Monday 7 December 2020

Voyage of the Bounty

William Bligh was selected as the captain of HMS Bounty. The voyage of the Bounty had a mission to take breadfruits, which were considered to be inexpensive food for slaves. Bounty had no Marines to protect the vessel. The vessel was operated by 3 shifts ('watches'), and was controlled by Bligh and Fletcher Christian. 

On April 28, 1789, Christian forced Bligh and 18 crew mates off the Bounty, and they were set adrift in a boat without a roof or sides, with not enough water for a few days. They also had knives and some tools to sail, but they did not have marine charts or a compass.

Bligh strongly believed that their boat could reach safety because he had good navigation skills and sailing experience. Bligh wanted to go to Timor, which was more than 7,000 km away, to announce the mutiny to the United Kingdom. They stopped off at Tofua to collect food and water, but one crew member was killed by local people.

After the accident at Tofua, they continued sailing towards Timor, reaching it 47 days after they were set adrift. This voyage was successful due to Bligh’s excellent seamanship and his crew’s cooperation. Was the mutiny caused by Bligh's tyrannical captaincy? 

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