Mutiny on the Bounty could use to enforce their authority. "Bounty" had been acquired to transport breadfruit plants from Tahiti (then rendered "Otaheite"), a Polynesian island in the south Pacific, to the British colonies in the West Indies. The expedition was promoted by the Royal Society and organised by its president Sir Joseph Banks, who shared the view of Caribbean plantation owners that breadfruit might grow well there and provide cheap food for the slaves. "Bounty" was refitted under Banks' supervision at Deptford Dockyard on the River Thames. The great cabin, normally the ship's captain's quarters, was converted into a greenhouse for over a
HMS Bounty journal kept by one of Christian's followers, the Tahitians were actually kidnapped when Christian set sail without warning them, the purpose of this being to acquire the women. The mutineers passed through the Fiji and Cook Islands, but feared that they would be found there. Continuing their quest for a safe haven, on 15 January 1790 they rediscovered Pitcairn Island, which had been misplaced on the Royal Navy's charts. After the decision was made to settle on Pitcairn, livestock and other provisions were removed from the "Bounty". To prevent the ship's detection, and anyone's possible escape, the ship was burned