History Gets Mysterious

The Mary Celeste

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Built in 1861, this 103 ft (31m) brigantine merchant ship was originally called the Amazon. In December of 1872, she was found floating in the middle of the Atlantic ocean, entirely unmanned. The Captain, his wife, their child and the crew was gone. The cargo remained. The lifeboat had been launched. The sails, although slightly torn, had been removed.

All of the ship’s papers but the logbook were missing, the clocks weren’t working and the compass (perhaps smashed) was malfunctioning.

The crew of the Dei Gratia, the ship that found her, were surprised to see the Mary Celeste. They observed it for two hours before the Dei Gratia’s chief mate boarded to have a look.

The crew of the Celeste were seasoned and well-trained. Presumably, they would have known when and how to evacuate the ship. Even stranger, none of the rain-wear had been taken. The steering wheel had not been tied, the anchor had not been weighed.

Six months worth of food and water were left aboard. The first mate, one Albert Richardson, had been writing at his desk and abruptly stopped. There was money, jewelry and other goods left on board.There was no sign of a struggle.

Why?

The Roanoke Colony

In the late 16th century, Sir Walter Raleigh funded an expedition to what is now the State of North Carolina. The goal was to establish an English colony. Apparently, there were a few failed establishments at the site but the last is the most mysterious, the one called “The Lost Colony”.

The doomed settlers arrived on Roanoke Island on July 22,1587. On August 18, the first English baby born in the New World- Virginia Dare- was born. After a settler was killed by Natives while searching for crabs, the colonists convinced Governor John White to return to England to explain their situation.

When Governor White left, there were 115 colonists, including the baby. It was 1590 before he was able to return- he landed back at Roanoke and found the colony deserted. The word “Croatan” was carved in a tree, the word “Cro” in another. Everybody was gone and there were no signs of a battle and two bodies- buried in the ground.

All the houses and fortifications had been dismantled. White wanted to go search nearby Croatan Island, but the weather wouldn’t allow it. The next day, White and his men left.

The main theory as to the disappearance of the white settlers is that they assimilated into one of the nearby Native tribes in order to survive. Later European settlers found tribes that had European features, spoke a few English words and were aware of the Christian religion. DNA testing and archaeological investigation are underway to test this hypothesis.

Others suggest that they tried to leave by sea and died in the attempt.

The Man in the Iron Mask

On July 1, 1669, a masked man was bought to the prison of Pignerol, in France. He was sent by one of King Louis XIV’s ministers- the Marquis de Louvois and placed in the charge of the prisoner’s governor.

The minister’s letter said the man’s name was Eustache Dauger. He instructed that the prisoner not be allowed to communicate anything but his immediate needs- or he would be killed. It was said that the prisoner would not require much, since he was only a valet.

The prison of Pignerol was for hiding France’s embarassments. There were no more than six other prisoners there at the time and compared to the others, who were demanding, prone to escape, insane or all of the above, the mysterious Dauger was no trouble.

One other prisoner was called Fouquet- he was a former minister of the King, who had been charged with embezzlement. His manservant La Riviere was often ill and he needed a valet. Permission was given for Dauger to serve as Fouquet’s servant, provided that he not meet any other prisoners. Fouquet was a prisoner for life, but some of the others weren’t- they didn’t want rumors spread about Dauger.

In 1681, the governor of the prison was given a new post at the the prison fortress of Exiles. he took Dauger and one other prisoner along with him. In 1698, the prisoner and governor moved again to the Bastille. An officer there noted that the prisoner wore “a mask of black velvet”.

On November 19, 1703, the masked prisoner died was buried the following day under the name of Marchioly. All of his personal effects were burned the next day.