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William Bligh (September 9th 1754 - December 7th 1817) is a British officer of the Royal Navy and a colonial administrator. It is especially known for the mutiny which it undergoes on board the Bounty . After this one, it is named Gouverneur of News-Wales of the South where its administration will be at the origin of an insurrection, the Rébellion of the rum directed by John Macarthur. It will make however a honourable career in the Royal Navy, having begun foam at seven years and finishing Vice-amiral.

Biography

William Bligh is born with Tinten Manor, in the village of Saint-Tudy in Cornouailles. It is only son of Francis Bligh (deceased the December 27th 1780) and of Jane Pearce (she dies when William is fourteen years old), a widow whose name of young girl was Balsam.

William has its first contact with the sea in 1762, at the seven years age. It embarks like personal servant of the captain of the HMS Monmouth . In 1770, it engages in the Royal Navy on the HMS Hunter and becomes Midship, the equivalent of candidate the following year in 1771, it is useful then on the HMS Crescent and the HMS Ranger .

Very early he is noticed for his intelligence and, his gifts in sciences and mathematics, like his talent for the drawing and the writing. He embarks with James Cook on the Résolution as Boatswain, this voyage is marked by the fine tragedy of James Cook the February 14th 1779 in the islands Hawaii. During this period, Bligh observed the methods of Cook to maintain its crew in good health, in particular the use of the Agrume S against the Scorbut and the daily physical exercise of the crew by dance on the bridge with a musician. It will take again on its account all that but will not be included/understood by its men on the Bounty .

The February 14th 1781, benefitting from one period of nontwelve months activity, it marries Elizabeth Betham, the girl of a controller of the customs in the parish church of Onchan, on the Île of Man. He is already lieutenant and carried out important hydrographic work for Navy. Little time after its marriage, it reinstates the service and takes share with the battle of Dogger Bank the August 5th 1781 and also fights at the sides of Lord Howe with Gibraltar in 1782.

Then the August 16th 1787, it takes the command of the HMAV Bounty , at the age of thirty-three years. It installs the December 23rd 1787 of the port of Spithead, leaving behind him his wife and their two daughters.

The continuation is well-known, Bligh tries to rejoin Tahiti goal of its mission. It must embark there seedlings of Breadfruit tree to nourish the slaves of the plantations of the the Antilles) while passing by the west. For one month, the crew in vain tries to cross the Cape Horn for finally turning back and taking the road of the Cape of Good Hope where it makes stopover. After a second stopover with Adventure Bay in Tasmanie, forwarding slackens in Tahiti the October 26th 1788. This hitch makes arrive the Bounty at the bad season to collect the breadfruit trees and Bligh must have patience six months to embark its invaluable cargo. During this amount of time the discipline is slackened, the more so as the reception of the population is more than friendly. Finally the Bounty installs the April 4th 1789 and travelled in the west, taking the same way as with the outward journey. The April 27th Bligh announces with its crew his intention to travel in the east while passing by Horn and thus to make the turn of the sphere. This idea hardly enchants the crew, especially the passage of Cape Horn still in all the memories. Benefitting from the dissatisfaction with part of the crew, the lieutenant Fletcher Christian takes the head of a mutiny and seizes the ship in the night of the 28 to the April 29th. He decides to give up Bligh and part of those which are faithful for him (18 people) in a Chaloupe…

It is here that starts the maritime exploit, Bligh does not trace the most obvious road to reach a Spanish port from where him and its men could be repatriated, with probable waiting, towards Great Britain. Instead of that, trustful in its gifts of navigator and considering that it is of its mission of informing as fast as possible Admiralty of the mutiny in order to make continue the mutineers, it takes the direction of Timor what implies a navigation of 3618 nauticals mile or 6701 km. Bligh, on a nondecked launch of hardly seven meters length, overloaded by nineteen men, without chart nor compass and with hardly a week of vivres at the beginning will sail of memory through the Pacifique, of the Grande barrier of coral to arrive forty and one days later at the Dutch island. He will have traversed all this tour, by facing hostile storms and tribes (as well as the beginning of a new mutiny so much the conditions of survival are hard), losing one man, the first Norton Master on the island of Tofoa. Such an exploit perhaps only the fact of an exceptional sailor.

Bligh of return in Great Britain passes in martial court in front of the Admiralty which discharges it the March 15th 1790 for the loss of HMAV Bounty and even congratulates it for its exploit in the launch.

To date, the reasons of the mutiny are always discussed. Some sees there the result of the tyranny of Bligh which forced the crew to seize the boat. Others think that the crew, exposed with the easy life of his stopover tahitienne, could not be solved to live again lasts it at that time discipline of the life of the edge and that thus, while seizing the ship, it could turn over on the island to continue there a lifestyle, a life of pleasure and comfort, that it refused to give up.

Bligh is seen entrusting the command of HMS Falcon then embarks on HMS Medea . In 1792, it orders HMS Providence and is seen indicating to start again the same mission as with the Bounty . It makes a success of its mission successfully this blow (makes the slaves of the Antilles of them will not want to never eat fruits of the breadfruit tree, but Bligh is not there for nothing.) During this last mission, Bligh also could introduce the Ackee into the Caribbean, but there are not certainty on this fact, nevertheless this plant was named according to him, in classification, in the form Blighia sapida .

In 1797 Bligh is ordering HMS Director . As much of commanders, Bligh had has to undergo the Mutinerie of Nore in April 1797. It was simply deposited with ground by the crew of its ship to the damping of Nore in the North Sea. At the conclusion of the mutiny, Bligh always on HMS Director takes part the October 11th 1797 in the Bataille of Camperdown, it engages three Dutch vessels - the Haarlem , the Alkmaar and the Vrijheid . Whereas it inflicts heavy losses with the enemy vessels, only seven of its men will be wounded during the combat. It receives the rendering of the Haarlem .

At the 19th century, Dublin was regarded as the second city of the British Isles, the boats flowed there but the risk of ensabler in bay and the too narrow port prevented the economic development of the city. Bligh suggests in a study made in 1801 the construction of a wall-dam parallel with that existing on southern bank of the mouth of the river Liffey. By channeling the current (the two dams must be tightened towards the exit of the port) the force of the river will be increased and it will dig deeper the bed of bay, facilitating the entry of the large buildings which will be then with the shelter of the dams by bad weather. The construction of the North Bull Wall proceeded of 1819 with 1824 for a 1,7 km length. With the wire of time and tides, sand accumulated along the wall to form today some 6 height meters dunes which do not cease growing in direction of the sea, artificial refuge of the birds and the seals.

Then the April 2nd 1801, it is as a commander of the HMS Glatton that it takes share with the Bataille of Copenhagen under the orders of the admiral Nelson. This last congratulates it for its bravery at the time of the combat. It is as this year as he is elected member of the Royal Society (it had already recommended it for the mission of the Bounty ) in consideration of his services as well in navigation as in Botanique.

1805 sees it named as governor of the very young colony of News-Wales of the South. Once again its rigid administration, but especially the corruption of the soldiers of the 102e regiment of infantry of the garrison will be at the origin of an insurrection, the Rébellion of rum directed by John Macarthur a merchant of wool, with Sydney in 1808. It is deposited of its station by Major George Johnston and is imprisoned during two years. It is its substitute sent to give of the order with a new regiment which delivers it. On its return, the Court washes it of any responsibility and makes lock up Johnston at the hospital of Chelsea.

Bligh will be then promoted Rear-admiral of the blue Fleet in 1810 then will finish Vice-Amiral in 1814.

It will spend the last years of its life in its manor of Farningham in the Kent, but it is with London, in Bond Street which it dies the December 7th 1817 at the age of sixty-four years. It will be buried in the part is cemetery of the church of Lambeth, where it rests beside his wife who gave him six girls, her tomb is surmounted by a sculpture of a fruit of the breadfruit tree.

In the Years 1980, one of its distances grandsons which lives in Australia will try to republish the exploit of the crossing in the launch of the Bounty with a team of sportsmen and scientists, but they will have to stop in the course of road their challenge in front of the difficulty and the disagreement.

The cinema through three films gave the indication of a William Bligh, captain tyrannical who abuses the crew of his ship, the Bounty , vis-a-vis one of its officers, Fletcher Christian, defender of oppressed. It is probable that Bligh was not crueler than the other British commanders of its time. It was, undoubtedly no, a sailor except par, his navigation after the mutiny of the Bounty as well as its behavior at the time of the naval battles, of it are the evidence without question, and these qualities will be recognized to him besides by its superiors, since it will make a honourable career in Royal Navy, having begun foam at seven years and finishing Vice-amiral.

Military career

See too

Rebellion of rum
On the history of the mutiny of the HMAV Bounty.
Pitcairn, the last refuge of the mutineers.
Bligh Reef, a reef in the Bay of Prince-William in the south of Alaska, named according to William Bligh during the forwarding of James Cook in whom it was useful. It is on this reef that the tanker Exxon Valdez made shipwreck in 1989.

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has Voyage to the South Sea of William Bligh, 1792, Project Gutenberg, the report by Bligh of its voyage incorporating the account of the mutiny. Complete title: has Voyage to the South Sea, undertaken by command off His Majesty, for the purpose off conveying the bread-fruit tree to the West Indies, in his majesty' S ship the Bounty, commanded by Lieutenant William Bligh. Including year account off the Mutiny one board the said ship, and the subsequent voyage off share off the crew, in the ship' S boat, from Tofoa, one off the friendly islands, to Timor, has settlement Dutch in the East Indies. The whole illustrated with charts, etc

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Biography

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