John Byron / John Young / Ralph D Paine
Librería Samer Atenea
Kálamo Books
Librería Elías (Asturias)
Librería Kolima (Madrid)
Librería Proteo (Málaga)
Three first hand accounts of a notorious naval disaster and its aftermathTo complement Leonaur’s other publication on the misfortunes of the crew of the H.M .S ’Wager,’The Narratives of the Wager’, this edition offers three more vital perspectives for any reader interested in the subject .The wreck of HMS Wager occurred in 1741 during the ’War of Jenkins’ Ear,’ against Spain. As a part of a naval squadron sent to raid Spanish shipping in the Pacific, the ship, while rounding Cape Horn, struck rocks and ran aground on a desolate, uninhabited island off the coast of Chile. Many crew members died from starvation and hypothermia. The breakdown of discipline led to infighting, murder, and mutiny against Captain, David Cheap. John Young was a survivor-a ships cooper. His account poignantly describes the breakdown of physical health among the crew and the brutal reality of basic survival. By contrast, Midshipman, John Byron (the grandfather of the poet, Lord Byron) acknowledged the failures of Captain Cheap, but elected to stay loyal rather than join the mutineers. Ralph D. Paine was not an eye-witness to these events, but was a popular American author, who specialised in writing books with maritime themes and wrote ,’Lost Ships and Lonely Seas’ in 1921. Within this work he dedicated a chapter to the HMS Wager describing the incident as a thrilling but cautionary maritime epic. Leonaur editions are newly typeset and are not facsimiles; each title is available in softcover and hardback with dustjacket.
