John Coxon was an English buccaneer active in the Caribbean in the late 1670s and early 1680s. In January 1680 he led an attack on the Spanish town of Portobelo and was elected admiral of a combined buccaneer fleet. He then led roughly 330 to 350 men on foot across the Isthmus of Panama to attack Panama City, commanding part of the buccaneer force at the naval Battle of Perico on April 23, 1680. After the battle, Coxon argued for an immediate return to the Caribbean; when most of the expedition chose instead to continue raiding along South America’s Pacific coast, he recrossed the isthmus with about 70 men who stayed loyal to him. Command of the expedition then passed to Richard Sawkins, and later to Bartholomew Sharp.
John Coxon
