Fletcher Christian

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Fletcher Christian

Fletcher Christian (born September 25, 1764 in Brigham , Cumberland , England ; † September 20, 1793 in Adamstown , Pitcairn ) was a British seaman and in 1789 the leader of the mutiny on the Bounty, which was processed in many literary and cinematic ways .

Life

Christian went to sea at the age of 18 and met William Bligh on the HMS Cambridge , who served there as the sixth lieutenant. Christian later made two more trips with Bligh on the merchant ship Britannia.

On the HMAV Bounty , Fletcher Christian was a master's mate at the age of 24, translating as “Oberbootsmann” or “alternate 2nd officer”.

On the way back from Tahiti , Bligh allegedly accused Christian of having bought a supply of coconuts . This seems to have given the last impetus to the famous mutiny on April 28, 1789. Christian is said to have initially considered deserting on a raft and returning to Tahiti. Some crew members who had the same idea probably persuaded him to join the mutiny, which later became the template for numerous films .

Under Christian's leadership, they brought the ship under their control and forced Bligh to board a launch along with 18 loyal crew members . The mutineers first returned to Tahiti. But they then drove to the island of Pitcairn , which they reached on January 15, 1790, and settled there. Christian lived there with his wife Maimiti, the daughter of a tribal chief from Tahiti, until he was presumably murdered in 1793.

Fletcher Christian is one of the ancestors of the Pitcairner family .

In popular culture

Clark Gable took on his role in the 1935 film Mutiny on the Bounty . In the 1962 film of the same name , Marlon Brando was seen in the role of Christian. In the 1984 film adaptation of the story entitled The Bounty , Christian was played by Mel Gibson .

literature

  • Christiane Conway: Letters from the Isle of Man - The Bounty-Correspondence of Nessy and Peter Heywood. The Manx Experience, Isle of Man 2005, ISBN 1-873120-77-X .
  • William Kinsolving: The Mutineer. Novel. Translation 1999, ISBN 3-404-12990-3 . (The adventurous novel plays with the rumors that Fletcher Christian returned to England supposedly unrecognized and took part in the naval battles of Camperdown, Copenhagen and Trafalgar)

Web links

personal data
SURNAME Christian, Fletcher
BRIEF DESCRIPTION British sailor
DATE OF BIRTH September 25, 1764
PLACE OF BIRTH Brigham , England
DATE OF DEATH September 20, 1793
Place of death Adamstown