In the 1820s and 30s con man Gregor MacGregor claimed to be the “Cazique of Poyais”, basically the king of a thriving colony/country in central America that in no way existed. Investments in the entirely fictional country skyrocketed because of its vast amount of made up natural resources and its population of make believe servile and pleasant natives. MacGregor even convinced a few hundred Anglos to move to Poyais, gave them fancy titles in the military and civil service of his pretend country and then put them on ships to central America where they were dropped off in an uninhabitable jungle that MacGregor had no claim to whatsoever and then most of them died.
When the British press reported on MacGregor’s deception following the return of fewer than 50 survivors in late 1823, some of his victims leaped to his defence, insisting that the general had been let down by those whom he had put in charge of the emigration party. A French court tried MacGregor and three others for fraud in 1826 after he attempted a variation on the scheme there, but convicted only one of his associates. Acquitted, MacGregor attempted lesser Poyais schemes in London over the next decade. In 1838, he moved to Venezuela, where he was welcomed back as a hero.
He led the landing party personally on 29 June 1817 with the words: “I shall sleep either in hell or Amelia tonight!” The Spanish commander at Fort San Carlos, with 51 men and several cannon, vastly overestimated the size of MacGregor’s force and surrendered without either side firing a shot.
Spanish forces congregated on the mainland opposite Amelia, and MacGregor and most of his officers decided on 3 September 1817 that the situation was hopeless and that they would abandon the venture. MacGregor announced to the men that he was leaving, explaining vaguely that he had been “deceived by my friends.”
He turned over the command to one of his subordinates,** a former Pennsylvania congressman** named Jared Irwin, and he boarded the Morgiana with his wife on 4 September 1817 with an angry crowd looking on and hurling insults at him. He waited offshore for a few days, then left on the schooner Venus on 8 September.
Irwin’s troops defeated two Spanish assaults and were then joined by 300 men under Louis-Michel Aury, who held Amelia for three months before surrendering to American forces, who held the island “in trust for Spain” until the Florida Purchase in 1819.
Two weeks later, the MacGregors arrived at Nassau in the Bahamas, where he arranged to have commemorative medallions struck bearing the Green Cross motif and the Latin inscriptions Amalia Veni Vidi Vici (“Amelia, I Came, I Saw, I Conquered”) and Duce Mac Gregorio Libertas Floridarium (“Liberty for the Floridas under the leadership of MacGregor”).
He made no attempt to repay those who had funded the Amelia expedition.
Press reports of the Amelia Island affair were wildly inaccurate, partly because of misinformation disseminated by MacGregor himself.
Imagine what this man could do social media.
Oh, and he his born shortly thereafter was named
spoiler
Gregorio, Gregor MacGregor fathered Gregorio MacGregor
If you want to have some fun, look back on the total population of Scotland at the time and do some math and realize that percentage-wise this is the equivalent of convincing about 72 000 Americans to move to Poyais today.
In the 1820s and 30s con man Gregor MacGregor claimed to be the “Cazique of Poyais”, basically the king of a thriving colony/country in central America that in no way existed. Investments in the entirely fictional country skyrocketed because of its vast amount of made up natural resources and its population of make believe servile and pleasant natives. MacGregor even convinced a few hundred Anglos to move to Poyais, gave them fancy titles in the military and civil service of his pretend country and then put them on ships to central America where they were dropped off in an uninhabitable jungle that MacGregor had no claim to whatsoever and then most of them died.
Uncritical support for grifting anglos and leaving them to die of malaria.
Okay hear me out what if we did Fire Festival 3.0 but in Zemunda or Agriba?
Omfg he got away with it too.
Yes, and when you see him referred to as “the general”, do I have some very surprising news for you about the vast majority of his military record!
There are too many aspects to his life story worthy of mention, torrenting a biography now. Thanks for linking a wild ride of a wikipedia article.
Upon deliberation, my favorite part:
Imagine what this man could do social media.
Oh, and he his born shortly thereafter was named
spoiler
Gregorio, Gregor MacGregor fathered Gregorio MacGregor
If you want to have some fun, look back on the total population of Scotland at the time and do some math and realize that percentage-wise this is the equivalent of convincing about 72 000 Americans to move to Poyais today.
Wild, truly the conman GOAT.
“Name MacName” is perfect for a con artist
It’s almost the greatest Scottish name of all time, but that honor belongs to Marmaduke Thweng
That dude has a wild life story lmao
Oh yes, well worth reading up on. The Poyais scheme is just one chapter in the life of one of the most impressive liars to ever live.
I feel like I’ve been given the opposite gift, never being able to convince anyone of anything and in fact only hardening their shitty beliefs