Rare Book Monthly

Book Catalogue Reviews - March - 2011 Issue

Travel Books and Archives from Voyager Press

- by Michael Stillman

Next we have The trial complete of Richard Parker, President of the Delegates for Mutiny on board the Sandwich and other H.M. Ships at the Nore in May 1797, by Job Silby, published in 1797. Parker had spent a decade in the Royal Navy when he was discharged in 1793 for insubordination. His deed must not have been that bad, as the Navy accepted him for reenlistment in 1797. Parker was in debt and needed the signing bonus. Conditions onboard navy ships at the time were deplorable and pay meager. On May 12, a mutiny broke out onboard the Sandwich (Parker's ship) at Nore, where the Thames meets the sea. It quickly spread to other ships. Parker was not involved in the mutiny, but was convinced to become its "President" as he was unusually intelligent and well-spoken for a sailor. The mutiny gained steam and blockaded London for a while, but as the mutineers' demands increased, the government became more menacing. Parker determined that they should set sail for France, but when the signal was given, no one followed. The mutiny fell apart, Parker was captured, court-martialed, and executed. $3,750.

 

Speaking of the Royal Navy and their difficulty in finding sailors willing to endure squalid conditions, here is a broadside dated March 30, 1795, offering Twenty Guineas Bounty, for Volunteers for the Navy. Lewisham and Lee. The Navy was looking for "six able bodied land, or seamen" from these two parishes. The 20-guinea bounty was apparently the same amount Parker signed on for a couple of years later. The broadside ends with "God save the King," though it might more appropriately have proclaimed "God save these sailors." $2,250.

 

The Voyager Press may be reached at 604-734-4700 or orders@voyager-press.com. Their website is found at www.voyager-press.com.

Rare Book Monthly

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    Antique prints, paintings and maps
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