ABSTRACT
The Somers mutiny affair, which led the captain of an American naval vessel to execute three of his crew while at sea, usually comes to a reader through Herman Melville’s last great masterpiece, the unfinished novella Billy Budd, Sailor (An Inside Narrative). 1 The affair itself mesmerized the nation when it occurred in late 1842 and early 1843. Two legal events, a court of inquiry and then a court martial against the captain, divided antebellum Americans. In fact, the deepest source of conflict is still with us, one reason why history books and articles continue to explore the event on a regular basis. 2
