 DATE: In an early scene, Blackbeard and his crew threaten to attack  a French vessel. The flag the vessel is flying is the current French  flag, which wasnt adopted in France until 1790. Blackbeard died in  1718. If the French vessel were a royal vessel, it would have flown  a plain white standard. If it were a French merchant the flag would  be royal blue with a white cross centered and the French  fleur