Norfolk Island Museum is a museum organisation on Norfolk Island , an external territory of Australia in the southern Pacific Ocean. The museum comprises five sites and collections that include archaeological, archival and social history objects that reflect subsequent waves of forced migration to the island.
153-512: Norfolk Island Museum consists of five sites: No. 10 Quality Row - a Georgian period house; Pier Store - a museum of the Bounty Mutineers and Pitcairn Island ; Sirius Museum - a maritime museum dedicated to HMS Sirius ; Commissariat Store - housing archaeological displays; Norfolk Island Research Centre - the archive. The museums lie within the Kingston and Arthur's Vale Historic Area ,
306-638: A blood infection . To cover his error, Huggan reported to Bligh that Valentine had died from scurvy , which led Bligh to apply his own medicinal and dietary antiscorbutic remedies to the entire ship's company. By now, Huggan was almost incapacitated with drink, until Bligh confiscated his supply. Huggan briefly returned to duty; before Bounty ' s arrival in Tahiti, he examined all on board for signs of venereal disease and found none. Bounty came to anchor in Matavai Bay , Tahiti, on 26 October 1788, concluding
459-578: A post-captain and would be the only commissioned officer on board. Nor did a cutter warrant the usual detachment of Royal Marines that naval commanders could use to enforce their authority. Bounty had been acquired to transport breadfruit plants from Tahiti (then rendered "Otaheite"), a Polynesian island in the South Pacific Ocean, to the British colonies in the West Indies . The expedition
612-500: A schooner , which they named Resolution after Cook's ship. Morrison had not been an active mutineer; rather than waiting for recapture, he hoped to sail the vessel to the Dutch East Indies and surrender to the authorities there, hoping that such action would confirm his innocence. Morrison's group maintained ship's routine and discipline, even to the extent of holding divine service each Sunday. Churchill and Matthew Thompson, on
765-399: A sounding plummet hanging from his neck so that he could jump overboard and drown himself if the mutiny failed. Others who had been awakened by the noise left their berths and joined in the general pandemonium. It was unclear at this stage who were or were not active mutineers. Hough describes the scene: "Everyone was, more or less, making a noise, either cursing, jeering or just shouting for
918-472: A "long-term reorganisation of the reef ecosystem if the trend continues." The Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Act 1975 (section 54) stipulates an Outlook Report on the Reef's health, pressures, and future every five years. The last report was published in 2019. In March 2022, another mass bleaching event has been confirmed, which raised further concerns about the future of this reef system, especially when considering
1071-510: A "shark control" program ( shark culling ) that deliberately kills sharks throughout Queensland, including in the Great Barrier Reef. Environmentalists and scientists say that this program harms the marine ecosystem ; they also say it is "outdated, cruel and ineffective". The Queensland "shark control" program uses shark nets and drum lines with baited hooks to kill sharks in the Great Barrier Reef – there are 173 lethal drum lines in
1224-497: A British warship, HMS Gorgon , and arrived at Portsmouth on 19 June. There they were transferred to the guardship HMS Hector to await trial. The prisoners included the three detained loyalists—Coleman, McIntosh and Norman—to whom Bligh had promised justice; the blind fiddler Michael Byrne (or "Byrn"); Heywood; Morrison; and four active mutineers: Thomas Burkett, John Millward, Thomas Ellison and William Muspratt. Bligh, who had been given command of HMS Providence for
1377-532: A World Heritage Site also linked to the Australian Convict Sites . Collections held by Norfolk Island Museum include material excavated from the HMS Sirius during a research programme led by Graham Henderson in the 1980s. This consists of over 6000 objects. The collection also includes material from archaeological excavations on the island, both prehistoric and historic, including material excavated during
1530-414: A close relationship with a Polynesian woman named Mauatua , to whom he gave the name "Isabella" after a former sweetheart from Cumberland. Bligh remained chaste himself, but was tolerant of his men's activities, unsurprised that they should succumb to temptation when "the allurements of dissipation are beyond any thing that can be conceived". Nevertheless, he expected them to do their duty efficiently, and
1683-530: A compass and quadrant , but was forced to leave behind Bligh's maps and charts—fifteen years of navigational work. With the eighteen men who had remained loyal to Bligh, the launch was supplied with about five days' food and water and Purcell's tool chest. Bligh mentions in his journals that a sextant and any time-keeper was refused by the mutineers, but boatswain's mate James Morrison stated Christian handed over his personal sextant saying, "There, Captain Bligh, this
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#17328762307251836-446: A crew member was killed. Bligh navigated more than 3,500 nautical miles (6,500 km; 4,000 mi) in the launch to reach safety and began the process of bringing the mutineers to justice. The mutineers variously settled on Tahiti or on Pitcairn Island . Bounty had left England in 1787 on a mission to collect and transport breadfruit plants from Tahiti to the West Indies . A five-month layover in Tahiti, during which many of
1989-449: A day (£70 a year) contrasted with the £500 a year he had earned as captain of Britannia . Because of the limited number of warrant officers allowed on Bounty , Bligh was also required to act as the ship's purser . To survey an important but under-explored passage, Bligh's sailing orders stated that he was to enter the Pacific via Cape Horn around South America and then, after collecting
2142-581: A depth of 150 metres (490 ft) due to their need for sunlight, and cannot grow above sea level. When Queensland edged into tropical waters 24 million years ago, some coral grew, but a sedimentation regime quickly developed with erosion of the Great Dividing Range ; creating river deltas , oozes and turbidites , unsuitable conditions for coral growth. 10 million years ago, the sea level significantly lowered, which further enabled sedimentation. The reef's substrate may have needed to build up from
2295-506: A disease of bony corals caused by the protozoan Halofolliculina corallasia , affects 31 coral species. According to a 2012 study by the National Academy of Sciences , since 1985, the Great Barrier Reef has lost more than half of its corals with two-thirds of the loss occurring from 1998 due to the factors listed before. In 2022, the northern and central parts of the reef had the highest amount of coral cover since monitoring began, but
2448-450: A doubling of the chlorophyll in the water leads to a tenfold increase in the crown-of-thorns starfish larvae's survival rate. Sediment runoff from farming carries chemicals into the reef environment also reduces the amount of light available to the corals decreasing their ability to extract energy from their environment. Pesticides used in farming are made up of heavy metals such as lead, mercury, arsenic and other toxins are released into
2601-499: A draft decision, expressing serious concern about the impact of coral bleaching on the Great Barrier Reef. The draft decision also warned Australia that it will not meet the targets of the Reef 2050 report without considerable work to improve water quality. Climate change has implications for other forms of reef life – some fish's preferred temperature range leads them to seek new habitat, thus increasing chick mortality in predatory seabirds. Climate change will also affect
2754-623: A fanatical zeal, continually fuss[ing] and fum[ing] over the cleanliness of his ship and the food served to the crew." He replaced the navy's traditional watch system of alternating four-hour spells on and off duty with a three-watch system, whereby each four-hour duty was followed by eight hours' rest. For the crew's exercise and entertainment, he introduced regular music and dancing sessions. Bligh's despatches to Campbell and Banks indicated his satisfaction; he had no occasion to administer punishment because, he wrote: "Both men and officers tractable and well disposed, & cheerfulness & content in
2907-567: A journey of 27,086 nautical miles (50,163 km; 31,170 mi). Bligh's first action on arrival was to secure the co-operation of the local chieftains, as well as the King of Tahiti, Pōmare I . The paramount chief Tynah remembered Bligh from Cook's voyage fifteen years previously and greeted him warmly. Bligh presented the chiefs with gifts and informed them that their own King George wished in return only breadfruit plants. They happily agreed with this simple request. Bligh assigned Christian to lead
3060-486: A lawsuit against the government of Queensland to stop shark culling in the Great Barrier Reef. In March 2015, the Australian and Queensland's governments formed a plan for the protection and preservation of the reef's universal heritage until 2050. This 35 years plan, titled "Reef 2050 Plan" is a document proposing possible measures for the long-term management of the pollution, climate change and other issues that threaten
3213-450: A permanent settlement, they needed compliant native labour and women. The most likely source for these was Tahiti, to which Bounty returned on 6 June. To ensure the co-operation of the Tahiti chiefs, Christian concocted a story that he, Bligh, and Cook were founding a new settlement at Aitutaki . Although Cook had actually been killed ten years earlier, the use of his name ensured generous gifts of livestock and other goods and, on 16 June,
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#17328762307253366-404: A raft with which he could escape to an island and take his chances with the natives. He may have acquired wood for this purpose from Purcell. In any event, his discontent became common knowledge among his fellow officers. Two of the young gentlemen, George Stewart and Edward Young , urged him not to desert; Young assured him that he would have the support of almost all on board if he were to seize
3519-411: A rate of about 0.1 per decade this century. The acidic water breaks down the materials that coral and shell building creatures need to grow. Another key threat faced by the Great Barrier Reef is pollution and declining water quality . The rivers of north-eastern Australia pollute the Reef during tropical flood events. Over 90% of this pollution comes from farm runoff . 80% of the land adjacent to
3672-865: A second breadfruit expedition, had left England in August 1791 and thus would be absent from the pending court-martial proceedings. The court-martial opened on 12 September 1792 on HMS Duke in Portsmouth Harbour , with Vice-Admiral Lord Hood , Commander-in-Chief, Portsmouth , presiding. Heywood's family secured him competent legal advisers; of the other defendants, only Muspratt employed legal counsel. The survivors of Bligh's open-boat journey gave evidence against their former comrades—the testimonies from Thomas Hayward and John Hallett were particularly damaging to Heywood and Morrison, who each maintained their innocence of any mutinous intention and had surrendered voluntarily to Pandora . The court did not challenge
3825-426: A shore party charged with establishing a compound in which the plants would be nurtured. Whether based ashore or on board, the men's duties during Bounty ' s five-month stay in Tahiti were relatively light. Many led promiscuous lives among the native women—altogether, eighteen officers and men, including Christian, received treatment for venereal infections —while others took regular partners. Christian formed
3978-399: A specially constructed prison erected on Pandora ' s quarterdeck, dubbed "Pandora's Box". Pandora remained at Tahiti for five weeks while Edwards unsuccessfully sought information on Bounty ' s whereabouts. The ship finally sailed on 8 May to search for Bounty among the thousands of southern Pacific islands. Apart from a few spars discovered at Palmerston Island , no traces of
4131-638: A thousand potted breadfruit plants, with glazed windows, skylights, and a lead-covered deck and drainage system to prevent the waste of fresh water. The space required for these arrangements in the small ship meant that the crew and officers would endure severe overcrowding for the duration of the long voyage. With Banks' agreement, command of the expedition was given to Lieutenant William Bligh , whose experiences included Captain James Cook 's third and final voyage (1776–80) in which he had served as sailing master , or chief navigator, on HMS Resolution . Bligh
4284-539: A time, through the whole course of the voyage". For all his earlier favoured status, Christian did not escape Bligh's wrath. He was often humiliated by the captain—sometimes in front of the crew and the Tahitians—for real or imagined slackness, while severe punishments were handed out to men whose carelessness had led to the loss or theft of equipment. Floggings, rarely administered during the outward voyage, now became increasingly common. On 5 January 1789 three members of
4437-401: A voyage free from such punishment. On 2 April, as Bounty approached Cape Horn, a strong gale and high seas began an unbroken period of stormy weather which, Bligh wrote, "exceeded what I had ever met with before ... with severe squalls of hail and sleet ". The winds drove the ship back; on 3 April, it was further north than it had been a week earlier. Again and again, Bligh forced
4590-583: A wide diversity of life and was selected as a World Heritage Site in 1981. CNN labelled it one of the Seven Natural Wonders of the World in 1997. Australian World Heritage places included it in its list in 2007. The Queensland National Trust named it a state icon of Queensland in 2006. A large part of the reef is protected by the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park , which helps to limit
4743-423: A year older and formerly sailmaker on Britannia . The youngest aboard were Hallett and Heywood, both aged 15 when they left England. Living space on the ship was allocated on the basis of rank. Bligh, having yielded the great cabin, occupied private sleeping quarters with an adjacent dining area or pantry on the starboard side of the ship, and Fryer a small cabin on the opposite side. The surgeon Thomas Huggan,
Norfolk Island Museum - Misplaced Pages Continue
4896-428: A year on HMS Powerful , a harbour-bound training vessel at Plymouth. His recommendation to Bligh came from Richard Betham, a Heywood family friend who was Bligh's father-in-law. The two botanists, or "gardeners", were chosen by Banks. The chief botanist, David Nelson , was a veteran of Cook's third expedition who had been to Tahiti and had learned some of the natives' language. Nelson's assistant William Brown
5049-473: Is a distinct feature of the East Australian Cordillera division. It reaches from Torres Strait (between Bramble Cay , its northernmost island, and the south coast of Papua New Guinea ) in the north to the unnamed passage between Lady Elliot Island (its southernmost island) and Fraser Island in the south. Lady Elliot Island is located 1,915 km (1,190 mi) southeast of Bramble Cay as
5202-485: Is a very popular destination for tourists, especially in the Whitsunday Islands and Cairns regions. Tourism is an important economic activity for the region, generating over AUD$ 3 billion per year. In November 2014, Google launched Google Underwater Street View in 3D of the Great Barrier Reef. A March 2016 report stated that coral bleaching was more widespread than previously thought, seriously affecting
5355-460: Is expected to become an annual occurrence. In 2020, a study found that the Great Barrier Reef has lost more than half of its corals since 1995 due to warmer seas driven by climate change. As global warming continues, corals will not be able to keep up with increasing ocean temperatures. Coral bleaching events lead to increased disease susceptibility, which causes detrimental ecological effects for reef communities. In July 2017 UNESCO published in
5508-565: Is how they've collected much of their data regarding threats to the Great Barrier Reef. In addition, the Reef 2050 Water Quality Improvement Plan was announced in 2018 in order to help transition local communities, agricultural organizations and industries to more sustainable practices. This plan will join the Queensland government and the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority to manage the amounts of runoff that reach
5661-488: Is located in the Coral Sea , off the coast of Queensland , Australia , separated from the coast by a channel 160 kilometres (100 mi) wide in places and over 61 metres (200 ft) deep. The Great Barrier Reef can be seen from outer space and is the world's biggest single structure made by living organisms. This reef structure is composed of and built by billions of tiny organisms, known as coral polyps . It supports
5814-411: Is sufficient for every purpose and you know the sextant to be a good one." The ship's K2 chronometer was left on Bounty , but Peckover had his own pocket watch that Bligh used to keep time. At the last minute the mutineers threw four cutlasses down into the boat. Of Bounty' s complement—44 after the deaths of Huggan and Valentine—19 men were crowded into the launch, leaving it dangerously low in
5967-399: Is thought that the poor water quality is due to increased light and oxygen competition from algae . Farming fertiliser runoff release nitrogen , phosphorus , and potassium into the oceanic ecosystem, and these limiting nutrients cause massive algal growth which eventually leads to a reduction in oxygen available for other creatures in a process called eutrophication . This decreases
6120-492: The Aboriginal Australian and Torres Strait Islander peoples, and is an important part of local groups' cultures and spirituality. The first European to sight the Great Barrier Reef was James Cook in 1770, who sailed and mapped the east coast of Australia. On 11 June 1770 Cook's ship, HMS Endeavour , ran aground on a shoal south of the present-day location of Cooktown , requiring seven weeks to repair. It
6273-479: The Bounty ..." Nelson the botanist quickly succumbed to the harsh Kupang climate and died. On 20 August, the party departed for Batavia (now called Jakarta) to await a ship for Europe; the cook Thomas Hall died there, having been ill for weeks. Bligh obtained passages home for himself, his clerk Samuel, and his servant John Smith, and sailed on 16 October 1789. Four of the remainder—the master's mate Elphinstone,
Norfolk Island Museum - Misplaced Pages Continue
6426-720: The Coral Sea Basin formed, coral reefs began to grow in the Basin, but until about 25 million years ago, northern Queensland was still in temperate waters south of the tropics – too cool to support coral growth. The Great Barrier Reef's development history is complex; after Queensland drifted into tropical waters, it was largely influenced by reef growth and decline as sea level changed. Reefs can increase in diameter by 1 to 3 centimetres (0.39 to 1.18 in) per year, and grow vertically anywhere from 1 to 25 cm (0.39 to 9.84 in) per year; however, they grow only above
6579-576: The English Channel , to await final sailing orders. Adverse weather delayed arrival at Spithead until 4 November. Bligh was anxious to depart quickly and reach Cape Horn before the end of the short southern summer, but the Admiralty did not accord him high priority and delayed issuing the orders for a further three weeks. When Bounty finally sailed on 28 November, the ship was trapped by contrary winds and unable to clear Spithead until 23 December. With
6732-522: The Great Barrier Reef Foundation in 2018. The announcement of the grant was subject to backlash as the grant had avoided proper tender and transparency processes. The Great Barrier Reef contributes to the overall wellbeing of the marine biome. Numerous species of aquatic plants, fish and megafauna use the reef for feeding, shelter and mating. Threats such as ocean acidification , pollution runoff and outbreaks of destructive species like
6885-437: The Great Dividing Range with some larger hills (most of which were themselves remnants of older reefs or, in rare cases, volcanoes ). The Reef Research Centre, a Cooperative Research Centre , has found coral 'skeleton' deposits that date back half a million years. The Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority (GBRMPA) considers the earliest evidence of complete reef structures to have been 600,000 years ago. According to
7038-629: The Navy Board and headed by the sailing master John Fryer . The other warrant officers were the boatswain , the surgeon , the carpenter and the gunner. To the two master's mates and two midshipmen were added several honorary midshipmen—so-called " young gentlemen " who were aspirant naval officers. These signed the ship's roster as able seamen but were quartered with the midshipmen and treated on equal terms with them. Most of Bounty ' s crew were chosen by Bligh or were recommended to him by influential patrons. The gunner, William Peckover , and
7191-581: The Ok Tedi Mine in Papua New Guinea are a potential pollution risk for the far northern Great Barrier Reef and Torres Strait regions. Some 67% of corals died in the reef's worst-hit northern section, the ARC Centre of Excellence for Coral Reef Studies report said. The runoff problem is exacerbated by the loss of coastal wetlands which act as a natural filter for toxins and help deposit sediment. It
7344-576: The crown-of-thorns starfish have brought about the decline of this ecosystem. These threats to the reef are not only a danger to the organisms inhabiting it, but also the economy of this region, a large part of which relies on revenue from ecotourism of the Great Barrier Reef. The Australian government has had the goal of protecting this World Heritage Site since 1972 when they created The Australian Institute of Marine Science. The Australian and Queensland governments have contributed about $ 142.5 million to their National Environmental Science Program which
7497-428: The olive ridley . The green sea turtles on the Great Barrier Reef have two genetically distinct populations , one in the northern part of the reef and the other in the southern part. Fifteen species of seagrass in beds attract the dugongs and turtles, and provide fish habitat. The most common genera of seagrasses are Halophila and Halodule . Saltwater crocodiles live in mangrove and salt marshes on
7650-621: The Bounty The mutiny on the Royal Navy vessel HMS Bounty occurred in the South Pacific Ocean on 28 April 1789. Disaffected crewmen, led by acting-Lieutenant Fletcher Christian , seized control of the ship from their captain, Lieutenant William Bligh , and set him and eighteen loyalists adrift in the ship's open launch . The reasons behind the mutiny are still debated. Bligh and his crew stopped for supplies on Tofua , where
7803-566: The Endeavour Strait, and it would necessitate daily rations of an ounce of bread and a quarter-pint of water for each man. The plan was unanimously agreed. From the outset, the weather was wet and stormy, with mountainous seas that constantly threatened to overwhelm the boat. When the sun appeared, Bligh noted in his daily journal that it "gave us as much pleasure as a winter's day in England". Bligh endeavoured to continue his journal throughout
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#17328762307257956-406: The Endeavour Strait. Bligh had visited the island with Cook and knew that the inhabitants could behave unpredictably. He put Christian in charge of the watering party and equipped him with muskets , but at the same time ordered that the arms should be left in the boat instead of carried ashore. Christian's party was harassed and threatened continually but were unable to retaliate, having been denied
8109-556: The French Navy fought from 1778—the vast Royal Navy was reduced in size, and Bligh found himself ashore on half-pay. After a period of idleness, Bligh took temporary employment in the mercantile service and in 1785 was captain of the Britannia , a vessel owned by his wife's uncle, Duncan Campbell. Bligh assumed the prestigious Bounty appointment on 16 August 1787, at a considerable financial cost. His lieutenant's pay of four shillings
8262-555: The GBRMPA, the current, living reef structure is believed to have begun growing on the older platform about 20,000 years ago. The Australian Institute of Marine Science agrees, placing the beginning of the growth of the current reef at the time of the Last Glacial Maximum . At around that time, sea level was 120 metres (390 ft) lower than it is today. From 20,000 years ago until 6,000 years ago, sea level rose steadily around
8415-482: The Great Barrier Reef can be found in The Kimberley , Western Australia. The Great Barrier Reef World Heritage Area has been divided into 70 bioregions , of which 30 are reef bioregions. In the northern part of the Great Barrier Reef, ribbon reefs and deltaic reefs have formed; these structures are not found in the rest of the reef system. A previously undiscovered reef, 500 metres tall and 1.5 km wide at
8568-490: The Great Barrier Reef in warm waters up to 50 metres (160 ft) deep and are more common in the southern than in the northern section. None found in the Great Barrier Reef World Heritage Area are endemic, nor are any endangered. Six species of sea turtles come to the reef to breed: the green sea turtle , leatherback sea turtle , hawksbill turtle , loggerhead sea turtle , flatback turtle , and
8721-403: The Great Barrier Reef is the rising levels of ocean acidification in the ocean. Ocean acidification occurs when excess atmospheric carbon dioxide gets absorbed into the ocean. This causes a decrease in the pH and this alters the chemistry of the ocean's water. This reduces the amount of aragonite, a key mineral for coral to grow, in the water. The Great Barrier Reef is predicted to lose aragonite at
8874-690: The Great Barrier Reef is used for farming including intensive cropping of sugar cane, and major beef cattle grazing. Farming practices damage the reef due to overgrazing , increased run-off of agricultural sediments, nutrients and chemicals including fertilisers , herbicides and pesticides representing a major health risk for the coral and biodiversity of the reefs. According to a 2016 report, while higher regulation contributes to less overall pollution from "other land uses, such as industrial, mining, port development, dredging and urban development", these can still be locally significant. Sediments containing high levels of copper and other heavy metals sourced from
9027-449: The Great Barrier Reef. In Queensland, sharks found alive on the baited hooks are shot. Queensland's "shark control" program killed about 50,000 sharks from 1962 to 2018. Also, Queensland's "shark control" program has also killed many other animals (such as dolphins and turtles ) – the program killed 84,000 marine animals from 1962 to 2015, including in the Great Barrier Reef. In 2018, Humane Society International filed
9180-824: The Mermaid, Francis Price Blackwood in HMS Fly , Owen Stanley in the Rattlesnake, and Henry Mangles Denham in the Herald led to considerable navigational improvements, as they outlined the contrasting advantages and perils of the Inner Route (between Australia's east coast and the western edge of the reefs) and the Outer Route, in the open sea. The Great Barrier Reef supports an extraordinary diversity of life, including many vulnerable or endangered species , some of which may be endemic to
9333-946: The Norfolk Island Historical Society, such as the Bounty Ring. Archival collections include the diaries of missionary Julia Coleridge Farr , who kept diaries during her stay on the island in the 1890s. The physical copies of these have been digitised. The holdings also include early maps of the island. Objects relating to the history of Norfolk Island are held in overseas collections, including: Powerhouse Museum in Sydney, Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology in Cambridge, Naturalis Biodiversity Centre in Leiden, Muséum national d'Histoire naturelle in Paris, amongst others. Mutiny on
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#17328762307259486-544: The Norfolk Island Prehistory Project. Objects include yolla stones, which are a kind of grater. The archaeological collections are extensively catalogued. The collection include objects relating to the social history of the islands, for example buildings such as the Paradise Hotel. There are also 14,000 objects relating to the history of the penal colonies. The collections also include objects acquired by
9639-563: The Reef Research Centre (RRC). Outbreaks are believed to occur in natural cycles, worsened by poor water quality and overfishing of the starfish's predators. The unsustainable overfishing of keystone species , such as the giant Triton , can disrupt food chains vital to reef life. Fishing also impacts the reef through increased water pollution from boats, by-catch of unwanted species (such as dolphins and turtles) and habitat destruction from trawling , anchors and nets. As of
9792-518: The West Indies, and the two had formed a master-pupil relationship through which Christian had become a skilled navigator. Christian was willing to serve on Bounty without pay as one of the "young gentlemen"; Bligh gave him one of the salaried master's mate's berths. Another of the young gentlemen recommended to Bligh was 15-year-old Peter Heywood , also from a Manx family and a distant relation of Christian's. Heywood had left school at age 14 to spend
9945-507: The abducted group were six elderly women, for whom Christian had no use; he put them ashore on the nearby island of Mo'orea . Bounty ' s complement now comprised nine mutineers—Christian, Young, Quintal, Brown, Martin, John Williams, John Mills, William McCoy and John Adams (known by the crew as "Alexander Smith") —and twenty Polynesians, of whom fourteen were women. The sixteen sailors on Tahiti began to organise their lives. One group, led by Morrison and Tom McIntosh, began building
10098-426: The alarm; Bligh "called as loudly as [he] could in hopes of assistance". The commotion woke Fryer, who saw, from his cabin opposite, the mutineers frogmarching Bligh away. The mutineers ordered Fryer to "lay down again, and hold my tongue or I was a dead man". Bligh was brought to the quarterdeck, his hands bound by a cord held by Christian, who was brandishing a bayonet ; some reports maintained that Christian had
10251-399: The armourer, Joseph Coleman, had been with Cook and Bligh on Resolution ; several others had sailed under Bligh more recently on Britannia . Among these was the 23-year-old Fletcher Christian , who came from a wealthy Cumberland family descended from Manx gentry . Christian had chosen a life at sea rather than the legal career envisaged by his family. He had twice voyaged with Bligh to
10404-419: The armourer, Joseph Coleman, to return to the ship, considering their presence essential if he were to navigate Bounty with a reduced crew. Reluctantly they obeyed, beseeching Bligh to remember that they had remained with the ship against their will. Bligh assured them: "Never fear, lads, I'll do you justice if ever I reach England". Samuel saved the captain's journal, commission papers and purser's documents,
10557-403: The base, was found in the northern area in 2020. There are no atolls in the system, and reefs attached to the mainland are rare. Fringing reefs are distributed widely, but are most common towards the southern part of the Great Barrier Reef, attached to high islands, for example, the Whitsunday Islands . Lagoonal reefs are found in the southern Great Barrier Reef, and further north, off
10710-402: The biodiversity in the affected areas, altering the species composition . A study by Katharina Fabricius and Glen Death of Australian Institute of Marine Science found that hard corals numbers were almost double on reefs that were far from agricultural areas. Fertilizers also increase the amount of phytoplankton available for the crown-of-thorns starfish larvae to consume. A study showed that
10863-720: The breadfruit plants, sail westward through the Endeavour Strait . He was then to cross the Indian and South Atlantic Oceans to the West Indies islands in the Caribbean. Bounty would thus complete a circumnavigation of the Earth in the Southern Hemisphere. Bounty ' s complement was 46 men, comprising 44 Royal Navy personnel (including Bligh) and two civilian botanists. Directly beneath Bligh were his warrant officers, appointed by
11016-399: The captain exchanged angry words with the carpenter, William Purcell, over the latter's methods for cutting wood. Bligh ordered Purcell back to the ship and, when the carpenter stood his ground, Bligh withheld his rations, which "immediately brought him to his senses", according to Bligh. Further clashes occurred on the final leg of the journey to Tahiti. On 9 October, Fryer refused to sign
11169-544: The coast near the reef. Nesting has not been reported, and the salt water crocodile population in the GBRWHA is wide-ranging but low density. Around 125 species of shark , stingray , skates or chimaera live on the reef. Close to 5,000 species of mollusc have been recorded on the reef, including the giant clam and various nudibranchs and cone snails . Forty-nine species of pipefish and nine species of seahorse have been recorded. At least seven species of frog inhabit
11322-569: The coast of Princess Charlotte Bay . Crescentic reefs are the most common shape of reef in the middle of the system, for example the reefs surrounding Lizard Island . Crescentic reefs are also found in the far north of the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park, and in the Swain Reefs ( 20 – 22 degrees south ). Planar reefs are found in the northern and southern parts, near Cape York Peninsula , Princess Charlotte Bay, and Cairns. Most of
11475-403: The countenance of every one". The only adverse feature of the voyage to date, according to Bligh, was the conduct of the surgeon Huggan, who was revealed as an indolent, unhygienic drunkard. From the start of the voyage, Bligh had established warm relations with Christian, according him a status which implied that he was Bligh's second-in-command rather than Fryer. On 2 March, Bligh formalised
11628-422: The cover in the southern part had decreased and bleaching events occurred more frequently. The Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority considers the greatest threat to the Great Barrier Reef to be climate change, causing ocean warming which increases coral bleaching . Mass coral bleaching events due to marine heatwaves occurred in the summers of 1998, 2002, 2006, 2016, 2017 and 2020, and coral bleaching
11781-423: The crew— Charles Churchill , William Muspratt and John Millward— deserted , taking a small boat, arms and ammunition. Muspratt had recently been flogged for neglect. Among the belongings Churchill left on the ship was a list of names that Bligh interpreted as possible accomplices in a desertion plot—the captain later asserted that the names included those of Christian and Heywood. Bligh was persuaded that his protégé
11934-586: The crow flies . It includes the smaller Murray Islands . The plate tectonic theory indicates Australia has moved northwards at a rate of 7 cm (2.8 in) per year, starting during the Cenozoic . Eastern Australia experienced a period of tectonic uplift , which moved the drainage divide in Queensland 400 km (250 mi) inland. Also during this time, Queensland experienced volcanic eruptions leading to central and shield volcanoes and basalt flows. Some of these became volcanic islands . After
12087-564: The former carpenter received a reprimand. In November 1790, the Admiralty despatched the frigate HMS Pandora , under Captain Edward Edwards , to capture the mutineers and return them to England to stand trial. Pandora arrived at Tahiti on 23 March 1791 and, within a few days, all fourteen surviving Bounty men had either surrendered or been captured. Edwards made no distinction between mutineers and those who claimed they had been detained on Bounty unwillingly; all were incarcerated in
12240-494: The forthcoming departure and loss of their easy life with the Tahitians. Bligh was impatient to be away, but as Richard Hough observes in his account, he "failed to anticipate how his company would react to the severity and austerity of life at sea ... after five dissolute, hedonistic months at Tahiti". The work was done by 1 April 1789, and four days later, after an affectionate farewell from Tynah and his queen, Bounty left
12393-412: The fugitive vessel were found. Edwards continued the search until August, when he turned west and headed for the Dutch East Indies. One of the islands Pandora sailed to, but did not land at, was Pitcairn Island; had Edwards checked his charts and found that this uncharted island was at the correct latitude but wrong longitude for Pitcairn Island, he could very well have fulfilled his mission by capturing
12546-422: The harbour. In their Bounty histories, both Hough and Alexander maintain that the men were not at a stage close to mutiny; however, they were sorry to leave Tahiti. The journal of James Morrison , the boatswain's mate, supports this. The events that followed, Hough suggests, were determined in the three weeks following the departure, when Bligh's anger and intolerance reached paranoid proportions. Christian
12699-432: The hard core of the active mutineers, but sixteen wished to return to Tahiti and take their chances there. Christian accepted this decision; after depositing the majority at Tahiti, he would "run before the wind, and ... land upon the first island the ship drives. After what I have done I cannot remain at Tahiti." In order to flee, Bounty cut the ropes to two anchors in the bay; one was recovered by Pandora , while
12852-617: The heroes of maritime history" by solving the mystery of the lost expedition. On 29 August 1791, Pandora ran aground on the outer Great Barrier Reef. The men in "Pandora's Box" were ignored as the regular crew attempted to prevent the ship from foundering. When Edwards gave the order to abandon ship, Pandora ' s armourer began to remove the prisoners' shackles, but the ship sank before he had finished. Heywood and nine other prisoners escaped; four Bounty men—George Stewart, Henry Hillbrant, Richard Skinner and John Sumner—drowned, along with 31 of Pandora 's crew. The survivors, including
13005-538: The horizon by the plume of smoke rising from its volcano . Bligh hoped to find water and food on Tofua, then proceed to the nearby island of Tongatapu to seek help from King Poulaho (whom he knew from his visit with Cook) in provisioning the boat for a voyage to the Dutch East Indies . Ashore at Tofua, there were encounters with natives who were initially friendly but grew more menacing as time passed. On 2 May, four days after landing, Bligh realised that an attack
13158-578: The impact of human use, such as fishing and tourism. Other environmental pressures on the reef and its ecosystem include runoff of humanmade pollutants, climate change accompanied by mass coral bleaching , dumping of dredging sludge and cyclic population outbreaks of the crown-of-thorns starfish . According to a study published in October 2012 by the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences ,
13311-405: The islands on the reef are found on planar reefs. Wonky holes can have localised impact on the reef, providing upwellings of fresh water, sometimes rich in nutrients contributing to eutrophication . Navigation through and around the reefs is a major challenge. More than 20 ships were recorded lost in the region between 1791 and 1850, Surveys between 1815 and 1860 by Phillip Parker King in
13464-558: The islands. 215 species of birds (including 22 species of seabirds and 32 species of shorebirds) visit the reef or nest or roost on the islands, including the white-bellied sea eagle and roseate tern . Most nesting sites are on islands in the northern and southern regions of the Great Barrier Reef, with 1.4 to 1.7 million birds using the sites to breed. The islands of the Great Barrier Reef also support 2,195 known plant species; three of these are endemic. The northern islands have 300–350 plant species which tend to be woody, whereas
13617-414: The last nine Bounty mutineers. Edwards' search for the remaining mutineers ultimately proved fruitless. When passing Vanikoro on 13 August 1791, Edwards observed smoke signals rising from the island. Edwards, single-minded in his search for Bounty and convinced that mutineers fearful of discovery would not be advertising their whereabouts, ignored the smoke signals and sailed on. Wahlroos argues that
13770-537: The launch cleared Cape York , the extreme northern point of the Australian continent. Bligh turned south-west and steered through a maze of shoals , reefs, sandbanks, and small islands. The route taken was not the Endeavour Strait, but a narrower southerly passage later known as the Prince of Wales Channel. At 20:00 that evening they reached the open Arafura Sea , still 1,100 nautical miles (2,000 km; 1,300 mi) from Kupang. The following eight days encompassed some of
13923-497: The life span and value of this global heritage. The plan contains all the elements for measurement and improvements, including; long-term sustainability plan, water quality improvement plan and the investment plan for the protection and preservation of The Reef until 2050. However, whereas the 2050 plan aims to incorporate protective measures such as improving water quality, reef restoration, killing of predatory starfish, it does not incorporate additional measures to address what may be
14076-428: The local chiefs, but his party was unwelcome. There were persistent clashes with the native population, mainly over property and women, culminating in a pitched battle in which 66 islanders were killed and many wounded. Discontent was rising among the Bounty party, and Christian sensed that his authority was slipping. He called a meeting to discuss future plans and offered a free vote. Eight remained loyal to Christian,
14229-417: The loyalist midshipmen Hayward and Hallett. This boat proved unseaworthy, so Christian ordered the launching of a larger ship's boat, with a capacity of around ten. However, Christian and his allies had overestimated the extent of the mutiny—at least half on board were determined to leave with Bligh. Thus the ship's largest boat, a 23-foot (7.0 m) launch , was put into the water. During the following hours
14382-426: The loyalists collected their possessions and entered the boat. Among these was Fryer, who with Bligh's approval sought to stay on board—in the hope, he later claimed, that he would be able to retake the ship —but Christian ordered him into the launch. Soon, the vessel was badly overloaded, with more than twenty persons and others still vying for places. Christian ordered the two carpenter's mates, Norman and McIntosh, and
14535-458: The material to the environment and to develop a management plan to eliminate this potential hazard; however, GBRMPA does not have legislative control over how the Yabulu tailings dam is managed". The crown-of-thorns starfish preys on coral polyps. Large outbreaks of these starfish can devastate reefs. In 2000, an outbreak contributed to a loss of 66% of live coral cover on sampled reefs in a study by
14688-522: The men found oysters and berries in plentiful supply and were able to eat ravenously. Over the next four days, the party island-hopped northward within the lagoon, aware that their movements were being closely monitored by natives on the mainland. Strains were showing within the party; following a heated disagreement with Purcell, Bligh grabbed a cutlass and challenged the carpenter to fight. Fryer told Cole to arrest their captain but backed down after Bligh threatened to kill him if he interfered. On 2 June,
14841-508: The men lived ashore and formed relationships with native Polynesians , led those men to be less amenable to naval discipline. Relations between Bligh and his crew deteriorated after he reportedly began handing out increasingly harsh punishments, criticism, and abuse, with Christian being a particular target. After three weeks back at sea, Christian and others forced Bligh from the ship. Twenty-five men remained on board afterwards, including loyalists held against their will, and others for whom there
14994-405: The middle of 2004, approximately one-third of the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park is protected from species removal of any kind, including fishing, without written permission. Shipping accidents are a pressing concern, as several commercial shipping routes pass through the Great Barrier Reef. Although the route through the Great Barrier Reef is not easy, reef pilots consider it safer than outside
15147-450: The names of several more. With the help of these men, Christian rapidly gained control of the upper deck; those who questioned his actions were ordered to keep quiet. At about 05:15, Christian went below, dismissed Hallett (who was sleeping on the chest containing the ship's muskets) and distributed arms to his followers before making for Bligh's cabin. Three men took hold of the captain and tied his hands, threatening to kill him if he raised
15300-449: The non-return of Bounty would occasion a search mission, with Tahiti as its first port of call. Christian therefore headed Bounty towards the small island of Tubuai , some 450 nautical miles (830 km; 520 mi) south of Tahiti. Tubuai had been discovered and roughly charted by Cook; except for a single small channel, it was entirely surrounded by a coral reef and could, Christian surmised, be easily defended against any attack from
15453-400: The northern parts of the reef as a result of warming ocean temperatures . In October 2016, Outside published an obituary for the reef; the article was criticised for being premature and hindering efforts to bolster the resilience of the reef. In March 2017, the journal Nature published a paper showing that huge sections of an 800-kilometre (500 mi) stretch in the northern part of
15606-506: The open sea, where the shaken crew reconsidered their options. A visit to Tongatapu, or any island landfall, might incur similarly violent consequences; their best chance of salvation, Bligh reckoned, lay in sailing directly to the Dutch settlement of Kupang in Timor , using the rations presently on board. This was a journey of some 3,500 nautical miles (6,500 km; 4,000 mi) to the west, beyond
15759-437: The order to sail, neither the anchor nor the adze had been restored. By 27 April, Christian was in a state of despair, depressed and brooding. His mood was worsened when Bligh accused him of stealing coconuts from the captain's private supply. Bligh punished the whole crew for this theft, stopping their rum ration and reducing their food by half. Feeling that his position was now intolerable, Christian considered constructing
15912-453: The other hand, chose to lead drunken and generally dissolute lives, which ended in the violent deaths of both. Churchill was murdered by Thompson, who was in turn killed by Churchill's native friends. Others, such as Stewart and Heywood, settled into quiet domesticity; Heywood spent much of his time studying the Tahitian language . He adopted native dress and, in accordance with the local custom,
16065-589: The other warrant officers, and Nelson the botanist had tiny cabins on the lower deck, while the master's mates and the midshipmen, together with the young gentlemen, berthed together in an area behind the captain's dining room known as the cockpit ; as junior or prospective officers, they were allowed use of the quarterdeck . The other ranks had their quarters in the forecastle , a windowless unventilated area measuring 36 by 22 feet (11.0 by 6.7 m) with headroom of 5 feet 7 inches (1.70 m). On 15 October 1787, Bounty left Deptford for Spithead , in
16218-463: The other was rediscovered in 1957. When Bounty returned to Tahiti, on 22 September, the welcome was much less effusive than previously. The Tahitians had learned from the crew of a visiting British ship that the story of Cook and Bligh founding a settlement in Aitutaki was a fabrication, and that Cook had been long dead. Christian worried that their reaction might turn violent and did not stay long. Of
16371-440: The position by assigning Christian to the rank of acting-Lieutenant. Fryer showed little outward sign of resentment at his junior's advancement, but his relations with Bligh significantly worsened from this point. A week after the promotion, and on Fryer's insistence, Bligh ordered the flogging of seaman Matthew Quintal , who received twelve lashes for "insolence and mutinous behaviour", thereby dashing Bligh's expressed hope of
16524-414: The possible effects of El Niño weather phenomenon. The Australian Institute of Marine Science conducts annual surveys of the Great Barrier Reef's status, and the 2022 report showed the greatest recovery in 36 years. It is mainly due to the regrowth of two-thirds of the reef by the fast-growing Acropora coral, which is the dominant coral there. The Great Barrier Reef has long been known to and used by
16677-449: The prospect of a passage around Cape Horn now in serious doubt, Bligh received permission from the Admiralty to take, if necessary, an alternative route to Tahiti via the Cape of Good Hope . As the ship settled into its sea-going routine, Bligh introduced Cook's strict discipline regarding sanitation and diet. According to the expedition's historian Sam McKinney, Bligh enforced these rules "with
16830-473: The quartermaster Peter Linkletter, the butcher Robert Lamb and the assistant surgeon Thomas Ledward—all died either in Batavia or on their journeys home. After the departure of Bligh's launch, Christian divided the personal effects of the departed loyalists among the remaining crew and threw the breadfruit plants into the sea. He recognised that Bligh could conceivably survive to report the mutiny, and that anyway
16983-566: The reassurance it gave them to do so". Bligh shouted continually, demanding to be set free, sometimes addressing individuals by name, and otherwise exhorting the company generally to "knock Christian down!" Fryer was briefly permitted on deck to speak to Christian, but was then forced below at bayonet-point; according to Fryer, Christian told him: "I have been in hell for weeks past. Captain Bligh has brought this on himself." Christian originally thought to cast Bligh adrift in Bounty ' s small jolly boat , together with his clerk John Samuel and
17136-509: The reef had died in the course of 2016 of high water temperatures, an event that the authors put down to the effects of global climate change. The percentage of baby corals being born on the Great Barrier Reef dropped drastically in 2018 and scientists are describing it as the early stage of a "huge natural selection event unfolding". Many of the mature breeding adults died in the bleaching events of 2016–17, leading to low coral birth rates. The types of corals that reproduced also changed, leading to
17289-466: The reef has lost more than half its coral cover since 1985, a finding reaffirmed by a 2020 study which found over half of the reef's coral cover to have been lost between 1995 and 2017, with the effects of a widespread 2020 bleaching event not yet quantified. The Great Barrier Reef has long been known to and used by the Aboriginal Australian and Torres Strait Islander peoples, and is an important part of local groups' cultures and spirituality. The reef
17442-404: The reef in the event of mechanical failure, since a ship can sit safely while being repaired. There have been over 1,600 known shipwrecks in the Great Barrier Reef region. On 3 April 2010, the bulk coal carrier Shen Neng 1 ran aground on Douglas Shoals, spilling up to four tonnes of oil into the water and causing extensive damage to the reef. The government of Queensland has
17595-536: The reef system. Thirty species of cetaceans have been recorded in the Great Barrier Reef, including the dwarf minke whale , Indo-Pacific humpback dolphin , and the humpback whale . Large populations of dugongs live there. More than 1,500 fish species live on the reef, including the clownfish , red bass , red-throat emperor, and several species of snapper and coral trout . Forty-nine species mass spawn , while eighty-four other species spawn elsewhere in their range. Seventeen species of sea snake live on
17748-457: The reef, including thirteen species of genus Halimeda , which deposit calcareous mounds up to 100 metres (110 yd) wide, creating mini-ecosystems on their surface which have been compared to rainforest cover. Climate change , pollution, crown-of-thorns starfish and fishing are the primary threats to the health of this reef system. Other threats include shipping accidents, oil spills , and tropical cyclones. Skeletal Eroding Band ,
17901-495: The reef. The majority of these spawn gametes , breeding in mass spawning events that are triggered by the rising sea temperatures of spring and summer, the lunar cycle, and the diurnal cycle. Reefs in the inner Great Barrier Reef spawn during the week after the full moon in October, while the outer reefs spawn in November and December. Its common soft corals belong to 36 genera. Five hundred species of marine algae or seaweed live on
18054-406: The root cause the problem – climate change, which is caused by greenhouse gas emissions. As such, experts doubted whether it would be enough to save the fragile environment. Another issue is that the time left to the 1.5 °C warming threshold (the temperature limit that coral reefs can still cope with ) is very limited. As part of the Reef 2050 plan, an AUD$ 443 million grant was given to
18207-587: The sea turtle's population and available habitat. Bleaching events in benthic coral communities (deeper than 20 metres or 66 feet) in the Great Barrier reef are not as well documented as those at shallower depths, but recent research has shown that benthic communities are just as negatively impacted in the face of rising ocean temperatures. Five Great Barrier Reef species of large benthic corals were found bleached under elevated temperatures, affirming that benthic corals are vulnerable to thermal stress. A threat for
18360-416: The sea. Bounty arrived at Tubuai on 28 May 1789. The reception from the native population was hostile; when a flotilla of war canoes headed for the ship, Christian used a four-pounder gun to repel the attackers. At least a dozen warriors were killed, and the rest scattered. Undeterred, Christian and an armed party surveyed the island and decided it would be suitable for their purposes. However, to create
18513-400: The sediment until its edge was too far away for suspended sediments to inhibit coral growth. In addition, approximately 400,000 years ago there was a particularly warm Interglacial period with higher sea levels and a 4 °C (7 °F) water temperature change. The land that formed the substrate of the current Great Barrier Reef was a coastal plain formed from the eroded sediments of
18666-441: The ship and depose Bligh. Stewart told him the crew were "ripe for anything". In the early hours of 28 April 1789, Bounty lay about 30 nautical miles (56 km; 35 mi) south of the island of Tofua . After a largely sleepless night, Christian had decided to act. He understood from his discussions with Young and Stewart which crewmen were his most likely supporters and, after approaching Quintal and Isaac Martin, he learned
18819-658: The ship forward, to be repeatedly repelled. On 17 April, he informed his exhausted crew that the sea had beaten them, and that they would turn and head for the Cape of Good Hope—"to the great joy of every person on Board", Bligh recorded. On 24 May 1788, Bounty anchored in False Bay , east of the Cape of Good Hope , where five weeks were spent in repairs and reprovisioning. Bligh's log emphasised how fit and well he and his crew were, by comparison with other vessels, and expressed hope that he would receive credit for this. At one stage during
18972-462: The ship's account books unless Bligh provided him with a certificate attesting to his complete competence throughout the voyage. Bligh would not be coerced. He summoned the crew and read the Articles of War , at which Fryer backed down. There was also trouble with the surgeon Huggan, whose careless blood-letting of able seaman James Valentine while treating him for asthma led to the seaman's death from
19125-443: The sixteen men who had voted to settle in Tahiti, he allowed fifteen ashore; Joseph Coleman was detained on the ship, as Christian required his skills as an armourer. That evening, Christian coaxed aboard Bounty a party of Tahitians, mainly women, for a social gathering. With the festivities underway, he cut the anchor rope and Bounty sailed away with its captive guests. Coleman escaped by diving overboard and reached land. Among
19278-500: The smoke signals were almost certainly a distress message sent by survivors of the Lapérouse expedition , which later evidence indicated were still alive on Vanikoro at that time—three years after their ships Boussole and Astrolabe had foundered. Wahlroos is "virtually certain" that Edwards, whom he characterizes as one of England's most "ruthless", "inhuman", "callous", and "incompetent" naval captains, missed his chance to become "one of
19431-428: The sojourn, Bligh lent money to Christian, a gesture that the historian Greg Dening suggests might have sullied their relationship by becoming a source of anxiety and even resentment to the younger man. In her account of the voyage, Caroline Alexander describes the loan as "a significant act of friendship", but one which Bligh ensured Christian did not forget. After leaving False Bay on 1 July, Bounty set out across
19584-457: The southern Indian Ocean on the long voyage to their next port of call, Adventure Bay in Van Diemen's Land (now called Tasmania ). They passed the remote Île Saint-Paul , a small uninhabited island which Bligh knew from earlier navigators contained fresh water and a hot spring, but he did not attempt a landing. The weather was cold and wintry, conditions akin to the vicinity of Cape Horn, and it
19737-470: The southern islands have 200 which tend to be herbaceous; the Whitsunday region is the most diverse, supporting 1,141 species. The plants are propagated by birds. There are at least 330 species of ascidians on the reef system with the diameter of 1–10 cm (0.4–4 in). Between 300 and 500 species of bryozoans live on the reef. Four hundred coral species, both hard corals and soft corals inhabit
19890-611: The statements of Coleman, McIntosh, Norman and Byrne, all of whom were acquitted. On 18 September the six remaining defendants were found guilty of mutiny and were sentenced to death by hanging , with recommendations of mercy for Heywood and Morrison "in consideration of various circumstances". Great Barrier Reef The Great Barrier Reef is the world's largest coral reef system, composed of over 2,900 individual reefs and 900 islands stretching for over 2,300 kilometres (1,400 mi) over an area of approximately 344,400 square kilometres (133,000 sq mi). The reef
20043-538: The submerged hills, to form the present cays and reefs. Sea level here has not risen significantly in the last 6,000 years. The CRC Reef Research Centre estimates the age of the present, living reef structure at 6,000 to 8,000 years old. The shallow water reefs that can be seen in air-photographs and satellite images cover an area of 20,679 km , most (about 80%) of which has grown on top of limestone platforms that are relics of past (Pleistocene) phases of reef growth. The remains of an ancient barrier reef similar to
20196-423: The ten remaining prisoners, then embarked on an open-boat journey that largely followed Bligh's course of two years earlier. The prisoners were mostly kept bound hand and foot until they reached Kupang on 17 September. The prisoners were confined for seven weeks, at first in prison and later on a Dutch East India Company ship, before being transported to Cape Town . On 5 April 1792, they embarked for England on
20349-475: The toughest travel of the entire journey and, by 11 June, many were close to collapse. The next day, the coast of Timor was sighted: "It is not possible for me to describe the pleasure which the blessing of the sight of this land diffused among us", Bligh wrote. On 14 June, with a makeshift Union Jack hoisted, they sailed into Kupang harbour. In Kupang, Bligh reported the mutiny to the authorities, and wrote to his wife: "Know then, my own Dear Betsey, I have lost
20502-401: The use of arms. He returned to the ship with his task incomplete, and was cursed by Bligh as "a damned cowardly rascal". Further disorder ashore resulted in the thefts of a small anchor and an adze , for which Bligh further berated Christian and Fryer. In an attempt to recover the missing property, Bligh briefly detained the island's chieftains on the ship, but to no avail. When he finally gave
20655-454: The voyage, observing, sketching, and charting as they made their way west. To keep up morale, he told stories of his prior experiences at sea, got the men singing, and occasionally said prayers. The launch made the first passage by Europeans through the Fiji Islands , but they dared not stop because of the islanders' reputation for cannibalism . On 17 May, Bligh recorded that "our situation
20808-428: The water with only seven inches of freeboard . The 25 men remaining on Bounty included the committed mutineers who had taken up arms, the loyalists detained against their will, and others for whom there was no room in the launch. At around 10:00 the line holding the launch to the ship was cut; a little later, Bligh ordered a sail to be raised. Their immediate destination was the nearby island of Tofua, clearly marked on
20961-450: The well-provisioned Bounty sailed back to Tubuai. On board were nearly thirty Tahitian men and women, some of whom were there by deception. For the next two months, Christian and his forces struggled to establish themselves on Tubuai. They began to construct a large moated enclosure—called "Fort George", after the British king—to provide a secure fortress against attack by land or sea. Christian attempted to form friendly relations with
21114-456: The wider environment due to erosion of farm soil, which has a detrimental effect on the coral. Mining company Queensland Nickel discharged nitrate-laden water into the Great Barrier Reef in 2009 and 2011 – on the later occasion releasing 516 tonnes (508 long tons; 569 short tons) of waste water. The Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority (GBRMPA) stated "We have strongly encouraged the company to investigate options that do not entail releasing
21267-454: The world. As it rose, the corals could then grow higher on the newly submerged maritime margins of the hills of the coastal plain. By around 13,000 years ago the sea level was only 60 metres (200 ft) lower than the present day, and corals began to surround the hills of the coastal plain, which were, by then, continental islands . As the sea level rose further still, most of the continental islands were submerged. The corals could then overgrow
21420-445: Was Matthew Flinders who named the Great Barrier Reef, after his more detailed mapping of it in 1802. Flinders used various terms to describe the reefs comprising what we now call the Great Barrier Reef including "great reef", for one such reef, "barrier reef", for any reef preventing a sailing vessel in, or waves from, the open sea, from reaching the coast, and "Barrier Reefs", for the collection of such reefs. The Great Barrier Reef
21573-507: Was a former midshipman who had seen naval action against the French. Banks also helped to secure the official midshipmen's berths for two of his protégés, Thomas Hayward and John Hallett . Overall, Bounty ' s crew was relatively youthful, the majority being under 30; at the time of departure, Bligh was 33 years old. Among the older crewmembers were the 39-year-old Peckover, who had sailed on all three of Cook's voyages, and Lawrence Lebogue,
21726-481: Was a particular target, always seeming to bear the brunt of the captain's rages. Unaware of the effects of his behaviour on his officers and crew, Bligh would forget these displays instantly and attempt to resume normal conversation. On 22 April 1789, Bounty arrived at Nomuka , in the Friendly Islands (now called Tonga), intending to pick up wood, water, and further supplies on the final scheduled stop before
21879-455: Was born in Plymouth in 1754 into a family of naval and military tradition—Admiral Sir Richard Rodney Bligh was his third cousin. Appointment to Cook's ship at the age of 21 had been a considerable honour, although Bligh believed that his contribution was not properly acknowledged in the expedition's official account. With the 1783 ending of the eight-year American War of Independence —in which
22032-546: Was difficult to take navigational observations, but Bligh's skill was such that on 19 August he sighted Mewstone Rock , on the south-west corner of Van Diemen's Land and, two days later, made anchorage in Adventure Bay. The Bounty party spent their time at Adventure Bay in recuperation, fishing, replenishment of water casks, and felling timber. There were peaceful encounters with the native population. The first sign of overt discord between Bligh and his officers occurred when
22185-399: Was disappointed to find increasing instances of neglect and slackness on the part of his officers. Infuriated, he wrote: "Such neglectful and worthless petty officers I believe were never in a ship such as are in this." Huggan died on 10 December. Bligh attributed this to "the effects of intemperance and indolence ... he never would be prevailed on to take half a dozen turns upon deck at
22338-422: Was heavily tattooed on his body. When Bligh landed in England on 14 March 1790, news of the mutiny had preceded him and he was fêted as a hero. In October 1790 at a formal court-martial for the loss of Bounty , he was honourably acquitted of responsibility for the loss and was promoted to post-captain. As an adjunct to the court-martial, Bligh brought charges against Purcell for misconduct and insubordination;
22491-454: Was imminent. He directed his men back to the sea, shortly before the Tofuans seized the launch's stern rope and attempted to drag it ashore. Bligh coolly shepherded the last of his shore party and their supplies into the boat. In an attempt to free the rope from its captors, the quartermaster John Norton leapt into the water; he was immediately set upon and stoned to death. The launch escaped to
22644-531: Was miserable; always wet, and suffering extreme cold ... without the least shelter from the weather". A week later with the skies clearing, birds began to appear, signalling a proximity to land. On 28 May, the Great Barrier Reef was sighted; Bligh found a navigable gap and sailed the launch into a calm lagoon . Late that afternoon, he ran the boat ashore on a small island off the coast of northeast Australia , which he named Restoration Island . Here,
22797-1005: Was no room in the launch. After Bligh reached England in April 1790, the Admiralty despatched HMS Pandora to apprehend the mutineers. Fourteen were captured in Tahiti and imprisoned on board Pandora , which then searched without success for Christian's party that had hidden on Pitcairn Island. After turning back towards England, Pandora ran aground on the Great Barrier Reef , with the loss of 31 crew and four Bounty prisoners. The ten surviving detainees reached England in June 1792 and were court-martialled ; four were acquitted , three were pardoned , and three were hanged . Christian's group remained undiscovered on Pitcairn until 1808, by which time only one mutineer, John Adams , remained alive. His fellow mutineers, including Christian, were dead, killed either by one another or by their Polynesian companions. No action
22950-417: Was not planning to desert, and the matter was dropped. Churchill, Millward and Muspratt were found after three weeks and, on their return to the ship, were flogged. From February onwards, the pace of work increased; more than 1,000 breadfruit plants were potted and carried into the ship, where they filled the great cabin. The ship was overhauled for the long homeward voyage, in many cases by men who regretted
23103-526: Was promoted by the Royal Society and organised by its president Sir Joseph Banks , who shared the view of Caribbean plantation owners that breadfruit might grow well there and provide cheap food for the slaves. Bounty was refitted under Banks' supervision at Deptford Dockyard on the River Thames . The great cabin , normally the quarters of the ship's captain , was converted into a greenhouse for over
23256-561: Was taken against Adams. Descendants of the mutineers and their accompanying Tahitians have lived on Pitcairn into the 21st century. His Majesty's Armed Vessel (HMAV) Bounty , or HMS Bounty , was built in 1784 at the Blaydes shipyard in Hull , Yorkshire , as a collier named Bethia . It was renamed after being purchased by the Royal Navy for £ 1,950 in May 1787 (equivalent to £312,986 in 2023). It
23409-416: Was three-masted, 91 feet (28 m) long overall and 25 feet (7.6 m) across at its widest point, and registered at 230 tons burthen . Its armament was four short four-pounder carriage guns and ten half-pounder swivel guns , supplemented by small arms such as muskets . As it was rated by the Admiralty as a cutter , the smallest category of warship, its commander would be a lieutenant rather than
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