Flying Dutchman

"The Dutchman sails as its captain commands!" "And its captain is to sail it as commanded!"

- Davy Jones and Cutler Beckett

The Flying Dutchman was a galleon captained by the legendary Davy Jones.

Characteristics
"Aye. The same terrible vessel whose very timbers are cut from the bodies and souls of doomed seamen."

- Torrents to Jack Sparrow

The vessel weighed 420 tons and was 170 feet long, stern to bow. It was armed with forty-six cannons, two of which were triple-barrelled chase guns, and was considered to be the fastest ship both on and under the waters of the Caribbean. However, it was unable to maintain pursuit of the Black Pearl, which had an edge with a following wind, while the Dutchman was said to be faster with a headwind.

In such cases, the crew called upon the Dutchman's most potent and powerful weapon to destroy their enemies. The ship was fitted with a giant Kraken Hammer, used to summon the Kraken from the ocean depths. The Dutchman was the only vessel immune to the Kraken's destructive rage.

The prow of the ship resembled a fanged mouth, and featured a carved figurehead resembling the grim reaper and his scythe. The ship's stern, a sight witnessed by few human sailors, was covered with lamps and windows arranged in the pattern of a fanged mouth. The deck above was intertwined with the skeletons of ferocious sea beasts.

History
"The Dutchman needs a living heart, or there'll be no captain. And if there's no captain, there's no one to have the key."

- Wyvern to William Turner

An eternity of service
"Once you've sworn an oath to the Dutchman there's no leaving her, not until your debt is paid."

- Bootstrap Bill Turner to William Turner

Commonly, if a pirate was enlisted in the crew, he was forced to serve for one hundred years before his death. However, because of a gambling game referred to as Liar's dice, in which pirates wagered their years of service, some remained onboard far longer. In fact, some had their very souls lost to Jones forever.

Showdown with the Black Pearl
During the conflict between the Pirate Lords and the East India Trading Company, the Flying Dutchman was pitted against the Black Pearl in combat around a whirlpool. The captains of the respective ships engaged in single combat amongst the rigging of the Dutchman while the ship's crew fought below. Towards the end of this battle, Captain Davy Jones stabbed William Turner, killing him, but Jack Sparrow stabbed the heart of Jones by moving Turner's hand as it clutched a knife. In this way, Jones was killed and Turner brought to life as the new captain of the Dutchman. Turner remained captain for at least the next ten years.



Behind the scenes

 * The look of the ship was inspired by the 17th century Dutch "fluyts" vessels and the Vasa, a Swedish warship which sank in 1628.

Appearances

 * Pirates of the Caribbean: Jack Sparrow 1: The Coming Storm
 * Pirates of the Caribbean: Jack Sparrow 7: City of Gold
 * Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest
 * Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End