The infamous Blackbeard, whose real name was Edward Teach, was a sort of hybrid, a cross between a pirate and a privateer.
Blackbeard was ruthless and illegally terrorized ships of all nations off the eastern coast of the United States, but he had a deal with the colonial governor of North Carolina, Charles Eden.
This meant that Eden offered Teach the protection of his ports in exchange for a portion of the wealth he seized from other ships.
However, the partnership didn’t help Blackbeard in the end, Teach was finally captured, shot, decapitated, and his head hung from the mast of his captor’s ship.
