Jean Lafitte  (1776-1823?) was the last of the great pirates of the Gulf of Mexico. He insisted throughout his life that he was a privateer, and would have challenged you to a duel (if you called him a pirate to his face ) and was one of the leaders or boss of the community of privateers on Grand Terre. Jean was a handsome man by all accounts, of great personal charm and became a legend in his own time, after his patriotic actions in the Battle of New Orleans.