''Captain Blood: His Odyssey'' is an

adventure novel Adventure fiction is a type of fiction that usually presents danger, or gives the reader a sense of excitement. Some adventure fiction also satisfies the literary definition of romance fiction. History In the Introduction to the ''Encycloped ...

Rafael Sabatini Rafael Sabatini (29 April 1875 – 13 February 1950) was an Italian-born British writer of romance and adventure novels. He is best known for his worldwide bestsellers: ''The Sea Hawk'' (1915), ''Scaramouche'' (1921), ''Captain Blood'' (a.k.a ...

, originally published in 1922.

Development

Sabatini was a proponent of basing historical fiction as closely as possible on history. Although Blood is a fictional character, much of the historical background of the novel is loosely based on fact. A group of Monmouth rebels was indeed condemned to ten years' hard labor in Barbados, very similar to

chattel slavery Slavery and enslavement are both the state and the condition of being a slave—someone forbidden to quit one's service for an enslaver, and who is treated by the enslaver as property. Slavery typically involves slaves being made to perf ...

; and the shifting political alliances of the Glorious Revolution of 1688 are used in the novel as a plot device to allow Blood's return to respectability. Sabatini based the first part of the story of Blood on Henry Pitman, a surgeon who tended the wounded Monmouth rebels and was sentenced to death by

Judge Jeffreys George Jeffreys, 1st Baron Jeffreys, PC (15 May 1645 – 18 April 1689), also known as "the Hanging Judge", was a Welsh judge. He became notable during the reign of King James II, rising to the position of Lord Chancellor (and serving a ...

, but whose sentence was commuted to penal transportation to

Barbados Barbados is an island country in the Lesser Antilles of the West Indies, in the Caribbean region of the Americas, and the most easterly of the Caribbean Islands. It occupies an area of and has a population of about 287,000 (2019 estimate) ...

where he escaped and was captured by pirates. Unlike the fictional Blood, Pitman did not join them, and eventually made his way back to England where he wrote a popular account of his ordeal. For Blood's life as a buccaneer, Sabatini used several models, including

Henry Morgan Sir Henry Morgan ( cy, Harri Morgan; – 25 August 1688) was a privateer, plantation owner, and, later, Lieutenant Governor of Jamaica. From his base in Port Royal, Jamaica, he raided settlements and shipping on the Spanish Main, becoming we ...

and the work of

Alexandre Exquemelin Alexandre Olivier Exquemelin (also spelled ''Esquemeling'', ''Exquemeling'', or ''Oexmelin'') (c. 1645–1707) was a French, Dutch or Flemish writer best known as the author of one of the most important sourcebooks of 17th-century piracy, first ...

, for historical details. Sabatini first introduced the character Captain Blood in a series of eight short stories in ''Premier Magazine'' as ''Tales of the Brethren of the Main'', published from December 1920 to March 1921, and reprinted in ''

Adventure Magazine ''Adventure'' was an American pulp magazine that was first published in November 1910Robinson, Frank M. & Davidson, Lawrence ''Pulp Culture – The Art of Fiction Magazines''. Collectors Press Inc 2007 (p. 33-48). by the Ridgway company, an ...

'' from January to May 1921, with a novella "Captain Blood's Dilemma", published in ''Premier Magazine'' in April 1921 (and ''Adventure Magazine'' in October 1921). The ''

Odyssey The ''Odyssey'' (; grc, Ὀδύσσεια, Odýsseia, ) is one of two major ancient Greek epic poems attributed to Homer. It is one of the oldest extant works of literature still widely read by modern audiences. As with the ''Iliad'', th ...

''-like

story arc A story arc (also narrative arc) is the chronological construction of plot in a novel or story. It can also mean an extended or continuing storyline in episodic storytelling media such as television, comic books, comic strips, board games, vid ...

of these tales was then woven by Sabatini into a continuous narrative in novel form, published as ''Captain Blood: His Odyssey'' in 1922.

Synopsis

The protagonist is the sharp-witted Dr. Peter Blood, a fictional Irish physician who had had a wide-ranging career as a soldier and sailor (including a commission as a captain under the Dutch admiral De Ruyter) before settling down to practice medicine in the town of Bridgwater in Somerset. The story is told from the perspective of an omniscient narrator, who enables the reader to see the thoughts and views of many different characters. The narrator - perhaps meant to be Sabatini himself - claims to have acquired the story from the ship's logs of Blood's longtime companion Jeremy Pitt. The book opens with him attending to his geraniums while the town prepares to fight for James Scott, 1st Duke of Monmouth. He wants no part in the rebellion, but while attending to some of the rebels wounded at the

Battle of Sedgemoor The Battle of Sedgemoor was the last and decisive engagement between the Kingdom of England and rebels led by the Duke of Monmouth during the Monmouth rebellion, fought on 6 July 1685, and took place at Westonzoyland near Bridgwater in Somerse ...

, Peter is arrested. During the

Bloody Assizes The Bloody Assizes were a series of trials started at Winchester on 25 August 1685 in the aftermath of the Battle of Sedgemoor, which ended the Monmouth Rebellion in England. History There were five judges: Sir William Montague (Lord Chief B ...

, he is convicted by the infamous

of treason on the grounds that "if any person be in actual rebellion against the King, and another person—who really and actually was not in rebellion—does knowingly receive, harbour, comfort, or succour him, such a person is as much a traitor as he who indeed bore arms." The sentence for treason is death by hanging, but

King James II James VII and II (14 October 1633 16 September 1701) was King of England and King of Ireland as James II, and King of Scotland as James VII from the death of his elder brother, Charles II, on 6 February 1685. He was deposed in the Glorious Re ...

, for purely financial reasons, has the sentence for Blood and other convicted rebels commuted to transportation to the Caribbean, where they are to be imprisoned. Upon arrival on the island of

, Blood is bought by Colonel William Bishop, initially for work in the Colonel's prison farms but later hired out by Bishop when Blood's skills as a physician prove superior to those of the local doctors. During his period of slavery, Blood becomes acquainted with and even friendly with Arabella Bishop, Colonel Bishop's niece, who becomes sympathetic after learning his history. When a Spanish force attacks and raids the town of

Bridgetown Bridgetown (UN/LOCODE: BB BGI) is the capital and largest city of Barbados. Formerly The Town of Saint Michael, the Greater Bridgetown area is located within the parish of Saint Michael. Bridgetown is sometimes locally referred to as "The Ci ...

, Blood escapes with a number of other convicts (including former shipmaster Jeremy Pitt, the one-eyed giant Edward Wolverstone, former gentleman Nathaniel Hagthorpe, former

Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by English and Scottish kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime engagements were fought in the Hundred Years' War against ...

petty officer A petty officer (PO) is a non-commissioned officer in many navies and is given the NATO rank denotation OR-5 or OR-6. In many nations, they are typically equal to a sergeant in comparison to other military branches. Often they may be super ...

Nicholas Dyke and former

master gunner Ned Ogle), captures the Spaniards' ship and sails away to become one of the most successful pirates in the Caribbean, hated and feared by the Spanish and always sparing English ships. Colonel Bishop, humiliated by Blood's escape and by Blood himself, devotes himself to capturing Blood with the hope of hanging him. After the Glorious Revolution, Blood is pardoned. As a reward for saving the colony of Jamaica from a French assault, he is appointed its governor in place of Colonel Bishop, who had abandoned his post to hunt for Blood, and the novel ends with the implication that Blood will not only marry Colonel Bishop's niece Arabella but will also let Bishop off easy.

Influence

Continuation

''Captain Blood'' was an enormously popular work, but instead of continuing the series with sequels, Sabatini wrote fifteen more short stories set during Captain Blood's pirate career. Two of the tales in ''Captain Blood Returns'' ("The War Indemnity" and "Blood Money") may be viewed as continuations of events that took place in the original novel, but all the stories are contained within the timeframe of ''Captain Blood'' (a

sidequel In media, a spin-off (or spinoff) is a radio program, television program, film, video game or any narrative work, derived from already existing works that focus on more details and different aspects from the original work (e.g. particular topics, ...

). Eight of these new stories were published in 1931 as '' Captain Blood Returns'' (retitled ''The Chronicles of Captain Blood'' in the British publication) along with two of the ''Tales of the Brethren of the Main'' that had not been incorporated into ''Captain Blood''. A second collection, '' The Fortunes of Captain Blood'' was published in 1936, consisting of six new stories, and one final story, "The Remedy", which takes place almost immediately after Blood's trial before Judge Jeffreys and in which Peter Blood is not the primary character but is prominently figured. It was also included in Sabatini's collection of short stories ''Turbulent Tales'', published in 1946. The book was especially popular in Russia. Several Russian authors wrote moderately popular sequels, such as ''Children of Captain Blood'' by Tatyana Vinogradova, and ''Captain Blood: His Iliad'' by Mikhail Popov.

Literary references

The bitter aftermath of the Monmouth Rebellion also features prominently in Arthur Conan Doyle's novel ''

Micah Clarke ''Micah Clarke'' is a historical adventure novel by British author Arthur Conan Doyle, published in 1889 and set during the Monmouth Rebellion of 1685 in England. The book is a bildungsroman whose protagonist, Micah Clarke, begins as a boy seeking ...

'' (1889). In the opening chapter of

Arturo Pérez-Reverte Arturo Pérez-Reverte Gutiérrez (born 25 November 1951 in Cartagena) is a Spanish novelist and journalist. He worked as a war correspondent for RTVE for 21 years (1973–1994). His first novel, ''El húsar'', set in the Napoleonic Wars, was ...

's novel ''

The Club Dumas ''The Club Dumas'' (original Spanish title ''El Club Dumas'') is a 1993 novel by Arturo Pérez-Reverte. The book is set in a world of antiquarian booksellers, echoing his previous 1990 work, '' The Flanders Panel''. The story follows the adventu ...

'' (1993), two characters discuss their favourite novel by Sabatini; book dealer Lucas Corso declares his preference for ''Captain Blood''.

Alan Moore Alan Moore (born 18 November 1953) is an English author known primarily for his work in comic books including '' Watchmen'', ''V for Vendetta'', '' The Ballad of Halo Jones'', ''Swamp Thing'', ''Batman:'' ''The Killing Joke'', and '' From He ...

comic book A comic book, also called comicbook, comic magazine or (in the United Kingdom and Ireland) simply comic, is a publication that consists of comics art in the form of sequential juxtaposed panels that represent individual scenes. Panels are of ...

series ''

The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen ''The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen'' (''LoEG'') is a comic book series (inspired by the 1960 British film ''The League of Gentlemen'') co-created by writer Alan Moore and artist Kevin O'Neill which began in 1999. The series spans four vol ...

'' incorporates many characters from

classic book A classic is a book accepted as being exemplary or particularly noteworthy. What makes a book "classic" is a concern that has occurred to various authors ranging from Italo Calvino to Mark Twain and the related questions of "Why Read the Cla ...

s, including Peter Blood as a member of the Pirates' Conference in '' The New Traveller's Almanac'' (2002–2003).

Adaptations

Film

* '' Captain Blood'' (1924), starring J. Warren Kerrigan * '' Captain Blood'' (1935), starring

Errol Flynn Errol Leslie Thomson Flynn (20 June 1909 – 14 October 1959) was an Australian-American actor who achieved worldwide fame during the Golden Age of Hollywood. He was known for his romantic swashbuckler roles, frequent partnerships with Olivia ...

* '' Fortunes of Captain Blood'' (1950), starring

Louis Hayward Louis Charles Hayward (19 March 1909 – 21 February 1985) was a Johannesburg-born, British-American actor. Biography Born in Johannesburg, Louis Hayward lived in South Africa and was educated in France and England, including Latymer Upper Scho ...

* '' Captain Pirate'' (1952), aka ''Captain Blood, Fugitive'' (UK), starring Louis Hayward * '' The Son of Captain Blood'' (1962), starring Sean Flynn (Errol Flynn's son) * ''L'odyssée du capitaine Blood'' (1991), starring Yves Lambrecht: a Franco-Russian co-production which had a 1991 theatrical release in the USSR (as Одиссея капитана Блада) and was a March 1992 two-episode broadcast by

France 3 France 3 () is a French free-to-air public television channel and part of the France Télévisions group, which also includes France 2, France 4, France 5 and France Info. It is made up of a network of regional television services provi ...

Audio

*''Captain Blood''. Full Cast Audio production (2006) The ''Colonial Radio Theatre'' on the Air. Released by Blackstone Audio.

Comics

* ''Captain Blood'', adapted in ''Fast Fiction'' #2, 1949, reprinted in ''Stories by Famous Authors Illustrated'' #2, 1950. *''Captain Blood: The Legacy'', a five-issue sepia-toned comic adaptation of the novel by Matt Shepherd and Mike Shoyket (2009, SLG Comics)

Video games

*'' Age of Pirates: Captain Blood''

Notes

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Captain Blood (Novel) 1922 British novels Novels by Rafael Sabatini British historical novels British adventure novels Novels about pirates British novels adapted into films Novels set in Somerset Monmouth Rebellion in fiction Novels set in the 1680s Cultural depictions of Henry Morgan