"Wherever we want to go, we go. That's what a ship is, you know. It's not just a keel and a hull and a deck and sails; that's what a ship needs. But what a ship is...what the Black Pearl really is...is freedom.

The Black Pearl was an infamous pirate ship, originally a merchant ship operating for the East India Trading Company under the name Wicked Wench. A well-known threat in the Caribbean, this legendary ship of the seven seas was most notably captained by Jack Sparrow and Hector Barbossa.
Command was first given to Jack Sparrow who fulfilled many contracts for the Company on the behalf of Cutler Beckett. However, after Jack refused to carry out a certain task, Beckett ordered the Wench set alight and sunk and her captain forever branded as a pirate. After failing to rescue the Wench, Jack struck a bargain with Davy Jones, the ghostly captain of the Flying Dutchman. Jones raised the Wicked Wench from the depths, giving Jack thirteen years as captain, in exchange for one hundred years of service aboard the Dutchman. With the Wench's new charred look, Jack renamed her the Black Pearl. Now a renowned pirate vessel and threat of the Caribbean, the Black Pearl would embark on many adventures on the high seas.

During the quest for the cursed treasure of Cortés, Jack lost the Pearl by a mutiny led by his first mate, Hector Barbossa. After ten years of being a cursed ship, Jack Sparrow would regain the Black Pearl, after having killed Barbossa, and serve as captain until Davy Jones demanded Jack's debt. This prompted Jack into finding the Dead Man's Chest, which ended with the Kraken dragging both Jack and his beloved Pearl to Davy Jones' Locker. After escaping the Locker, the Black Pearl sailed for Shipwreck Cove, led by both Jack and the resurrected Barbossa, where it became the flagship of the Brethren Court's armada in the fight against Cutler Beckett's Armada. The titanic battle would end with the Black Pearl and the Flying Dutchman, now captained by Will Turner, destroying the HMS Endeavour, achieving the pirates victory.

After the battle, Barbossa once again stole the Pearl from Jack with the intention to using it to find the Fountain of Youth. But the Pearl came under attack by the Queen Anne's Revenge, captained by the notorious pirate Blackbeard. Using his sword, Blackbeard turned the Pearl against Barbossa and his crew. Blackbeard would have the Black Pearl captured and put into a bottle.