There have been at least five movies on the “Mutiny on the Bounty”. William Bligh became the poster boy for tyrannical captains. He is depicted as mistreating his crew with his unreasonable discipline to the point where they justifiably mutiny against him. Led by the saintly Fletcher Christian. Be careful about learning your history from Hollywood. In reality, Bligh was an above average captain. He preferred a good scolding to whipping. He organized fair work shifts, daily exercise led by a fiddler, and a good diet including lemon juice to fight scurvy. Granted, you probably would not want him as your next door neighbor, but his reputation has been besmirched by the movies. The mutiny was not due to ill treatment. The HMS Bounty had been sent to Tahiti to bring back breadfruit trees to be used as a food source for slaves in the Caribbean. They spent six debauched weeks on Tahiti where the crew enjoyed the tropical paradise and all it had to offer, especially the willing native girls. After a few days on the return trip, faced with the mundane shipboard life, the crew decided Tahiti was better. Led by Fletcher Christian, who was overly sensitive about Bligh’s criticisms, the mutineers placed Bligh and seventeen loyal sailors in a boat with five days worth of provisions. Not nearly enough for the almost 4,000 mile voyage ahead. In a remarkable act of seamanship, Bligh got the men back to civilization. Christian and the mutineers settled on an island near Tahiti with their native wives and some men they intended to enslave. Christian turned out to be an incompetent leader and was killed by natives, as were most of the other mutineers. When a British naval expedition eventually arrived to bring the men to justice, there was only one still alive.
https://historycollection.co/odd-details-about-famous-historical-events-nobody-talks-about/8/
https://www.encyclopedia.com/people/history/british-and-irish-history-biographies/william-bligh
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