That 'Bastard Bligh': Mutiny on the Bounty Quiz

Answer: Lieutenant (acting as Captain) William Bligh

Bligh had been chief navigator on Captain Cook's third voyage (1776-80). Although in 1785 he served as captain of the mercantile vessel, Britannia, because of the small size of this vessel Bligh was obliged to accept his commission at the lower rank of Lieutenant and also serve as purser.

Answer: breadfruit

The Bounty had been sent to Tahiti to collect breadfruit and transport it back to London and to West Indies to provide food for slave labour. To accommodate the plants, the Captain's quarters had been turned into a greenhouse resulting in severe overcrowding for the officers and men. This was a source of great discontent, especially during bad weather.

Answer: He followed Captain Cook's strict discipline regarding sanitation and diet.

Bligh also replaced the navy's usual 4-hour on and 4-hour off duty roster with a three-watch system in which two 4-hour watches were followed by an 8-hour rest break, and introduced regular music and dance sessions for entertainment and exercise. These measures were designed to ensure the health and well-being of his crew. However, not all the crew appreciated the changes. The ship's surgeon also proved to be incompetent, causing the death of an asthma patient through unhygienic practice.

Answer: Relations with Tahitian women.

During the five months on Tahiti collecting the breadfruit plants, many of the men enjoyed the easy availability of the Tahitian women, and discipline on the ship and in relation to their mission began to suffer. Tools and property were stolen by locals and Bligh attempted to reassert discipline by ordering that offenders be flogged - a punishment he had largely avoided up to this point.

Answer: Less than half the crew were mutineers.

The majority of the crew wanted to leave the Bounty on the small launch with Bligh but there was not enough room, so some were ordered to remain on the Bounty. Even so, when the launch departed with a complement of 18, there was only 7 inches clearance between the side of the launch and the water.

Answer: Fletcher Christian

The reasons for the mutiny are unclear, and have been a source of considerable debate. Fletcher Christian was the leader of the mutiny, but it seems he overestimated his support. More men wanted to depart with Bligh than wanted to mutiny with Christian and he had to order enough men to remain behind to crew the Bounty.

While it seems true that Bligh was disciplinarian, he was not harsh. What seems more likely is that the months of freedom and lassitude on Tahiti had proved appealing, and that as the men sailed away from the island, the reality of leaving their island paradise in exchange for the privation and exacting discipline of life on board a small crowded ship was unbearable.

Answer: Bligh sailed his small launch to Timor from where he and his crew were able to secure passage to London.

With only a compass, a sextant, some navigational tables and very little in the way of food and water, Bligh navigated his 23 foot craft 3,200 nautical miles through stormy seas to Timor. The only loss of life was one sailor who was speared by locals as the launch attempted to land at Tongatapu. Bligh's voyage to Timor is now recognised as an incredible feat of seamanship and naval leadership.

Answer: First to Tahiti, then some went on to Pitcairn Island

The mutineers initially sailed to Tahiti, where some of them remained, later to be apprehended and returned to Plymouth to be court-martialled. The remainder, with some Tahitian men and women, sailed on to settle on Pitcairn Island which was then a deserted island. There they established a colony of sorts and remained undiscovered until 1808 by which time only one of them remained alive, the rest having killed each other or having been killed by the Tahitian companions they took with them to Pitcairn.

Answer: Those from prominent families were given royal pardons; those from lower classes were found guilty and hanged.

The court martial took place in Plymouth in 1792. Mutiny was punishable by hanging, and the only defence for such a crime was to prove that the circumstances warranted the actions. The mutineers from wealthy families - who had family reputations at stake - hired legal defenders and ultimately secured royal pardons. Those without money or influence were found guilty and hanged. Edward Christian, a jurist and Fletcher's brother, published an Appendix to the account of the court martial, defending the actions of the mutineers and attacking the character of Bligh.

This left Bligh's career in the doldrums until the Admiralty found themselves in need of a strong disciplinarian to govern the colony of New South Wales.

Answer: Speaking to his crew in a demeaning and dishonorable way

It is alleged that Bligh did not behave according to accepted social or naval norms. For example Bligh was always interfering in the routines of crew members and castigating them for their laxity. He also seemed indifferent to the niceties of polite society or even of rank. In Tahiti, in front of the entire crew, he accused Christian, who was his second-in-command and from a well-connected family - a gentleman - of being 'a thief and a liar'. This was an intolerable insult to someone of Christian's social standing, as well as undermining naval command structure.