# Mary Read — A General History of the Pirates character guide

> Mary Read in A General History of the Pirates by Captain Charles Johnson.

**Role:** major

**Also known as:** Mary

**First appearance:** 0010-the-life-of-mary-read

## Snapshot

A soldier turned sailor who lived as a man, Mary Read loved fiercely and fought duels for her messmates, her disguise undone only by choice.

## Who they are

Mary Read moves through the pirate world as a man, earning trust and friendship before revealing herself to a chosen few. Her love for a fellow pirate inspires one of the most generous acts in the book: she deliberately picks a quarrel with a rival so she can fight him in his place. Her story matters because it shows how completely the pirate code could be bent by courage and devotion, and how a woman could outfight the men who thought they knew her.

## Relationships

### [Edward Low](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/a_general_history_of_the_pirates_se/characters/edward_low)

_professional_

Low and Read were crewmates on the same pirate vessel, with Read serving as a fellow pirate.

## In the story

### [Of Captain John Rackam, and His Crew](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/a_general_history_of_the_pirates_se/chapters/vii-of-captain-john-rackam-and-his-crew)

Implied as the other female pirate who pleaded pregnancy to avoid execution, though not explicitly named in this chapter.

### [The Life of Mary Read](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/a_general_history_of_the_pirates_se/chapters/the-life-of-mary-read)

Protagonist of the chapter; born a girl but raised as a boy, served as a soldier, turned pirate under compulsion, fell in love with a fellow captive, killed a rival in a duel, and was convicted and died in prison.

### [The Life of Anne Bonny](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/a_general_history_of_the_pirates_se/chapters/the-life-of-anne-bonny)

Mentioned as a fellow female pirate who, along with Anne Bonny, was one of the few to keep the deck during their capture.

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/a_general_history_of_the_pirates_se/characters/mary_read
- Book: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/a_general_history_of_the_pirates_se
- All characters: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/a_general_history_of_the_pirates_se/characters