Catalogue description Deposition by John Lennon, Master of the Hibernia, Richard Heaney, Chief Mate, William...

Deposition by John Lennon, Master of the Hibernia, Richard Heaney, Chief Mate, William Griffin, 2nd Mate and George Mee, Officer of the Guard, before H Chamberlain, Consul General for Brazil. We sailed from Portsmouth on 20 Nov 1818 for New South Wales. On 8 Jan 1819 William Smith and John McPherson, Seamen, behaved in a mutinous manner and Smith was ordered to be put in irons. McPherson was joined by the greater part of the ship's company, headed by George Streeter, late Boatswain, and John Lewis, declaring they would all go in irons. Apart from the 4 named men, the rest of the company returned to their duties. Gives details of events after arrival at Rio de Janeiro on 21 Jan, the names of the other mutinous seamen and events following the Master's application to Captain Wanchope, Commander of the Eurydice, for assistance. On the Consul's advice, 6 of the ringleaders of the mutiny were sent on shore to prison, but on release still refused duty on their ship and wrote to Captain Wanchope, offering to enter the Eurydice. Twelve men in total left the Hibernia, for which only 3 were given in return, as a result of which, the Master of the Hibernia was unable to proceed on his voyage, and holds the mutinous mariners and Captain Wanchope responsible for subsequent losses. The Protest is endorsed by Henry Chamberlain, Consul General in Brazil as a true and exact copy of the original Protest. Captain Wanchope sent a boat for John Lennon, but he declined to go as he was at dinner, and went later to the Eurydice in his own boat accompanied by the Surgeon, Charles Carter, when a guard of Marines was sent alongside to take John Lennon from the ship. This further statement was attested as a true and correct copy by the Consul General.

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