Sainte Marie provided the buccaneers a secure shelter from where they could plunder the approaching ships.
The pirate cemetery on the island of Sainte Marie.
Within a year, Baldridge had established control over the inland waterways into Sainte Marie and its harbor.
He subdued the local tribes and forced the native chieftains to pay Baldridge in cattle, food and women.
Baldridge himself lived an extremely extravagant life.
He built himself a hilltop mansion and fort, and kept his own harem of island women.
Baldridge also started engaging in slave trade.
By the 1700s, the golden age of buccaneering had come to an end.
Many pirates surrendered to the conditions of clemency and settled down in Madagascar.
They married local girls, raised families and died on the island.
The pirate cemetery, which is now overgrown with bushes and plants, is another popular attraction.
Photo credit: Florent Bouckenooghe/Flickr
Photo credit:sandy marie/Flickr
Sources:Travel Madagascar/Golden Age of Piracy/History Twistery/www.piratesinfo.com/Wikipedia
