fl.
''Floruit'' ( ; usually abbreviated fl. or occasionally flor.; from Latin for 'flourished') denotes a date or period during which a person was known to have been alive or active. In English, the unabbreviated word may also be used as a noun indic ...
1650–1670) was a 17th-century French buccaneer. During his four-year career as a pirate, he served as an officer under l'Ollonais and formed a brief partnership with Pierre Le Picard. He and Philippe Bequel later co-wrote a book detailing their explorations of the Honduran and Yucatán coastline.
Biography
Vauquelin first arrived in the Caribbean from
Normandy
Normandy (; or ) is a geographical and cultural region in northwestern Europe, roughly coextensive with the historical Duchy of Normandy.
Normandy comprises Normandy (administrative region), mainland Normandy (a part of France) and insular N ...
,
France
France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...
around 1650. He was part of a buccaneering fleet being organized by l'Ollonais at the pirate haven of Tortuga and which would loot and plunder Spanish settlements throughout the
Spanish Main
During the Spanish colonization of the Americas, the Spanish Main was the collective term used by English speakers for the parts of the Spanish Empire that were on the mainland of the Americas and had coastlines on the Caribbean Sea or Gulf of ...
during the next two years. Vauquelin was one of several officers serving in this expedition and was present at the raids against
Maracaibo
Maracaibo ( , ; ) is a city and municipality in northwestern Venezuela, on the western shore of the strait that connects Lake Maracaibo to the Gulf of Venezuela. It is the largest city in Venezuela and is List of cities in Venezuela by population ...
and
Gibraltar
Gibraltar ( , ) is a British Overseas Territories, British Overseas Territory and British overseas cities, city located at the southern tip of the Iberian Peninsula, on the Bay of Gibraltar, near the exit of the Mediterranean Sea into the A ...
in 1666 and Puerto de Cavallo and San Pedro in 1667.
l'Ollonais and his fleet eventually split up, arguing over l'Ollonais desire to sail for
Guatemala
Guatemala, officially the Republic of Guatemala, is a country in Central America. It is bordered to the north and west by Mexico, to the northeast by Belize, to the east by Honduras, and to the southeast by El Salvador. It is hydrologically b ...
, shortly after the capture of a Spanish ship off the coast of the Yucatán. He and Pierre le Picard chose to leave the expedition, some accounts suggesting they were the ringleaders and instigators of the fleet's disbandment,Frothingham, Jessie Peabody. ''Sea Wolves of Seven Shores''. Whitefish, Montana: Kessinger Publishing, 2004. (pg. 196) and began privateering together for a time. Sailing along the coast of
Costa Rica
Costa Rica, officially the Republic of Costa Rica, is a country in Central America. It borders Nicaragua to the north, the Caribbean Sea to the northeast, Panama to the southeast, and the Pacific Ocean to the southwest, as well as Maritime bo ...
, he captured the town of
Veraguas
Veraguas () is a province of Panama, located in the centre-west of the country. The capital is the city of Santiago de Veraguas. It is the only Panamanian province to border both the Atlantic and Pacific oceans. It covers an area of 10,587.6&n ...
although he was driven from the area when he failed to take the nearby town of Nata and the two split up soon after. This defeat was later recorded in Alexander Esquemeling's ''The Buccaneers Of America'' almost twenty years later.
Vauquelin seems to have lost his ship after this, although the circumstances are unrecorded. He did, however, manage to join the French pirate Chevalier du Plessis later that year. After du Plessis' death, Vauquelin was elected as his successor by the crew. He and his crew were able to successfully capture a Spanish prize, carrying a large cargo of cacao, near the port of
Havana, Cuba
Havana (; ) is the capital and largest city of Cuba. The heart of La Habana Province, Havana is the country's main port and commercial center.Philippe Bequel wrote an account of their careers at the Vice-Admiral Jean d'Estrées. The book contained detailed information of the geography of the Caribbean and West Indies, particularly the coasts of Honduras and the Yucatán, which were used by the Royal French Navy as well as later buccaneers.