HMS Bounty - Mutiny on the Bounty

HMS Bounty is one of the most famous (perhaps infamous) ships in the history of maritime adventures. It's not surprising that model kits are now available so that you can make your own copy of the original HMS Bounty but here are a few pieces of information that you may not know about the historical ship.

The original HMS Bounty was purchased by the Royal Navy in May 1787, having previously been a merchant ship used for transporting coal. She was, in military terms, relatively small and was commanded by just two men, each of whom have taken their place in history.

The first was Lieutenant William Bligh. Many people, when thinking about the story of the Mutiny on the Bounty, imagine Bligh to have been a relatively old man but he was, in fact, just 33 years of age. Fletcher Christian, the mutineer, was to be appointed acting lieutenant during the course of the voyage.

The ship's mission was relatively straightforward - she was to sail to Tahiti to pick up some breadfruit plants, which would then be transported on to the West Indies. It was envisaged that the breadfruit plants would be planted in the West Indies to see whether they could grow successfully in the new climate. This was seen as a small-scale experiment that might proceed larger scale agricultural planting.

The ship made its way to Tahiti and took some 10 months to reach its first destination. On its arrival, HMS Bounty stayed for 5 months. During this time, many of the crew became very friendly with the locals. Bligh seemed content to allow this to occur and is generally viewed as having been very relaxed about the behaviour of his charges.

Fletcher Christian led the mutineers 24 days after the ship left Tahiti - 11 of the crew joined him, while 31 were loyal to Bligh. Bligh and those loyal to him were cast adrift in a small boat, which he successfully navigated to Timor.

The mutineers, on the other hand, eventually stumbled upon Pitcairn Island, where they settled. HMS Bounty was burned in what is now known as Bounty Bay. Descendants of the mutineers are still found on Pitcairn Island to this day.

A full-scale replica of HMS Bounty was built in the 1960s.