HMS Bounty table below. Four were detained against their will on the "Bounty" for their needed skills and for lack of space on the long boat. The mutineers first returned to Tahiti, where most of the survivors were later captured by the "Pandora" and taken to England for trial. Nine mutineers continued their flight from the law and eventually settled Pitcairn Island, where all but one died before their fate became known to the outside world. Luis Marden discovered the remains of the "Bounty" in January 1957. After spotting remains of the rudder (which had been found in 1933 by Parkin Christian,
Mutiny on the Bounty most of its masts and spars, for use on the island. It was set ablaze and destroyed on 23 January, either as an agreed upon precaution against discovery or as an unauthorised act by Quintal—in either case, there was now no means of escape. The island proved an ideal haven for the mutineers—uninhabited and virtually inaccessible, with plenty of food, water, and fertile land. For a while, the mutineers and Tahitians existed peaceably. Christian settled down with Isabella; a son, Thursday October Christian, was born, as were other children. Christian's authority as leader gradually diminished, and he became prone to