- "My lords! Lads, chaps, masters, esquires and gentlemen of fortune! I present to you such loveliness as to make you weep."
- ―Auctioneer
Esquire (abbreviated Esq.) was usually a courtesy title. Squire was a shortened version of the word. Initially, in the Middle Ages, a squire was the shield- or armour-bearer of a knight. Usage of the term evolved over time, with esquire being a title of respect accorded to men of higher social rank, particularly members above the rank of gentleman, bestowed on "candidates for knighthood in England", and even used with respect to other dignitaries. By the Age of Piracy, "Esq." was placed after a man's name when no other title was used, typically in the address of a letter or other documents.
History
- "My name is Charles Swift, and I've traveled here today from the island of Saint Martin in the Caribbean. My father is G. W. Swift, Esquire, the owner of Swift and Sons Chart House there."
- ―Charles Swift
At the beginning of the wench auction in Shipwreck City, the Auctioneer addressed his fellow pirates in Shipwreck City as lords, lads, chaps, masters, esquires and gentlemen of fortune.[1] Following the War Against Piracy, Hector Barbossa, the former pirate captain of the Black Pearl, joined the British Crown as a privateer, for which he received Letters of Marque that were addressed "To Captain Hector Barbossa Esq." from King George that he carried until the end of the quest for the Fountain of Youth. Scrum also called Jack Sparrow "Squire" as Sparrow gave him the two Chalices of Cartagena before entering the Fountain's chamber.[2] The cartographer George Swift, the owner of the Swift and Sons Chart House in the town of Saint Martin was addressed as "G. W. Swift, Esquire" by his son Charles when he held a discourse about the blood moons at the university in England.[3] "G. W. Swift Esq" was written on some of the maps in Swift's chart house.[4]
Behind the scenes
The title "esquire" was initially developed to be first spoken by the Auctioneer in the short film Tales of the Code: Wedlocked, which was filmed and copyrighted by 2008.[1] However, the title made its first official appearance in the 2011 film Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides,[2] with "Esq" being seen written on Hector Barbossa's Letter of Marque through images featured in the film's Disney Second Screen feature.[5] Additionally, Scrum called Jack Sparrow "Squire" in the film.[2]
Appearances
- Tales of the Code: Wedlocked (First appearance) (First identified as Esquire)
- Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides (First identified as Squire)
- The Brightest Star in the North: The Adventures of Carina Smyth
- Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales
