‘Mutiny’, a word that sends shivers down the spine of the sternest of officers, is derived from the French mutin, which meant rebellion. In military terms, a mutiny is an act of rebellion by soldiers or sailors against their superiors.
The word was in English usage by the 16th century, as seen in Shakespeare’s 1591 play Henry VI, Part 1: ‘The Earl of Salisbury craveth supply [more troops],/And hardly keeps his men from mutiny,/Since they so few watch such a multitude.’
The deadliest mutiny in the history of the Royal Navy occurred aboard HMS Hermione on 21 September 1797. The Navy and the British government devoted enormous energies to recovering that ship and her mutineers. Eventually, Hermione was retaken, and a majority of the mutineers captured were hanged.
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