The Curse of the Somers
The Secret History Behind the U.S. Navy's Most Infamous Mutiny
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The Curse of the Somers
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Narrated by:
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J. Rodney Turner
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By:
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James P. Delgado
About this listen
The greatest controversy in the history of the US Navy of the early American Republic was the revelation that the son of the Secretary of War had seemingly plotted a bloody mutiny that would have turned the US brig Somers into a pirate ship. The plot discovered, he and his coconspirators were hastily condemned and hanged at sea.
The repercussions of those acts brought headlines, scandal, a fistfight at a cabinet meeting, a court martial, ruined lives, lost reputations, and tales of a haunted ship "bound for the devil" and lost tragically at sea with many of its crew. The "Somers affair" led to the founding of the US Naval Academy and it remains the Navy's only acknowledged mutiny in its history. The story also inspired Herman Melville's White-Jacket and Billy Budd. Others connected to the Somers included Commodore Perry, a relation and defender of the Somers's captain Mackenzie; James Fenimore Cooper, whose feud with the captain, dating back to the War of 1812, resurfaced in his reportage of the affair; and Raphael Semmes, the Somers's last captain, who later served in the Confederate Navy.
The Curse of the Somers is a thorough recreation of this classic tale, told with the help of recently uncovered evidence.
©2023 James P. Delgado (P)2022 TantorListeners also enjoyed...
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Story4 out of 5 stars 136
Of all the colorful cutthroats who scoured the seas in search of plunder during the Golden Age of Piracy in the early 18th century, none was more ferocious or notorious than Blackbeard. As unforgettable as his savage career was, much of Blackbeard's life has been shrouded in mystery - until now. Drawing on vivid descriptions of Blackbeard's attacks from his rare surviving victims, pirate expert Angus Konstam traces Blackbeard's career from its beginnings to his final defeat in a tremendous sea battle near his base at Ocracoke Island
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4 out of 5 stars
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It’s alright
- By B. Williams on 02-26-21
By: Angus Konstam
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Wolf of the Deep
- Raphael Semmes and the Notorious Confederate Raider CSS Alabama
- By: Stephen Fox
- Narrated by: Barrett Whitener
- Length: 10 hrs and 27 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4 out of 5 stars 70
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 48
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 48
In July 1862, Confederate Captain Raphael Semmes took command of a secret new warship. At the helm of the Alabama, he became the most hated and feared man along the Union coast, as well as a Confederate legend. Now, with unparalleled authority, depth, and a vivid sense of the excitement and danger of the time, Stephen Fox describes Captain Semmes's remarkable wartime exploits.
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2 out of 5 stars
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Wolf of the Deep
- By Sammi on 08-18-07
By: Stephen Fox
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A Rage for Glory
- The Life of Commodore Stephen Decatur, USN
- By: James Tertius de Kay
- Narrated by: John McDonough
- Length: 8 hrs and 59 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 27
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 22
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 23
Acclaimed author James Tertius de Kay recounts the lifeof Commodore Stephen Decatur in the first new biography of the great naval hero in almost 70 years. De Kay draws on material unavailable to previous biographers to explore Decatur’s extraordinary life. From his burning of the Philadelphia to his capture of the HMS Macedonian, Decatur demonstrated his legendary bravery at every turn.
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5 out of 5 stars
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Excellent writing and exciting story
- By mikey on 08-02-19
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Why We Love Pirates
- The Hunt for Captain Kidd and How He Changed Piracy Forever
- By: Rebecca Simon PhD
- Narrated by: Kate Mulligan
- Length: 6 hrs and 39 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 74
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 71
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 71
During his life and even after his death, Captain William Kidd’s name was known around England and the American colonies. He was infamous for the very crime for which he was hanged, piracy. This book by Rebecca Simon dives into the details of the two-year manhunt for Captain Kidd and the events that ensued afterward. Captain Kidd was hanged in 1701, and from that sprung a massive hunt for all pirates led by the British during a period known as the Golden Age of Piracy. Ironically, public executions only led to pirates’ growth in popularity and interest.
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2 out of 5 stars
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aweful unless a 6th grade book report
- By Mike in NC on 03-13-22
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Commander
- The Life and Exploits of Britain's Greatest Frigate Captain
- By: Stephen Taylor
- Narrated by: Derek Perkins
- Length: 10 hrs and 20 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 124
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 111
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 111
Edward Pellew, captain of the legendary Indefatigable, was quite simply the greatest British frigate captain in the age of sail. Left fatherless at age eight, with a penniless mother and five siblings, Pellew fought his way from the very bottom of the navy to fleet command. Victories and eye-catching feats won him a public following. Yet he had a gift for antagonizing his better-born peers, and he made powerful enemies. Redemption came with his last command, when he set off to do battle with the Barbary States and free thousands of European slaves.
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3 out of 5 stars
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OK
- By peter on 02-02-21
By: Stephen Taylor
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The Real Hornblower
- The Life and Times of Admiral Sir James Gordon
- By: Bryan Perrett
- Narrated by: Ron Bottitta
- Length: 6 hrs and 56 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4 out of 5 stars 41
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 31
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 31
In this thoroughly researched book the author argues convincingly that Forester's model was Adm. James Gordon, a flesh-and-blood hero of Nelson's navy. Gordon entered the Royal Navy as a semi-literate eleven-year-old and rose to become Admiral of the Fleet. He took part in major sea battles, frigate actions, single-ship duels, and operations far behind enemy lines. It was the fire of Gordon's ships against Fort McHenry that inspired the American national anthem.
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5 out of 5 stars
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Missing final chapter
- By Byron on 03-27-19
By: Bryan Perrett
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Under the Black Flag
- The Romance and the Reality of Life Among the Pirates
- By: David Cordingly
- Narrated by: Don Hagen
- Length: 10 hrs and 31 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4 out of 5 stars 357
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Performance4 out of 5 stars 316
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Story4 out of 5 stars 318
For this rousing, revisionist history, the former head of exhibitions at England's National Maritime Museum has combed original documents and records to produce a most authoritative and definitive account of piracy's "Golden Age." As he explodes many accepted myths (i.e. "walking the plank" is pure fiction), Cordingly replaces them with a truth that is more complex and often bloodier.
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3 out of 5 stars
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Lacks Nuance
- By Joel Langenfeld on 07-02-15
By: David Cordingly
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Black Flags, Blue Waters
- The Epic History of America's Most Notorious Pirates
- By: Eric Jay Dolin
- Narrated by: Paul Brion
- Length: 10 hrs and 29 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 1,257
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Performance4 out of 5 stars 1,110
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 1,100
Set against the backdrop of the Age of Exploration, Black Flags, Blue Waters reveals the dramatic and surprising history of American piracy's "Golden Age" when lawless pirates plied the coastal waters of North America and beyond. Best-selling author Eric Jay Dolin illustrates how American colonists at first supported these outrageous pirates in an early display of solidarity against the Crown, and then violently opposed them. Upending popular misconceptions and cartoonish stereotypes, Dolin provides this wholly original account of these seafaring outlaws.
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4 out of 5 stars
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Solid read, BUT...
- By K ODell on 07-17-19
By: Eric Jay Dolin
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The Rules of the Game
- Jutland and British Naval Command
- By: Andrew Gordon, Sir John Woodward - foreword
- Narrated by: Nigel Patterson
- Length: 27 hrs and 15 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 41
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Performance5 out of 5 stars 35
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 34
When published in hardcover in 1997, this book was praised for providing an engrossing education not only in naval strategy and tactics, but in Victorian social attitudes and the influence of character on history. In juxtaposing an operational with a cultural theme, the author comes closer than any historian yet to explaining what was behind the often-described operations of this famous 1916 battle at Jutland.
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5 out of 5 stars
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Absolutely fascinating dissection of naval strategy
- By A personal on 09-25-21
By: Andrew Gordon, and others
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Rebels at Sea
- Privateering in the American Revolution
- By: Eric Jay Dolin
- Narrated by: Eric Jason Martin
- Length: 8 hrs and 41 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 57
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 52
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 53
The heroic story of the founding of the US Navy during the Revolution has been told many times, yet largely missing from maritime histories of America's first war is the ragtag fleet of private vessels that truly revealed the new nation's character. In Rebels at Sea, Eric Jay Dolin corrects that significant omission, and contends that privateers, as they were called, were in fact critical to the American victory. Privateers were privately owned vessels that were granted permission by the new government to seize British merchantmen and men of war.
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3 out of 5 stars
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If you can get over the narrator...
- By Toby Everett on 09-20-22
By: Eric Jay Dolin
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Seize the Fire
- Heroism, Duty, and the Battle of Trafalgar
- By: Adam Nicolson
- Narrated by: Adam Nicolson
- Length: 6 hrs and 26 mins
- Abridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 122
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 90
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 91
Adam Nicolson takes the great naval battle of Trafalgar, fought between the British and Franco-Spanish fleets in October 1805, and uses it to examine our idea of heroism and the heroic. A story rich with modern resonance, Seize the Fire reveals the economic impact of the battle as a victorious Great Britain emerged as a global commercial empire. Nicolson not only vividly describes the brutal realities of battle but enters the hearts and minds of the men who were there.
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5 out of 5 stars
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great narration
- By Tito on 12-06-17
By: Adam Nicolson
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Billy Budd, Sailor
- By: Herman Melville
- Narrated by: William Roberts
- Length: 3 hrs and 34 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall3.5 out of 5 stars 490
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Performance4 out of 5 stars 409
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Story3.5 out of 5 stars 413
Written some 40 years after Moby Dick, Melville's Billy Budd is a moving tale of good versus evil. Set aboard a British navy ship at the end of the eighteenth century, a young, innocent sailor's charm and good nature put the men around him at ease. Ship life agreed with Billy. He made friends quickly and was well liked, which infuriated John Claggart, the ship's cold-blooded superior officer.
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5 out of 5 stars
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A good reading of a classic story
- By Johnny on 06-11-07
By: Herman Melville
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Cochrane
- The Real Master and Commander
- By: David Cordingly
- Narrated by: John Lee
- Length: 13 hrs and 2 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 171
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 110
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 111
Nicknamed le loup des mers ("the sea wolf") by Napoleon, Thomas Cochrane was one of the most daring and successful naval heroes of all time. In this fascinating account of Cochrane's life, historian David Cordingly unearths startling new details about the real-life "Master and Commander", from his daring exploits against the French navy to his role in the liberation of Chile, Peru, and Brazil, and the shock exchange scandal that forced him out of England and almost ended his naval career.
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3 out of 5 stars
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There is a better book on Lord Cochrane
- By Mark G on 07-20-15
By: David Cordingly
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In the Wake of Madness
- The Murderous Voyage of the Whaleship Sharon
- By: Joan Druett
- Narrated by: Dennis Boutsikaris
- Length: 6 hrs and 16 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4 out of 5 stars 169
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 127
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Story4 out of 5 stars 125
Commanded by Captain Howes Norris, the Sharon headed for the whaling grounds of the northwestern Pacific. At Pohnpei Island, 12 men from the Sharon deserted the ship, leaving her critically shorthanded. After steering for New Zealand to recruit more crew, the men on lookout raised a school of sperm whales. Two boats gave chase, each with a crew of six. Five men were left on board the Sharon: Norris, three pacific Islanders, and a Portuguese boy named Manuel.
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5 out of 5 stars
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Love this author.
- By David H. on 07-15-17
By: Joan Druett
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Nelson's Trafalgar
- The Battle That Changed the World
- By: Roy Adkins
- Narrated by: John Telfer
- Length: 13 hrs and 6 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 103
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Performance5 out of 5 stars 95
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 94
In the tradition of Antony Beevor's Stalingrad, Nelson's Trafalgar presents the definitive blow-by-blow account of the world's most famous naval battle, when the British Royal Navy, under Lord Horatio Nelson, dealt a decisive blow to the forces of Napoleon. The Battle of Trafalgar comes boldly to life in this definitive work that recreates those five momentous, earsplitting hours with unrivaled detail and intensity.
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1 out of 5 stars
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kiss me hardy!!!!
- By frank on 05-09-23
By: Roy Adkins
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John Paul Jones
- Sailor, Hero, Father of the American Navy
- By: Evan Thomas
- Narrated by: Dan Cashman
- Length: 13 hrs and 25 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4 out of 5 stars 199
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 126
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 126
John Paul Jones is more than a great sea story. Jones is a character for the ages. John Adams called him the "most ambitious and intriguing officer in the American Navy." The renewed interest in the Founding Fathers reminds us of the great men who made this country, but John Paul Jones teaches us that it took fighters as well as thinkers, men driven by dreams of personal glory as well as high-minded principle to break free of the past and start a new world. Jones' spirit was classically American.
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3 out of 5 stars
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Swashbuckler or Saviour
- By Bruce on 03-16-04
By: Evan Thomas