Hector Barbossa

"For too long I've been parched of thirst and unable to quench it. Too long I've been starving to death and haven't died. I feel nothing. Not the wind on my face nor the spray of the sea, nor the warmth of a woman's flesh. You best start believing in ghost stories, Miss Turner. You're in one!"

- Hector Barbossa to Elizabeth Swann

Hector Barbossa was the Pirate Lord of the Caspian Sea. In his youth he was an honest sailor, who left to make an easier living as a pirate. He later joined the crew of the Black Pearl, flagship of fellow Pirate Lord, Jack Sparrow. Barbossa lead a mutiny against Jack during their first voyage and marooned him on an island. He then journeyed to the Isla de Muerta to claim the lost treasure of Cortés. The crew later found out that the legends about the treasure's curse were true. In order to undo the curse, the crew set out to find the coins that they had spent away. Ten years later the curse was lifted by Will Turner, son of lost crew member "Bootstrap Bill" and Barbossa was shot dead by his old captain Jack Sparrow.

A year later Barbossa was resurrected by Tia Dalma, secretly the sea goddess Calypso in human form. She demanded that Barbossa free her from her human bonds in return for his resurrection. Barobossa grudgedly accepted, and set out, along with the remainder of Jack Sparrow's crew, to free Jack, who had been killed by a sea-creature called the Kraken, from Davy Jones' Locker.

Barbossa acquired a ship from fellow Pirate Lord Sao Feng and set out along with his old enemies, and rescued Jack from the Locker. Once free, Barbossa demanded that Jack go to the conclave of Pirate Lords at Shipwreck Cove, in order to decide what was to be done about the East India Trading Company, which was eradicating pirates around the world. Barbossa secretly wanted to steal the other pieces of eight from the Pirate Lords, which he would be able to use to free Calypso, and settle his debt.

Early life
"[&hellip;] a man so evil that Hell itself spat him back out."

- Mullroy

Barbossa's history prior to serving aboard the Black Pearl remains shrouded in mystery, though his name indicates possible Portuguese or Spanish origin. It is possible that he grew in poverty and went to sae at the age of 13. He had once been an honest sailor, but corrupted himself upon realizing that he could gain a lot more a lot quicker if he broke the rules, even stooping to murder.

The mutiny
"Three days into the venture, the first mate comes up to him and says everything's in equal share. So, Jack gives up the bearings. That night, there was a mutiny&hellip;"

- Joshamee Gibbs to William Turner concerning the mutiny against Jack Sparrow

Some time before or after Barbossa became the Pirate Lord of the Caspian Sea, Barbossa joined the crew of the Black Pearl, captained by Jack Sparrow. Barbossa was made Sparrow's first mate, and the crew set out from Tortuga towards Isla de Muerta to find the lost treasure of Hernán Cortés. The Isla de Muerta was an island that could not be found except by those who already knew where it was, but Captain Sparrow was able to find it through the use of his compass, which could lead its wielder to whatever they desired most. At some point Jack made a map as to the approximate location of the island. Three days into the voyage, Barbossa was able to coax the bearings from Jack. The then-overtrusting Jack gave his bearings willingly to his "loyal" first mate, thinking that he could help in finding the island. But Barbossa had other ideas.

That same night Barbossa rallied the rest of the crew and lead a mutiny against Jack. They marooned him on an island and gave him a pistol with one shot, according to the Code. With the Pearl now under Barbossa's control, they then sailed towards Isla de Muerta. With Jack's bearings, the crew found the island and the treasure inside its caves. Inside a large stone chest was 882 identical pieces of Aztec coins, once belonging to Hernan Cortés, given to him by the Aztec to stop the ambitious Spaniard from slaughtering their people. Cortés continued his conquest despite the tribute. According to legend, the heathen gods of the Aztec placed a curse on the treasure to avenge the fallen people. Supposedly, anyone who took a single peice from the chest would be cursed for eternity. The crew ignored the legends and seized the treasure for themselves. After a time, they traded the gold away on frivolous things. Soon they realized that the legends were true, and they lost the ability to taste, digest, or feel in general. Perhaps worst of all, at night, beneath the moon, they were revealed for what they were: hideous, half-dead skeletons; neither living nor dead, they were unable to die or succumb to bodily harm. Nevertheless, the crew set about immediately to find the lost treasure.

There was one who had been bitter and guilt-ridden ever since the marooning of Jack Sparrow. "Bootstrap Bill" Turner sent a piece of the treasure to his child, telling the others that they deserved to be cursed. This angered Barbossa greatly, and he ordered his men to strap "Bootstrap's" bootstraps to a cannon. He then ordered them to push the cannon overboard, taking "Bootstrap" down to the crushing depths, unable to die, yet unable to move. Barbossa was able to figure out a way to reverse the curse: by returning the coins to the chest and offering a tribute in blood, the curse of the heathen gods would be satisfied, and the crew would be free. With this plan in mind, Barbossa and his crew set out to try and recover the treasure by using an ability to sense when a coin was near. Two years later, the Pearl attacked a ship with a coin on board. They were not able to find the coin and left the burning wreckage behind them, narrowly avoiding a confrontation with the HMS Dauntless.

The curse
"Compelled by greed we were, but now we are consumed by it."

- Hector Barbossa to Elizabeth Swann

Over the course of the next eight years, the crew raided and pillaged settlements throughout the New World, searching for the lost pieces of the treasure. At last, they returned all but one of the coins to the chest. One day, Barbossa and his crew sensed the last peice. They followed their senses, and finally ended at the British colony of Port Royal. They attacked at night, blending in perfectly with the dark and cloudy night. The Pearl was followed by an erie fog, a side-effect of the crew's long-term occupation of the ship. Due to the cover, the Pearl was able to attack Port Royal unhindered. Barbossa ordered his cannonneers to fire on Fort Charles. While Pearl occupied the fort's attention, Barbossa sent a raiding party to collect the coin.

A hour or so later, the boats returned laden with swag. Two of Barbossa's crew came aboard with a young female hostage. When his boatswain, Bo'sun, asked them why they had brought a captive, the young woman tried to explain her situation, but was slapped in return. Barbossa took offence to this and reprimanded the boatswain and apologized to the woman. She audaciously demanded that Barbossa cease his attack on Port Royal, or else she would throw the Aztec coin overboard. Barbossa tried to hide the crew's need for the medallion she wore around he neck, but the young woman said that she had seen the Pearl on her crossing of the Atlantic from England eight years prior. Barbossa didn't understand the connection, but asked for the girl's name. She responded by saying her name was Elizabeth Turner, and that she was a maid in the governor's household. Barbossa was thrilled by the fact that they had very likely found "Bootstrap's" child, after all these years, and would finally be able to lift the curse. Barbossa agreed to leave Port Royal and ordered his crew to set sail. After giving over the medallion, Ms. Turner demanded she be taken ashore. Barbossa refused, citing that Ms. Turner's return to shore was not part of their agreement. With that, the Pearl set off towards Isla de Muerta, to lift the curse. Finally, they would be free.



Barbossa staged a ritual that he hoped would reverse the curse. However, it transpired Elizabeth was not a Turner after all, and thus her blood had no effect on the cursed pirates. At that news, Barbossa's crew was ready to mutiny against him! Before anything could be done, Jack the monkey showed Barbossa that the girl and the medallion were missing. He announced this to his crew and ordered them to find them. During the confusion, Barbossa's crew encountered Jack Sparrow, having previously escaped from the island on which he had been marooned. Sparrow cut a deal with Barbossa, stating he knew whose blood the pirate needed, and the pursuit and capture of Jack's crew ensued. Barbossa's men captured Will Turner, the son of "Bootstrap Bill", intending to return with him to Isla de Muerta. First, however, Barbossa made Jack walk the plank, once more marooning him on the island&mdash;though this time with Elizabeth as company.

Duel with Sparrow
"You're off the edge of the map, mate. Here there be monsters!"

- Hector Barbossa to Jack Sparrow



Barbossa's crew made for Isla de Muerta, though the Pearl sailed slower than usual due to damage sustained during the fight. By the time Barbossa began the ritual once more, this time with Will as the sacrifice, Jack had managed to escape the island with the help of the Royal Navy, and had arrived on Isla de Muerta. The stage was set for the final confrontation, where Barbossa set his men against the sailors aboard the HMS Dauntless, while he himself remained in the treasure cave with Will, Jack and Elizabeth. Here, Jack revealed his true loyalty, and engaged Barbossa in a duel, in which Barbossa appeared to gain the upper hand. Ultimately, Barbossa gave up, knowing Jack could not kill him. Sparrow tried anyway, but Barbossa merely sighed in disappointment and stabbed Jack in the gut.

What Barbossa had not foreseen was the level of Jack's cunning. Prior to the fight, he had taken one of the Aztec coins from the chest, thus bringing the effects of the curse upon himself.

Debt's setteled
"I feel...cold."

- Hetor Barbossa to Jack Sparrow

The two immortals engaged once more in combat, which Barbossa commented would likely continue for all eternity. However, this was not to be the case, as the tables suddenly turned on Barbossa. Smearing it with his blood, Jack threw his stolen coin to Will. At this Barbossa pulled his pistol on an unarmed Elizabeth, who had come to help Will. Suddenly Barbossa heard a gun go off. Turning he realized that Jack had shot him. He was convinced that Jack had fired for nothing, which he told Jack to his face. Will interrupted him, saying that Jack had not wasted his last shot. Will had put his blood on the coins. He then dropped both of them in the chest; thereby lifting the curse from Jack, Barbossa and his crew. Barbossa, now mortal, ripped his coat open to see a bleeding wound over his heart, before toppling over, dead.

Rebirth
"So tell me, what's become of my ship?"

- Hector Barbossa

Barbossa's body remained in the cave at Isla de Muerta, until the entire island and its treasure were claimed by the sea. He did not arrive in Davy Jones' Locker, however, and was at some point resurrected from death by Tia Dalma. As one of the nine Pirate Lords, Barbossa was required to free Dalma's true form, Calypso, from her human bonds, and he resided within a grotto at Devil's Anvil following his return to life, he later relocated to Tia Dalma's shack.

He was present at Tia Dalma's house when Jack Sparrow and his crew arrived there seeking information about the Dead Man's Chest, though he did not reveal himself at that point. It was only after Jack's own death, when his crew returned to Dalma's house, did Tia Dalma introduce Barbossa as their new captain. She proposed the crew set out to save Sparrow from the Locker, meaning a voyage to World's End. Barbossa had prior knowledge of these waters, and wished to return Jack to life to further his attempt to free Calypso. His new crew set out for Singapore.

At World's End
"Ah! Hector, it's been too long&hellip;hasn't it?" Aye. Isla de Muerta, remember? You shot me." "&hellip;No I didn't."

- Jack Sparrow and Hector Barbossa



Barbossa led Jack's former crew to a meeting with Sao Feng in his Singapore bath house, intending to barter Feng's navigational charts to lead them to World's End. Mindful that negotiating with Feng would be difficult, Barbossa dispatched Will Turner to steal the charts, though Turner made his own deal with Feng without Barbossa's knowledge.

The negotiations turned sour when Barbossa failed to convince Feng to give up his charts, though the arrival of East India Trading Company soldiers led by Mercer saw Barbossa and Feng briefly unite against a common enemy. Will was able to acquire the charts himself, and provided Barbossa with a crew and a ship&mdash; the Hai Peng.

The crew sailed through frozen wastes to reach World's End, during which time Barbossa was unable to decipher the charts' cryptic instructions for returning from Davy Jones' Locker. Undaunted, Barbossa showed no fear as he led the Hai Peng over the world's edge, plunging it and his crew into the underworld. The ship was wrecked, though the crew survived and were reunited with Jack Sparrow. Barbossa brought up their last fateful meeting in conversation, though Jack brushed this off and continued to refer to himself as captain of the Black Pearl. Barbossa contested this, knowing that Jack could not leave the Locker without the charts now in Barbossa's possession. Thus, the two rivals were forced to co-operate as the Pearl set sail on the endless seas of the Locker.

Betrayals and alliances
"Still thinkin' of runnin', Jack? Think you can outrun the world? You know, the problem with bein' the last of anythin', is by and by there'll be none left at all." "Sometimes things come back, mate. We're living proof, you and me." "Aye, but that's a gamble of long odds, ain't it? There's never a guarantee of comin' back, but passin' on, that's dead certain."

- Hector Barbossa and Jack Sparrow

Sparrow ultimately worked out the meaning of the charts, and coerced the crew into tipping the Pearl upside down, coinciding with sunset in the Locker that resulted in a green flash and the return of the Pearl to the land of the living. The moment Barbossa was sure he was back in the real world, he pulled his pistol on Sparrow, forcing him to agree to meet with the Brethren Court and Shipwreck Cove. The tense stand-off was diffused when the crew's pistols malfunctioned due to wet powder, and they set about locating a source of water at a nearby island.



There, Barbossa and Sparrow happened upon the corpse of the Kraken, and Barbossa remarked upon the certainty of death to counter Jack's insistence to the contrary. However, Barbossa, like Sparrow, would contemplate his own mortality in the time to come. For now, more pressing matters were at hand when Tai Huang and his men turned on Barbossa's crew and delivered them to Sao Feng, now aboard the Empress. There, Turner's betrayal was revealed, though Barbossa was able to bargain with Feng by mentioning Calypso. Feng was intrigued, and agreed to join Barbossa in opposition to the East India Trading Company. The pirates turned on their captors, and Barbossa duelled briefly with Mercer, before the Pearl made for Shipwreck Cove.

The Brethren Court
"It was the first Court what imprisoned Calypso. We should be the ones to set her free, and in her gratitude she will see fit to grant us boons!" "Whose boons? Your boons? Utterly deceptive twaddle-speak says I."

- Hector Barbossa and Jack Sparrow



At Shipwreck Island, Barbossa served as the de facto leader of the meeting. At the meeting, he suggested that Calypso be released so that the East India Trading Company would have a harder time controlling the seas. Once Elizabeth was elected Pirate King, Barbossa advised her not to battle Lord Cutler Beckett, but she ignored him.

Master of ceremonies
"Dearly beloved, we be gathered here today&hellip;to nail yer gizzard to the mast, ya poxy cur!"

- Hector Barbossa

Barbossa took part in the battle against the East India Trading Company. During the battle, he performed a marriage for Will and Elizabeth.

Second Mutiny
After the pirates' victory, the crew of the Black Pearl sailed back to Tortuga. While Jack was in port impressing women, Barbossa commandeered the Black Pearl once again, planning to use the charts he obtained from Sao Feng to find the Fountain of Youth. However, when some crewmen demanded him to show them the charts, he was dismayed to find that Jack had cut the middle out of the charts. His further fate remains unknown.



Kingdom Hearts II
"Treasure's already his. So's the curse upon it. I've no desire for such treacherous spoils. But I will have back what's mine---the Black Pearl."

- Jack Sparrowabout Barbossa

Hector Barbossa is as a villain in the Port Royal world of Kingdom Hearts II. He leads a team of pirates  who have been cursed to be undead by Aztec gold, leading them to seek out all 882 pieces gold so that they can break the curse. They are allied with Black Pete. Instead of his pet monkey Jack he has a Heartless named Illuminator which Pete summons for him, who acts in a similar way. During a confrontation with Sora, Donald, Goofy, Jack Sparrow and the others, Hector Barbossa agrees to leave with Will Turner, but allows the Heartless to stay on board with the explosives placed on the Interceptor. In the final confrontation with Jack Sparrow and Sora's group, Hector Barbossa makes use of Illuminator, a Gecko-type Heartless that can hide Hector Barbossa in darkness, as well as his own sword skills and grenades. When he was defeated by Sora, Jack and the others, Jack drops his sword and shoots Barbossa with the pistol the renegade captain left him upon his exile. Hector Barbossa laughs it off at first, but Will calls his attention and drops the last two Aztec coins back into the chest, both smeared with his and Jack's blood. Hector Barbossa, his curse broken, feels the pain of his gunshot wound, which struck him directly in the heart. His last words are, "I feel... cold." He then falls backwards, dead (although it is unknown whether or not Tia Dalma will resurrect him in Kingdom Hearts continuity).

Personality and traits
"Dying is the day worth living for!"

- Hector Barbossa

Barbossa's personality was cold and gruff, and he was an able yet unforgiving leader as evidenced when he shot Pintel in the heart in order to see if the curse has been lifted. He kept a monkey named Jack as his pet. At his best he was brave, a master seaman, and occasionally capable of wry humour, but at his worst he was ruthless and without mercy. He could act polite if he wished, however, and had some speaking skills he frequently used to his advantage. Barbossa sees himself as a gentleman of the seas, but he can be treacherous and mean and can turn agreements to his own favour. .

Barbossa had a penchant for apples, he offers one to Elizabeth and he commented that after the curse was lifted, he would eat a whole bushel of apples, there are also apples on the table in his cabin on the Pearl. This seemed to be one of Barbossa's simple pleasures in life, that, due to his inability to feel or taste due to the curse, turned into a constant craving but also a quite expensive obsession since crisp fruit like apples are not commonly available in the Caribbean and therefore a rare treasure. He was holding an apple upon his death, and was eating one when he revealed himself to the late Jack Sparrow's crew in Tia Dalma's house and later he ate one apple when aboard the Black Pearl.

Because of his apparent lack of fear, a number of Barbossa's actions seemed almost suicidal. Much to the dismay of his crew, he did not hesitate to sail right over the waterfalls at World's End, nor did he show much concern for sailing the Pearl straight into the huge whirlpool created by Calypso.

He was a skilled swordsman, hinting at a lifetime of experience, only few people could match his swordsman abilities. It is possible he did not receive training at a finishing school, but instead learned through brawls since his teenage years.



Appearance
"Shoot him!" "Cut out his tongue!" "Shoot him and cut out his tongue and then shoot his tongue&hellip;and trim that scraggly beard."

- Ammand, Jocard and Jack Sparrow

Barbossa wore fine clothing befitting a man of his stature and status, and he carried many valuable items about his person. He speaks with a strong West Country accent and uses the pirate "arrgh".

He was rarely seen without his hat, decorated with blue ostrich feathers as a show of vanity, and his coat was fitted with buttons made from melted down Inca silver stolen from Spanish ships. He also wore a ring plundered from a Venetian ship, which bore the image of a lion's head, signifying Barbossa's status as leader of his pirates and a golden snake pendant on a 26-inch metal chain which features four white crystals set in a square around a much larger shining red stone at the centre of the piece. , it is unknown whether it has any symbolic meaning. He wore his greying hair long and loose, and had a straggly beard running down to the base of his neck. After his resurrection he painted his fingernails black.

With the curse upon him, Barbossa's face became weathered and gaunt over time, with yellowed eyes giving him a particularly sinister appearance. Under the light of the moon, Barbossa transformed into a living skeleton, and his clothing turned to rags as his flesh rotted away.

Barbossa carried a sword and a flintlock pistol. This elegantly engraved weapon was won in a duel against a Spanish pirate.

Behind the scenes



 * Barbossa was portrayed by Geoffrey Rush in the Pirates of the Caribbean films, and voiced by Brian George in the English version of Kingdom Hearts II, The Legend of Jack Sparrow and Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End (video game) and by Haruhiko Jo in the Japanese dub and the Japanese version of Kingdom Hearts II.
 * Gore Verbinsky jokingly said that Rush was his third choice after Alec Guinness and Peter Sellers. Robert De Niro turned down the role of Barbossa because he felt it would flop as all pirate films before did, but regretted hius decision later.
 * The DVD commentary of The Curse of the Black Pearl revealed Barbossa's first name, though writers Ted Elliott and Terry Rossio maintain that Johnny Depp came up with the name himself while joking with Geoffrey Rush about Barbossa's first name. It was spoken on screen for the first time, by his character, in At World's End, as Jack Sparrow's first line to Barbossa.
 * For Gore Verbinsky Barbossa is a "trixter" and the evil counterpart to Jack Sparrow, while Geoffrey Rush sees him as a fallen hero.
 * "Barbossa" is derived from "Barbarossa", another name for the legendary pirate Aruj, or "Redbeard".
 * He uses the same flag as the notorious pirate John "Calico Jack" Rackham, which led to speculations that he might have served in the latter's crew at the beginning of his pirate career or succede his position as Pirate Lord from him.
 * Similarities have been drawn between Barbossa and LeChuck, a character from the Monkey Island series, itself inspired by the Pirates of the Caribbean ride.
 * Hector Barbossa (along with other Black Pearl crewmen) is pictured on the cover of WAS IST WAS band 71 Piraten.
 * A number of visual clues foreshadow Barbossa's return in Dead Man's Chest: Jack inspects his hat at Tia Dalma's shack, and Barbossa's boots are seen while Tia is searching for the jar of dirt. Jack instinctively returns to his master upon being released from his cage.
 * Hector Barbossa is one of only four Disney villains ever nominated for the MTV Movie Award for Best Villain, the others being Davy Jones, Scar from The Lion King, and Jadis the White Witch in The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe.
 * Barbossa appears in a German Disney comic as a successless pirate who met an ancestor of Scrooge McDuck
 * The scene in which he drinks from a bottle in his skeletal form is a reminiscence to the ride.
 * He replaced Blackbeard In post-2006 revamp of the Ride



Appearances

 * Pirates of the Caribbean (game)
 * Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl (video game)
 * Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl
 * The Accidental Pirate!
 * Pirates of the Caribbean: The Legend of Jack Sparrow
 * Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest
 * Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End
 * Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End (video game)
 * Pirates of the Caribbean Online
 * Pirates of the Caribbean (ride)
 * Kingdom Hearts II