Edward Teach or Edward Thatch (c. 1680 – November 22, 1718), better known as Blackbeard, was a notorious English pirate operating in the Caribbean Sea and western Atlantic during the early 18th century, a period referred to as the Golden Age of Piracy. His best known vessel was the Queen Anne's Revenge, which is believed to have run aground near Beaufort Inlet in the Inner Banks of North Carolina in 1718.

Blackbeard often fought, or simply showed himself, wearing a big feathered tricorn, and having multiple swords, knives, and pistols at his disposal. In A General Historie of the Robberies and Murders of the Most Notorious Pyrates, it was reported that, during battle, he wore lit matches woven into his enormous black beard to intimidate his enemies. Blackbeard is often regarded as the archetypal image of the seafaring pirate.

Little is known about Blackbeard's early life. Most likely, he was born around 1680 in the British port town of Bristol. It has been suggested that his father was also a sailor aboard privateers in the waters off Port Royal in Jamaica, during the War of the Grand Alliance from 1688 to 1697.