Mutiny on the High Seas - Hardcover

This book relates sixty-six interesting and true tales of mutiny, murder, and plunder on the high seas between 1578 and 1933. The collection includes descriptions and summaries of the alleged treason on Sir Francis Drake's Golden Hind in 1578; Henry Hudson's mutiny-inspired death in Canada in 1611; the saga of Captain Bligh and HMS Bounty in 1789 (which has been made into at least three movies); the historically significant uprisings in the British Royal Navy in 1797; the bloodiest mutiny ever on HMS Hermione in 1797, including the vessel's traitorous delivery to the Spanish enemy and its subsequent recapture by expert action on the part of a British man-of-war; the Plattsburg mutiny and murders in 1816; mutiny on the slave ship Creole in 1841; and the infamous insurrection and hangings on the USS Somers in 1844. Tragedies resulting from violent outbreaks on such illustrious ships as HMS Wagner; the Globe, the Batavia, the Buckman, the Jefferson Borden, the Lennie, the Pedro Varella, and many other ships are fully detailed and are fascinating to read.
Mutiny on the High Seas also considers the celebrated revolutionary insurrection on the Russian battleship Potemkin in 1905 (which became the subject of a Soviet movie in 1925) and World War I mutinies in the German navy that speeded the demise of the German Empire. The widespread Invergordon conspiracy in the British Royal Navy in 1931 and the Javanese revolt and seizure of the Dutch battleship Ze Zeven Provincien in 1933 represent two outstanding and decisive marine rebellions in modern times.
In addition to the individual mutiny stories, this volume contains a comprehensive introduction that outlines the nature of mutiny, its causes, its implementation, and the resulting penalties. Nearly fifty illustrations and two appendices--devoted to punishment for insurrections and firsthand mutiny anecdotes--supplement the text. Mutiny on the High Seas provides intriguing material for readers who relish stories about mischief and adventure on the world's oceans long ago.