Episode One: Near Mutiny

In 1820, Alexander Hare, the owner of a household of slaves and an increasingly controversial figure among the British in the East Indies, abandoned his plantation on Java and sailed for Cape Town. After setting up a farm and working it for five years, he decided to return to the Indies. On the question of whether this was prompted by his being ostracised by Cape Town society for his behaviour and owning slaves, the records are unclear. However, it is well recorded that Hare was undecided as to his ship’s final destination, and this uncertainty led to a mutinous confrontation between him and the crew before their eventual landing at the Cocos (Keeling) Islands.