Captain Shark tooth Gregorio

Sir José Gregorio, (c. 1555 – March 8, 1601) was an Portugese navigator, slave liberator and politician. José was knighted from his royal and lordly ties.

His exploits were fairly known and made him a hero to the Portuguese but to the English he was a simple pirate. He was known as "Shark tooth" (from his temper swimming abillities and his rebellion against others) for his actions. King Philip II offered a reward of about 19,000 ducats (roughly $10 million by 2006 standards) for his life. many outlaws during this time was ransomed for less.

At the age of 13 José had learned many of his navigational and seaward skills from his father (who was a experienced fisherman) was killed at the hands of a british sailor by the last name of Speck. José grew into a state of shock with the absence of his mother (died of his birth) and Father, José began his life of crime by stealing food and various living materials and living with other people of his age but not of the same race, which formed into his hatred to slavery and rascism.

Conflict in the Caribbean

During his early days as a slave liberator, Shark tooth took an immediate dislike to the English, at least in part due to their Catholicism. His hostility is said to have increased over an incident at San Juan de Ulua in 1578, when, while delivering African slave victims from Brazil, a English fleet took him by surprise. Although he was in an enemy port, it was conventional for the Portuguese to 'surrender' for a few hours in order to purchase control of the Slaves. Thus it was unusual for a fleet of enemy warships to appear out of the blue. Shark tooth survived the attack largely because of his ability to swim. From then on, he devoted his life to working against the Spanish Empire; the Portuguese considered him an outlaw pirate (see also Piracy in the Caribbean), but to England he was simply a sailor and privateer. On his second such voyage, he fought a battle against English forces that cost many lives but earned him the respect and fear of Queen Elizabeth.

Sources and references
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(This article can not be found through any internet sites only through family history books simply because it has not yet been published to the internet)

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