Hugh Pigot

Captain Hugh Pigot (5 September 1769 – 21 September 1797) was a Royal Navy officer. Through his connections and their patronage, he was able to rise to the rank of captain, despite poor leadership skills and a reputation for brutality. Historian William James stated that "he has been described to us by those who knew him well, as one of the most cruel and oppressive captains belonging to the British navy."

While Pigot was captain of the frigate , he eventually provoked his men to mutiny. This mutiny became the bloodiest in the history of the Royal Navy and left Pigot and nine other officers dead. The Navy hunted down and executed a number of the mutineers and recaptured his ship from the Spanish, to whom the mutineers had turned it over.

Family and early life Pigot was born in Patshull, Staffordshire, on 5 September 1769, the second son of Admiral Hugh Pigot. His mother was Hugh's second wife, Frances, who was the daughter of Sir Richard Wrottesley. The younger Hugh embarked on his naval career on 10 March 1782, when he joined the 50-gun as an admiral's servant. Writer Dudley Pope has pointed out that beyond the frequency of flogging was Captain Pigot's "complete lack of balance". Pope noted for example that in April 1795, a seaman on HMS Success, was given twenty four lashes for mutiny, one of the worst offenses in the Royal Navy apart from murder or treason, yet three sailors in the same month were given twenty four lashes for drunkenness, one of the most common infractions. Like other British naval vessels operating in the Caribbean, Captain Pigot increasingly became reliant on impressing merchant seamen to fill out his crew.

In July 1795 he was involved in another collision with Mercury, an American ship, near Santo Domingo. He again blamed the master of the other ship. But when he had the man seized and flogged he created a diplomatic incident. In an incident in May 1797, Hermione narrowly escaped being wrecked thanks to the efforts of one of her lieutenants, Harris, but a ship sailing in company with the Hermione went aground. Pigot blamed Harris, however, and insisted upon an inquiry. Though Harris was exonerated, he immediately left the ship to serve on another. Pigot had by now developed a reputation for excessive brutality.

Mutiny

Midshipman David Casey was an experienced midshipman who had served with credit under Captain Pigot during the previous months, but his dis-rating was a primary trigger to the mutiny. About a week before the mutiny, Casey was at his station on the main top, and the captain noticed a reef knot which had not been tied by one of the sailors under his supervision. Casey was brought before the captain, and while he took full responsibility for it, Pigot demanded that Casey get on his knees and beg for forgiveness. This would have been a terrible insult for a gentleman, and Casey refused. The captain gave him 12 lashes, and he was disrated, which would end his career as a naval officer.

Pigot had also developed the practice of flogging the last sailor down from working aloft. he gave the order that the last men off the yard would be flogged. Three young sailors, in their haste to get down and avoid the punishment, fell to their deaths on the deck, one of whom hit and injured the master Southcott. Pigot ordered their bodies thrown into the sea with the words "throw the lubbers overboard". "Lubbers" meant "awkward fools" and was a serious insult in the seaman's vocabulary. He then instructed two boatswain's mates to flog the rest of the topmen when they complained. This sentence was carried out the next morning.

The humiliation of Casey, the deaths of the topmen and the severe punishments of other sailors afterward triggered the mutiny. The evening of 21 September 1797, a number of the crew, drunk on stolen rum, rushed Pigot's cabin and forced their way in after overpowering the marine stationed outside. They hacked at Pigot with knives and cutlasses before throwing him overboard, probably while he was still alive. The mutineers, probably led by a core group of just 18, went on to murder another eight of Hermiones officers: First Lieutenant Samuel Reed, Second Lieutenant Archibald Douglas, Third Lieutenant Henry Foreshaw, the Marine commander, Lieutenant McIntosh; Bosun William Martin, Purser Pacey and Surgeon Sansum. The captain's clerk and two midshipmen were also killed and all the bodies were thrown overboard. Three warrant officers survived, the gunner and carpenter were spared because they were considered useful to the ship, and Southcott the master was spared so he could navigate. Southcott lived to be a key witness, along with Casey, who was also spared, and their eyewitness accounts and testimony were key to the trials of many of the mutineers. The Spanish gave the mutineers just $25 each in return, and presented them with the options of joining the Spanish army, heavy labour, or refitting their ship. He also despatched under Captain Henry Ricketts to commence negotiations. Of these, 24 were hanged and gibbetted, one was transported, and eight were acquitted or pardoned. The Spanish lost 119 dead and 231 were taken prisoner, while another 15 jumped or fell overboard. Hamilton had 11 injured, four seriously, but none killed.

Parker had the recaptured Hermione renamed HMS Retaliation, after which the Admiralty ordered her to be renamed HMS Retribution on 31 January 1800.