View of Port Royal, Jamaica, c.1758 (oil on canvas)

Creator: Richard Paton An aerial view of Port Royal, Jamaica in 1758, showing merchantmen and other vessels in the approaches. In the early years of the 18th century Port Royal had been notorious as a den of iniquity for pirates and brigands of all kinds. In 1724 it was the scene of the execution of the famous pirate 'Calico' Jack Rackham at Gallows Point. Port Royal had been devastated by an earthquake in 1692, but was subsequently re-occupied and rebuilt as Britain's principal naval and mercantile port in the Caribbean. As a wealthy sugar island, Jamaica was a valuable colony for Britain and was also heavily involved with the slave trade, making Port Royal a principal centre for this.