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More than 5000 entries on the history, culture and life of Britain (published in 1993 by Macmillan, now out of print)
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Captain Bligh
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(William Bligh, 1754–1817) A man much mutinied against. On the first occasion he was in command of HMS Bounty in the Pacific in 1789, when a mutiny was led by the acting lieutenant, Fletcher *Christian. Bligh was set adrift in an open boat with 18 of his crew. After a journey of three months and some 5600km/3500m he brought them to safety on Timor, an island near Java. The next mutiny against him was in 1797, as part of the general unrest at the *Nore. And finally, as governor of New South Wales in Australia, he was arrested in 1808 by his deputy and sent back to England. On each occasion the courts vindicated Bligh. Although clearly an unpopular and overbearing commander, he may have been more unlucky than unusual for his time. Bligh was played by Charles Laughton and Christian by Clark Gable in the famous Mutiny on the Bounty of 1935.
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