In August 1829 the government brig Cyprus was carrying 33 convicts in irons from Hobart to the penal station at Macquarie Harbour when bad weather forced the ship into Recherche Bay. Stormbound there for about a week, the convicts overpowered their two-man guard and seized the vessel, with nobody seriously hurt in the takeover. Eighteen convicts sailed away with the Cyprus, navigated by William Swallow, crossing the Pacific and putting some of their number ashore in Tonga before reaching the Chinese coast.
Swallow later claimed the ship had also called at Japan; historians have disagreed over whether this actually happened. Two of the mutineers, Davis and Watt, were later hanged at Execution Dock in London, and James Camm was hanged in Hobart. Swallow himself was acquitted of piracy - the jury accepted that the convicts had forced him to navigate - but was later convicted of theft and sentenced to life transportation, dying at Port Arthur about a year afterwards. Frank Clune and P.R. Stephensen tell the full story of the mutiny in this 1962 account.
William Swallow's own story is told in a picture book in our listing for Gaolbird - the true story of William Swallow.
Many more of our Tasmanian titles are yet to be listed online - see our full catalogues at justtassiebooks.com/catalogues.html.
BOOK DETAILS
- Hardcover book with dustjacket
- Published 1962 by Rupert Hart-Davies. Now out of print.
- 205-pages
CONDITION
Used but generally very good condition for its age, with some light general wear.
DELIVERY & IN-STORE PICKUP
- Combined Shipping: Sourcing multiple titles for your Tasmanian history library? The Book Cellar offers combined flat-rate parcel delivery across Australia. Secure your books using our online checkout, or phone the bookshop directly on 03 6381 1545 to coordinate multi-volume shipping.
- Free Instore Pickup: Located in Tasmania or travelling the Midland Highway? Select "Instore Pickup" at checkout to pay no postage and collect your items directly from the counter at The Book Cellar, underneath Foxhunters Return in Campbell Town.
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