The Batavia Shipwreck: Mutiny, Massacre, and Survival in 1629

In 1629, the Dutch merchant ship Batavia wrecked on a remote reef off Western Australia. What followed was not just a struggle for survival, but a calculated campaign of violence that left more than one hundred people dead. Drawing on survivor testimony and historical records, this episode examines one of the most disturbing episodes in maritime history.

Source Materials

Pelsaert, Francisco. The Journal of Francisco Pelsaert. 1629.

Dash, Mike. Batavia’s Graveyard: The True Story of the Mad Heretic Who Led History’s Bloodiest Mutiny. New York: Three Rivers Press, 2002.

Drake-Brockman, Henrietta. Voyage to Disaster. Sydney: Angus & Robertson, 1964.

Edwards, Hugh. Islands of Angry Ghosts. New York: William Morrow, 1966.

Western Australian Museum — Batavia Collection
https://museum.wa.gov.au/

This episode was researched using both primary historical documents and modern scholarly works.