Blackbeard's cabin

Blackbeard's cabin.

"Excuse me, gentlemen. I be placed in a bewilderment. I be Edward Teach, Blackbeard, and I be in the captain's quarters. Aye? And that makes me the captain...naturally follows."

―Blackbeard to his crew

Blackbeard's cabin was the private chambers in the captain's quarters aboard the pirate ship, Queen Anne's Revenge, originally used by the infamous pirate Edward "Blackbeard" Teach. A space usually reserved for luxury, Blackbeard's cabin appeared more like the den of an evil magician where dark dreams and schemes emanate as he stowed potions, poisons, and all the paraphernalia of his dark arts. The nightmarish vision painted on the stained glass window, which can also be seen on the stern of the Revenge, depicts dead men writhing in flames, stoked by devilish characters, which made the murky lair and the ship itself look truly fiendish. Following the death of Blackbeard by Hector Barbossa, Barbossa took the Queen Anne's Revenge for his own, changing the ship considerably as the captain's quarters was renovated and redecorated. Though Barbossa kept some of Blackbeard's old aesthetics, the cabin became more grand, filled with treasures beyond most men's wildest dreams.

History

Blackbeard

Early use

Blackbeard with his cabinet.

When Blackbeard acquired the Queen Anne's Revenge, he made the vessel into his flagship, and as captain, he resided in the captain's quarters. Although it was a space usually reserved for luxury, Blackbeard would make the cabin his personal chamber where he stowed his potions and poisons, and all paraphernalia of the practiced dark arts, in which he would learn. He also kept a cabinet full of his trophies: ships that he captured and shrunk into individual bottles. The Black Pearl would later be added as one of his many prizes. The captain's quarters on the Revenge were located in the rear of the ship and were designed to fight a mutiny. With little access in or out, the quarters were well-protected and would be hard for the mutineers to breach.

Search for the Fountain of Youth

Blackbeard appearing out of his cabin.

"On to it, then. Blackbeard. What are his habits?"
"Stays mostly to his cabin."

―Jack Sparrow and Scrum

Throughout the quest for the Fountain of Youth in 1750, Blackbeard would stay within his cabin and never came out to where his new crew would see him aboard the Revenge. Upon learning this from the crew, as well as the fact that none of them had either seen or sailed with Blackbeard, a shanghaied Jack Sparrow suspected that he was not aboard Blackbeard's infamous ship. It wasn't until Jack's mutiny that Blackbeard revealed himself.

The meeting in Blackbeard's cabin.

On the night that the mutiny occurred, Blackbeard was resting in his cabin until he heard the fighting on deck. Noticing that his ship was being taken, he came out of his cabin to deal with the mutineers with his sword. After punishing the Cook, who was on watch that night, Blackbeard had Jack brought into his cabin. Jack and Blackbeard discussed the matter of finding the Fountain of Youth, though Jack had no intention of helping. They also discussed the possibility that Angelica was not Blackbeard's daughter. As Jack tried to explain the situation, Blackbeard made a voodoo doll of Jack, which he used to force Jack into helping find the Fountain.

Jack Sparrow and Angelica in the cabin.

Later, as Blackbeard was in the chartroom, Jack and Angelica would enter the cabin, where Angelica made a deal with Jack. If Jack helped in finding the Fountain of Youth, Angelica would give him any of the shrunken ships in Blackbeard's cabinet; though she knew that Jack would pick his old ship, the Black Pearl. Jack and Angelica also discussed the matter of saving Blackbeard, though each disagreed with the other on the matter. It was there that Jack and Angelica each simultaneously attempted to take the Jack voodoo doll, which was placed on the table in Blackbeard's cabin.

After Blackbeard's crew journeyed into the island where the Fountain of Youth was located, the captain's cabin of the Revenge would be vacant. No one would enter the cabin until Joshamee Gibbs snuck aboard and took the shrunken Black Pearl, as well as the other bottled ships, before meeting up with Jack Sparrow later. It was on the very same day that the surviving members of the crew returned with a new captain of the Revenge.

Barbossa

"I am not going in there to tell him."
"It was your idea!"
"No, it was my idea for you to tell him."

―Mullroy and Murtogg

At the battle that occurred at the Fountain, Blackbeard was mortally wounded by Hector Barbossa, a privateer of King George's court. Barbossa would claim Blackbeard's sword and crew and assume control of the Revenge. Once he mastered the powers of the Sword of Triton Barbossa assembled a mighty pirate fleet, making himself the ruler of the seas of the New World. As the undisputed captain of the Queen Anne's Revenge Barbossa made his residence in Blackbeard's former cabin.

Barbossa enjoys a concert in Blackbeard's former cabin.

Using his newfound wealth Barbossa had the Queen Anne's Revenge repaired and heavily decorated. He also renovated his quarters, removing the floor of the captain's cabin and the ceiling of the cabins below, practically turning the interior of the entire stern castle into one large space with him as its only occupant. As a rich rogue he filled the cabin with treasures beyond most men's wildest dreams. He would often eat expensive delicacies in the cabin, enjoying music played by the finest musicians he could hire.

Layout

A table in Blackbeard's cabin.

The captain's quarters on the Revenge were located in the rear of the ship and were designed to fight a mutiny. With little access in or out, the quarters were well-protected and would be hard for the mutineers to breach.

It was said that Edward "Blackbeard" Teach was possessed of a tattered soul, lost to the forces of darkness. A glimpse into this private chamber confirmed that suspicion. A space usually reserved for luxury, the captain's cabin on the Queen Anne's Revenge appeared more like the den of an evil magician. Dark dreams and schemes emanate from this murky lair. Blackbeard's inner sanctum was where he stowed potions, poisons, and all the paraphernalia of his dark arts, placed in many points in the cabin. Lit by dripping candles and festooned with mystical artifacts, Edward Teach's lair was designed to fill visitors with fear. The nightmarish vision painted on the stained glass window, which can also be seen on the stern of the Revenge, depicts dead men writhing in flames, stoked by devilish characters. The window made Blackbeard's cabin, as well as the Queen Anne's Revenge itself, look truly fiendish. It was also within in this cabin that Blackbeard kept an entire cabinet filled with ships put into individual bottles. These ships were actually vessels that belonged to adversaries that he defeated in battle, after which he would shrink and keep each ship as a prize.

The cabin during Hector Barbossa's command.

After it came into Hector Barbossa's possession, the cabin's entire decor changed considerably. The gruesome and grim gave way to opulence and ostentation of the grandest sort. The cabin was greatly expanded to become Barbossa's sole quarters aboard his newly redecorated vessel, removing the floor to turn the entire space of the stern castle into the pirate captain's personal lair. Though he kept some of Blackbeard's old aesthetics, most notably the skulls and the stained glass window, the skulls were painted in gold and the window was surmounted by and barely visible beneath the spoils of Barbossa's plundering. Within this room the captain himself reposed, eating delicacies daintily from his plate whilst nervous musicians played their best under threat of blunderbuss, surrounded by the fruits of his labours. Silver, gold, gems, silks, satins, pearls and all sorts of treasures most men could only dream of were stuffed into the space, making it as much a vault and a museum as a place of residence.

Behind the scenes

"We thought it would be great fun if Blackbeard has a huge stained glass window in the back of his cabin that was illuminated by the giant fire lantern just outside. To me, it was about the light creating the atmosphere in the cabin, with the angry, billowing flame moving through the window."

―John Myhre

For the 2011 film Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides, the interior of Blackbeard's cabin was built on B Stage at Pinewood Studios. It included a large section of the stained glass window. "We had a good time dressing the set," says production designer John Myhre, "because our incarnation of Blackbeard has supernatural powers, so we have many objects of the occult spread about, as well as more typical seafaring charts and navigational equipment. You have all his power and wealth and loot, but also a fantastic layer of magic and alchemy."

In real-world history, Blackbeard's cabin had no supernatural-related objects onboard.

Appearances

• Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides
  • Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides (junior novelization) (First appearance)
  • Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides Movie Storybook
• Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales
  • Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales Novelization
  • Pirates des Caraïbes : La Vengeance de Salazar
  • Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales: Movie Graphic Novel
• LEGO Pirates of the Caribbean: The Video Game (Non-canonical appearance)

Sources

• Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides
• Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides (junior novelization)
• The Art of Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides