The true story of the bloodiest mutiny in Royal Navy history.

1797. In the sweltering waters of the West Indies, HMS Hermione is commanded by one of the most feared captains in the Royal Navy.

Hugh Pigot is young, ambitious — and brutally determined to impose discipline. Under his command, floggings multiply, punishments become increasingly arbitrary, and a crew already weakened by disease, heat and exhaustion is driven steadily towards breaking point.

Then, after three men fall to their deaths during a desperate sail-handling manoeuvre, the strain finally snaps.

What follows is a horrifying true account of murder, mutiny and revenge: Pigot and nine officers are killed, the Hermione is seized, and her crew sails for the Spanish Main in search of freedom. But liberty proves far harder to win than they imagined.

Meticulously reconstructed from contemporary official records, eyewitness testimony and private documents, Dudley Pope’s The Black Ship is a gripping work of naval history that reads with all the pace and drama of a thriller.

A remarkable non-fiction account of tyranny, rebellion and the terrible price of mutiny at sea.