HMS Wager: Shipwreck, Mutiny and Murder
Dan Snow's History Hit
History Hit
4.7 • 13.7K Ratings
🗓️ 8 April 2024
⏱️ 60 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
Join Dan as he narrates the harrowing story of the HMS Wager and its crew's descent into mutiny and survival against all odds. Set against the backdrop of the War of Jenkins' Ear, the Wager, a British warship, was part of a secret squadron sent to attack Spanish holdings in the Pacific but, tragedy struck as the ship was wrecked off the desolate coast of Patagonia during a storm in 1741.
With expert testimony from David Grann, the author of the best-selling HMS Wager: A Tale of Shipwreck, Mutiny and Murder, this episode delves into the ensuing struggle for leadership as the survivors split into factions, the deterioration of their psychological state due to the appalling conditions and the moral quandaries of mutiny and loyalty the men faced as they clung to life.
Written by Dan Snow and edited by Dougal Patmore.
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Transcript
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| 0:30.0 | This episode of Dan Snow's history hit is brought to you by British Airways. |
| 0:37.0 | So if you're listening to this podcast, you're probably very aware that I love to travel. |
| 0:41.0 | We can probably all think of a trip that's had a lasting impact on us. |
| 0:44.4 | For me, one that springs to mind is definitely my trip to South Africa. In the very beginning of |
| 0:50.7 | 2022, I boarded a British Airways flight. From the airport |
| 0:54.7 | went straight to the mighty ice-breaking ship which were taking on its last |
| 0:57.8 | doors and provisions before we headed south across the southern ocean and |
| 1:01.3 | into the Antarctic. We'd got through the Southern Ocean. |
| 1:04.6 | We'd entered the Weddle Sea. We'd survived getting very briefly trapped in the ice |
| 1:09.5 | and we had found Shackleton's ship endurance. We then made our best speed all the way back to Cape |
| 1:17.1 | town and I popped on a British Airways flight and flew home. And that flight home was one of the |
| 1:22.0 | all-time greats. I was filled with excitement |
| 1:24.4 | about seeing my family again, but also enormous pride and pleasure in what we'd achieved. |
| 1:29.4 | The great thing about British Airways is they get it. They understand that for those of us flying with them, |
| 1:34.0 | it's not a case of wanting to get from A to B. It's the people you meet. The moments that shape you and the new experiences that are waiting for you when you learn. |
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