Majesty

King George II, His Majesty the King.

"Say goodbye to your ship, Jack! Hahahaha!"
"In point of fact, that ship belongs to His Majesty the King of England."

―Pequeño and Jack Sparrow

Majesty (abbreviated HM for His Majesty or Her Majesty, oral address Your Majesty; from the Latin maiestas, meaning "greatness") is used as a manner of address by many monarchs, usually kings or queens.

History

"In order to affect a timely halt to deteriorating conditions and to ensure the common good, a state of emergency is declared for these territories by decree of Lord Cutler Beckett, duly appointed representative of His Majesty, the king."

―Cryer

When the young thief Pablo attempted to escape the king's guards by joining the crew of the Santa Catalina, the king's finest galleon, the lieutenant at the docks asked him how old he was, to which Pablo replied "Old enough to serve His Majesty with honor".

When young Captain Jack Sparrow the crew of the Barnacle visited New Orleans, searching for the Sun-and-Stars amulet, the Harbormaster asked them to show their official papers, which they didn't have. Improvising, Jack Sparrow lied that they were actually on a secret mission transporting a powerful member of the French aristocracy. Fitzwilliam P. Dalton III, who was the only one among them who could pass for a nobleman, then spoke in flawless French, introducing himself as a cartographer in the employ of the King of France himself. When the harbormaster said he received no word of any mapmaking expedition, Fitzwilliam replied that meant His Majesty's messenger ship was probably lost.

After Esmeralda's parents died, her grandfather Don Rafael decided she must become a fine lady, perhaps serve at court, so he put her in a convent school in Barcelona, Spain. Less than a month later she knew she wasn't destined for the court of His Majesty.

When the young pirate Jack Sparrow encountered the dying Pharaoh Taharka aboard a sinking Dutch flute and learned who he was, he politely addressed him as majesty. Approximately five years later, after organizing the rescue of Taharka's son Prince Shabako from slavery on the island of New Avalon, Captain Jack Sparrow of the East India Trading Company took the young man aboard his merchant ship, the Wicked Wench. After a small celebration party in the captain's cabin, the future pharaoh expressed his gratitude, and the captain called him "Your Majesty". When the Wench reached the island of Kerma, a large banquet was organized in the palace, where Sparrow had to talk to the Queen Tiyy through an interpreter, her daughter Amenirdis, and politely called the queen "Your Majesty". A few months later, the Wench returned to Kerma, carrying a cargo of slaves, whom Jack decided to free. When he was taken to the palace to speak with the pharaoh, Jack bowed to Shabako and called him "Your Majesty".

While on guard duty, the Royal Marine Mullroy had dreams of rapid promotions, which would result in him becoming Commodore Norrington's personal advisor on the detachment of His Majesty's fleet in the Caribbean.

George Augustus, who was king of Great Britain and Ireland, was referred to as "His Majesty the King" throughout his reign by officials of the British Empire as well as various individuals who engaged in criminal activities like piracy. Ferdinand of Spain was also referred to as "Your Majesty" by a Spanish captain.

Behind the scenes

The term "Majesty" was first spoken, spoken about an unidentified His Majesty the King of Spain, in the 1996 book Climb Aboard If You Dare!: Stories From The Pirates of the Caribbean. Kings Ferdinand of Spain and George Augustus of Great Britain and Ireland first appear and are both identified as "His Majesty" in the 2011 film Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides.

Appearances

• Climb Aboard If You Dare!: Stories From The Pirates of the Caribbean (First appearance)
• Jack Sparrow: The Age of Bronze
• The Price of Freedom
• Breakout!
• Pirates of the Caribbean: The Legend of Jack Sparrow
• Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End
• Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides

Sources

• Pirates of the Caribbean: The Visual Guide
• Pirates of the Caribbean: The Complete Visual Guide

External links

• Majesty on Wikipedia