Nicolas Brigaut

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Nicolas Brigaut (c. 1653–1686) was a French pirate and buccaneer who sailed in the Caribbean. He joined the French buccaneers led by Michel de Grammont and fought attacks on places like Cumana, Maracaibo, and Cartagena. By 1683 he had risen to quartermaster aboard the ship La Mutine, commanded by Michiel Andrieszoon. In late 1684 they sailed to Boston to resupply, and Brigaut bought a 40‑ton sloop to command his own vessel. The raid they planned off the coast of Caracas never happened, and Brigaut set out to find Grammont.

In 1685 he joined a raid on Campeche with Laurens de Graaf, then took command of a captured Spanish galliot. He later sailed to Roatan to meet Grammont’s ship Le Hardi. They planned another attack on Saint Augustine, Florida, possibly with help from English colonists in Charleston. They reached off Florida in late April 1686. Brigaut was sent ahead to Matanzas Inlet to gather guides and intelligence. His men captured several Indians and Spaniards, but Spanish troops attacked. The pirates retreated to their galliot, and a night storm drove the ship aground. They tried to reach shore but were resisted, then marched overland to await rescue from Grammont.

The Florida governor sent more soldiers who killed over forty of Brigaut’s men and prisoners, sparing only Brigaut, a black sailor named Diego, and a young boy. Brigaut was interrogated and initially mistaken for a Spanish turncoat, but he told the governor about the plan to attack Saint Augustine and the involvement of men from the Carolinas. He also mentioned that La Salle had established a French colony in Mississippi. Brigaut and Diego were hanged at the end of May 1686. Grammont’s ship Le Hardi ran aground soon after and was lost with all hands. The Lords Proprietors later warned Carolina authorities not to aid pirates or raid Spanish lands.