William Bligh(1754-1817)
- Writer
Captain (later Vice Admiral) William Bligh will be remembered as the
infamous captain of the HMS Bounty. He went to sea at the age of 15 as
sailing master to the famous explorer Captain James Cook on his 2nd
voyage round the world (1772-4) aboard the HMS Resolution. It was he
who discovered bread-fruit at Otaheite (Tahiti). In 1787, then
lieutenant, he was chosen by Sir Joseph Banks to command the Bounty on
a voyage to Tahiti to collect plants of the bread-fruit tree and
introduce them to the West Indies. On the return voyage, on 28 April
1789, first mate Fletcher Christian led a mutiny, and Bligh and 18 of
his supporters were cast adrift in an open boat without charts. The
mutineers went back to Tahiti. Bligh was an excellent navigator and
managed to 'captain' his boat to Timor in the East Indies. They landed
there in June after having travelled nearly 4,000 miles across the
Pacific. There he met British authorities and sailed back to England,
to be exonerated for his conduct and promoted. In 1791 he set sail for
the Society Islands. In 1794 he received the medal of the Society of
Arts and in 1801 he became a Fellow of the Royal Society. Bligh served
under Lord Nelson in command of the Glatton at the Battle of Copenhagen
in 1801. He then became a colonial administrator in Australia. He was
made Governor of New South Wales in 1805 which was a penal colony. He
was deposed in 1808 and imprisoned (1808-10) by mutinous soldiers
during the so-called 'Rum Rebellion' inspired by John MacArthur. On his
return to England, Bligh was exonerated of all blame. He was promoted
to Rear-admiral in 1811 and Vice-admiral of the Blue in 1814, he was
not, however, given any important command. He effectively retired in
1811.