys.
