History of Norfolk Island transportation to Van Diemen's Land had ceased in 1853 and was replaced by penal servitude in the United Kingdom. On 8 June 1856, the next settlement began on Norfolk Island. These were the descendants of Tahitians and the HMS "Bounty" mutineers, resettled from the Pitcairn Islands, which had become too small for their growing population. The British government had permitted the transfer of the Pitcairners to Norfolk, which was thus established as a colony separate from New South Wales but under the administration of that colony's governor. They left Pitcairn Islands on 3 May 1856 and arrived with 194 persons
Mutiny on the Bounty Undeterred, Christian and an armed party surveyed the island, and decided it would be suitable for their purposes. However, to create a permanent settlement, they needed compliant native labour and women. The most likely source for these was Tahiti, to which "Bounty" returned on 6 June. To ensure the co-operation of the Tahiti chiefs, Christian concocted a story that he, Bligh, and Captain Cook were founding a new settlement at Aitutaki. Cook's name ensured generous gifts of livestock and other goods and, on 16 June, the well-provisioned "Bounty" sailed back to Tubuai. On board were nearly 30 Tahitian men and