British Naval Mutinies of 1797: A Display of Deep-Rooted Issues?
Did the weaknesses of history’s biggest empire show themselves earlier than we thought?
During the Napoleonic Wars, the Royal Navy required many sailors to man their ships. However, with a finite number of volunteers, they had to adopt unpopular methods of recruitment.
This included techniques such as impressment (the taking of men into a military or naval force by compulsion, with or without notice) to force people into the forces. This was a cause of much resentment among Naval troops.
Their overall treatment joined with this catalysed mutinies within the British Navy in the year 1797, namely the Spithead and Nore Mutinies. These rebellions against the Navy by their own troops is a strong indicator of deep-rooted issues in the forces such as impressment.
Spithead Mutiny
In April 1797 at Spithead, the channel fleet of 16 ships refused to sail due to their unhappiness with their pay and conditions, as well as their treatment overall. The mutiny was conducted in a peaceful, organised manner and within…
