Murder – Tales from the Quarterdeck

The Batavia Tragedy – 1629

On 4 June 1629, the Dutch East Indies Company (VOC) ship Batavia slammed into a reef off the Western Australian coast stranding some 340 people far from any help. But that was just the beginning of one of maritime history’s most appalling chapters. Forty or so people died when the ship broke apart but aContinue reading “The Batavia Tragedy – 1629”

The Macabre case of the Mignonette

Authenticated acts of cannibalism among shipwreck survivors are remarkably rare. But when they have taken place, those involved have often been met with revulsion and sympathy in equal measure. Such was the case with the survivors of the small yacht Mignonette which foundered on its way to Australia in 1884. The Mignonette was a smallContinue reading “The Macabre case of the Mignonette”