Bligh Of The 'Bounty'
By Geoffrey Rawson
Published by Philip Allan & Co Ltd: London 1930 1st Edition
In Original Bindings With All 7 Illustrations Present + Frontis + Foldout Map of Australia
"Geoffrey Rawson's Bligh of the ‘Bounty' presents a substantial biography of Captain William Bligh, moving well beyond the famous 1789 mutiny to examine the broader naval and colonial career of one of the most controversial figures of the Georgian maritime world. Published by Philip Allan & Co., London, in 1930, this is the First Edition, tracing Bligh from his early years and service with Captain James Cook through his naval career, the Bounty expedition and mutiny, and his remarkable subsequent survival and advancement.
Central to the work is the Mutiny on the Bounty and Bligh's extraordinary open-boat voyage following his expulsion from the ship. Rawson follows the mutiny with chapters devoted to the boat journey, its aftermath and Bligh's later voyages aboard Providence and Assistant. The narrative then continues through his service at Camperdown and Copenhagen before turning to his important Australian career as Governor of New South Wales, including a dedicated account of the Rum Rebellion and the extraordinary confrontation that ultimately removed him from colonial government.
The volume is particularly attractive for its historical illustrative material. It retains the frontispiece depicting the Mutiny of the Bounty together with all seven further listed illustrations, including Bligh as a young man, the Dogger Bank action of 5 August 1781, Bligh's boat journey, Providence and Assistant in Adventure Bay, Camperdown, Copenhagen and a portrait of Captain William Bligh. Also present is the impressive foldout map of Australia and the western Pacific showing the route of Bligh's celebrated boat journey, extending from the vicinity of Tofoa and Fiji, through Torres Strait and onward towards Timor and Batavia.
A highly desirable early twentieth-century study of Bligh, the book is especially relevant to collectors of Australian colonial history, Pacific exploration, Captain Cook, maritime history and the Bounty mutiny. Rawson draws upon historical sources including John Dunmore Lang, the Historical Records of Australia, Nelson correspondence and contemporary naval authorities, presenting Bligh not merely through the mythology of the Bounty, but across the remarkable span of his naval and Australian career. This 1930 First Edition remains in its original gilt-lettered cloth binding and is complete with its frontispiece, all seven listed illustrations and folding map, making it an appealing and substantial period account of a major figure in British and Australian history."
Light wear and minor scuffing to covers and spine as shown. All illustrations and maps present. Binding excellent with no loose pages. A fabulous copy in very good condition overall. Please study photos to further understand condition.
