Mutiny on the Somers

After as dispassionate and deliberate a consideration of the case as the exigencies of the time would admit, the officers wrote, we have come to a cool, decided, and unanimous opinion that the prisoners have been guilty of a full and determined intention to commit a mutiny on board of this vessel of a most atrocious nature. What was more, the letter continued, there was no way to keep the prisoners safely away from the rest of the crew and transport

them back to the United States for court martial. The safety of the public property, the lives of ourselves and of those committed to our charge, the officers concluded, require that the prisoners should be put to death. Who were these prisoners? There were three of them. One of them was an officer himself, Midshipman Philip Spencer, age eighteen. He was alleged to be the ringleader of the mutiny plot.

His two accomplices were a mismatched pair, the tallest man on the ship, Chief Bosun's mate, Samuel Cromwell, and the shortest seamen, Elisious Mall. After learning about the mutiny plot, Commander Mackenzie had arrested the men, Spencer first on November twenty sixth, and then Cromwell and Small on the twenty seventh. Even after these arrests, it seemed that the ship was

not safe. The prisoners were being kept on the quarter deck, a raised deck behind the main mast, from which they could see the crew at work, and the crew could see them. Two Mackenzie and his officers had seen meaningful looks and maybe even hand gestures exchanged between the prisoners and the crew. How many conspirators did the plot have? At any minute, Mackenzie feared some signal would trigger the crew to rise up and rebel. That could mean dozens

of deaths. There were one hundred and twenty Navy sailors on board the USS Summers, Commander Mackenzie stealed his resolve. Executing prisoners was a grave matter, and it was technically outside of his legal rights as a captain, but he was convinced that it was the only path forward. Mackenzie ordered that Spencer, Cromwell and Small be put to death. He called the crew to the deck. If there were indeed more conspirators amongst their ranks, Mackenzie wanted them to

see the consequences of crime. The crew of the US Summers watched silently as the three prisoners were informed of their fates, and then hung from the yard arm, slowly suffocating to death. When the USS Summers arrived back in New York two weeks later, bringing news of the attempted mutiny and the subsequent executions, the public was horrified about the mutiny, that is, not about the hangings. These were seen as a difficult but necessary choice made by a

courageous captain in a terrible situation. But as the Navy probed into the events aboard the USS Summers, troubling questions began to emerge. Had Mackenzie's actions been justified even worse, had this threatened mutiny even been real On December twentieth, an anonymous letter published in a washing In, DC newspaper alleged that the inquiry conducted by the officers into the mutiny had been biased and had denied the prisoner's basic civil rights. The letter claimed that the three men had

been hanged on the basis of extremely thin evidence. The letter was only signed s, but many people knew right away who had written it. It was Philip Spencer's father, John Canfield Spencer, and that meant trouble for Commander Mackenzie. Because John Spencer was not just any grieving father. He was the United States Secretary of War, and he was determined to get justice for his dead son. But could

the Navy administer justice to one of its own. That question would be tested at the court martial of Commander Mackenzie in early eighteen forty three, a trial that sparked debates over just how far military discipline could go. Welcome to history on trial, I'm your host, Mira Hayward. This week the court martial of Commander Alexander Slidell Mackenzie. Philip Spencer had always dreamed of going to sea, but not with the Navy. No, Philip Spencer wanted to be a pirate.

Born in eighteen twenty four in Canadagua, New York, Philip missed the peak of piracy, a period in the seventeen tens and twenties during which some two thousand pirates roamed the Atlantic and Caribbean, by a century, but the legend of pirates lived on long after their numbers were decimated by European naval forces. In eighteen thirty seven, when Philip was thirteen, Charles Elms published The Pirate's Own Book, a four hundred and thirty two page epic filled with swashbuckling

tales from the High Seas. The book was so popular that it ran for eight editions. It was one of Philip Spencer's favorite books. Philip's pirate fantasies were met with disapproval by his father, John Canfield Spencer. A brilliant, combative, ambitious man. John Spencer wanted great things for his children. Philip, the sixth of John Elizabeth Spencer's seven children, always struggled to meet his father's expectations. Philip was undeniably bright. He

had a facility for languages. He quickly picked up Latin and Greek, and would later become fluent in Spanish, he could give a speech better than almost any of his classmates at Geneva College, where he studied in the late eighteen thirties, and he was brave in an era before anesthesia. Classmates remembered with awe how Philip had refused the traditional restraints during surgery to try to correct his wandering eye, holding himself still through the agonizing procedure through sheer force

of will. But the discipline he showed in enduring pain did not translate to other areas of his life. He neglected his schoolwork, He snuck off campus and into town. He drank. In November eighteen forty, when he was sixteen, the school cited Philip for participating in what they called, hilariously a cider disturbance. We'd probably call it a door party. In the spring of eighteen forty one, hoping that a change of scenery might do Philip some good, John Spencer

made his son transfer to Union College. Before he left Geneva, Philip gave the school a copy of the Pirate's own book. At Union, Philip did not take advantage of his fresh start. Instead of focusing on his studies, he devoted himself to founding a fraternity, the perfect place to host more cider disturbances and to create secret handshakes and codes and rituals, the kind of thing that Philip loved. The fraternity Philip helped found Kai Sai today has chapters at thirty four

colleges and universities. John Spencer, however, was not impressed by Philip's activities. During the eighteen thirties, the elder Spencer's political star had risen. In October eighteen forty one, President John Tyler chose John Spencer to be his Secretary of War. Managing the military might have seemed easy in comparison to managing Philip Spencer. At his wits end with his son, Secretary Spencer decided that maybe the Navy could instill some discipline.

In November eighteen forty one, Philip was appointed as a midshipman, the lowest rank of officer in the United States Navy. But even the Navy could not tame Philip's energies. He drank, fought with senior officers, and, on an official trip to Brazil, brawled in the streets every time he got in trouble. Though his father put in a good word with Abel Upscher, the Secretary of the Navy, and Philip got another chance, But by the summer of eighteen forty two, Secretary Upsher's

patients was wearing thin. He told Philip that he would be watching carefully and gave him one last assignment on which to prove himself. On August thirteenth, eighteen forty two, Philip Spencer received orders to report to the USS Summers in New York. Upon boarding, he met the man who would one day order his death, Commander Alexander Slidell Mackenzie. The Commander was born Alexander Slidell on April sixth, eighteen

o three, to John and Marjorie Slidell. In his thirties, he would adopt his mother's maiden name Mackenzie, as a condition of receiving an inheritance from a maternal uncle. The Slydells were a wealthy, well connected family. One of Mackenzie's brothers would become a US Senator and another would become Chief Justice of the Louisiana Supreme Court, but it was his sister, Jane who would most influence Mackenzie's life. In eighteen fourteen, Jane married Matthew Perry, a member of a

naval dynasty. Matthew's older brother, Oliver hazard Perry, was an American hero for his victory at the Battle of Lake Erie during the War of eighteen twelve. Matthew Perry too would become a naval hero, eventually leading the mission that opened trade with Japan. In the eighteen fifties. The Perry family encouraged young Mackenzie to join the Navy, and he became a midshipman at age eleven, sailing around the world throughout his teenage years. The Navy was a good fit

for the boy. Unlike Philip Spencer, Mackenzie liked discipline. He liked rules and laws, making them and following them. In his early days in the Navy, he saw what happened when the laws were broken. Assigned to anti pirate duty in the West Indies, he witnessed the devastation pirate's pillaging left in its wake, not nearly so glamorous in real life as it was in the pirate's own book. In eighteen twenty four, Mackenzie contracted yellow fever and took a

leave of absence from the Navy to recover. While on leave, he traveled to Spain and began to work on a book about his experiences abroad. He befriended the writer Washington Irving while in Madrid, and Irving would help Mackenzie publish his first book, called A Year in Spain. The publication made Mackenzie a minor celebrity, and he would continue writing even after returning from leave, though his later books received

cooler receptions. Journalist and historian Richard Snow argues in his book Sailing the Graveyard Sea that Mackenzie's writings reveal quote an opacity about common human feelings. They also depict a man full of contradictions, both moralistic and prudish. Mackenzie also displays a taste for violence. He describes both crimes and public executions, which, despite professing to dislike, he somehow couldn't seem to stop attending while abroad in gruesome detail. In

eighteen thirty six, Mackenzie married Kate Robinson. Soon after, he adopted Mackenzie as his surname in order to receive the family bequest. Using this money, he bought a farm in New York's Hudson River Valley, near his friend Washington Irving. He also began thinking seriously along with his brother in law, Matthew Perry, about how to reform America's navy. The Navy at this point was struggling to attract, train, and retain good men. The pay was low, the training programs were haphazard,

and promotions were difficult to obtain. In eighteen thirty seven, Mackenzie and Perry wrote about the need for naval education in the Naval Magazine, calling for the establishment of an apprenticeship program. Congress agreed with their recommendations and provided funding to recruit and train boys aged thirteen to eighteen. Congress also agreed to create a schoolship, a floating naval school

with on the job training for the young apprentices. The USS Summers, a beautiful new ship designed in part by Matthew Perry, was chosen for the job. In eighteen forty one, Alexander Mackenzie was promoted to the rank of commander. The next year, he was assigned to the schoolship that he and Perry had dreamed of. The stakes for this voyage were high. If it went well, the Navy might be willing to produce more schoolships, Congress might agree to fund

more apprentices, and Mackenzie's beloved navy would flourish. To ensure success, Mackenzie and Perry carefully selected the ship's officers. The first Lieutenant, Mackenzie's second in command, was thirty year old Garrett Gansvoort, a member of a prominent New York family and a skilled sailor who had risen quickly through the ranks of the Navy. For the midshipmen, the lowest ranking officers, Perry and Mackenzie filled the ranks with their relatives and their

friend's sons. Two of Perry's own sons were serving on board. Into this tightly knit crowd appeared the disruptive Philip Spencer. Mackenzie took an immediate dislike to dists Spencer. He had heard about Spencer's record and wanted him off the ship. Mackenzie recommended that Spencer ask for a transfer. Spencer did so, but Matthew Perry refused the request. Philip Spencer needed discipline, and Perry may have hoped the strict Mackenzie might be just the one to provide a firm hand. Little did

anyone know just how firm that hand would be. The voyage of the USS Summers began smoothly enough, departing New York on September thirteenth, eighteen forty two, the ship sailed east. Its mission, an easy assignment fitting for a school ship, was to deliver dispatches from America to another Navy ship, the Vandalia, which was assisting the British Navy in intercepting slave ships off the west coast of Africa. Quarters on the ship were tight, at one hundred feet long and

twenty feet wide at the thickest point. The Summers was only meant to carry ninety men, but in an attempt to squeeze as many apprentices in as possible, the Summers had a crew of one hundred and twenty for this trip. Of these one hundred and twenty, only thirty were older than nineteen. A third of the crew was between thirteen and sixteen years old. Life at sea must have been bewildering for these boys, many of whom had no sailing experience.

Time was measured in watches and bells. Sunday mornings were spent mustard on deck. The sailors stood on deck while their uniforms were inspected. Attendance was taken, and the Articles of War, a list of prohibited actions and resulting punishments were read. Aloud. The one form of punishment was flogging, lashing either with the Cat nine tails, a whip with nine eighteen inch braided cords, or the Colt, a three foot long single strand whip. Both instruments could rip a

sailor's back. Open. Floggings were usually done in front of the whole crew. Congress would ban flogging in eighteen fifty, and some captains had already abandoned the practice, believing it to be too cruel, but not Commander Mackenzie. He had a reputation as being quick to order floggings, and the reputation was well earned. The boys of the Summers soon learned.

The first flogging happened only three days into the voyage, six lashes each of the Colt for three crewmen accused of avoiding work on the Summers, Sailors of all ages, even those as young as thirteen, were whipped frequently for offenses as minor as borrowing someone else's shirts, smoking after ten PM, or being impertinent. One fourteen year old apprentice, Dennis Manning, received a total of one hundred and one

lashes during the ship's two month journey. Despite the frequent punishments, morale aboard the summers was high, at least for the first few weeks. Part of the crew's good attitude might have been due to Philip Spencer. Spencer had quickly found himself the odd man out amongst the other officers, who had all taken their commander's queue and shunned Spencer. He decided to search for friends amongst the crew instead. Spencer amused the younger boys with a strange talent he had,

rhythmically dislocating his jaw to create eerie music. He won the older sailors over with small gifts of smuggled brandy or tobacco for money. Spencer especially concentrated his attention on two other misfits, Samuel Cromwell and Elisha Small. Cromwell was widely disliked, and perhaps for good reason. As the chief bosun's mate, Cromwell was in charge of administering the floggings. An enormous man in his thirties, heavily muscled and scarred,

Cromwell had a fierce temper and a filthy mouth. Crewman whispered that he had once sailed with slavers or pirates. Elishah Small, thirty years old, was a good sailor with a bad drinking problem. He begun the voyage as the Summers' quartermaster, responsible for navigation, but had been quickly demoted for drunkenness. Small, Cromwell, and Spencer soon formed trio. Spencer provided the men with alcohol and tobacco. In return, Cromwell and Small told Spencer

wild stories from their lives at sea. The other officers judged Spencer for his friendship with lowly crewmen and got annoyed by his laziness and tasteless jokes. Commander Mackenzie's dislike for Spencer had also increased, but he largely ignored the eighteen year old. By mid November, the Summers had reached Liberia, but they hadn't managed to catch up with the Vandalia, which always seemed to be one port ahead of them.

Mackenzie decided that it was time to head home. Despite this incomplete mission, everything was well aboard the Summers until Saturday, November twenty sixth, that is, shortly after eight am, First Lieutenant Ganzifort burst into the Captain's cabin with shocking news a mutiny was afoot. Kenzie was stunned. Gansafort laid out the details for him that morning, Purser Stewart James Wales had approached his superior purser, Horace High School, with a

troubling story. The night before, Wales said he had been approached by Philip Spencer. After swearing Wales to secrecy, Spencer told him that he was planning to seize the ship. Spencer said he had a number of the crew signed up for his plan, which involved murdering the ship's officers and any uncooperative crewmen, sailing the Summers to the Caribbean,

and turning it into a pirate ship. While Spencer laid out the details for Wales's Elisha Small approach, Spencer told Small that he had enlisted Wales, and Small said he was glad to hear it. When Spencer finished, he asked for his thoughts. Whales said he liked the idea, but inside he was horrified. Wales resolved to report Spencer to

Commander Mackenzie as soon as possible. The next morning, and able to easily get to Mackenzie, Wales had reported to high school high school to ganzi Ort, and now ganzi Ort was telling Mackenzie. At first, the captain could not believe it. It seemed to me so monstrous, so improbable, that I could not forbear treating it with ridicule. Mackenzie later wrote, I was under the impression that mister Spencer had been reading some piratical stories and had amused himself with mister Wales.

But improbable or not, Mackenzie felt he had a duty to investigate. He told ganzi Ort to watch Spencer closely. Ganza Ort followed Spencer all day, and what he saw concerned him. I had observed, Gansibort reported to Mackenzie that he was exceedingly intimate with the crew. I had noticed as individuals passed him by a strange flashing of the eye. When Spencer had caught Ganzibart watching him, he had looked at the lieutenant, in Ganshwort's words, with the most infernal

expression I have ever seen upon a human face. Moreover, gans of Ort had seen Spencer pouring over a map of the Caribbean and asking the ship's surgeon, Richard Leacock, about the Isle of Pine's, a notorious pirates haunt. It wasn't much to go on, but Ganzibort and Mackenzie were now convinced that Spencer was up to something. They couldn't risk a mutiny. Mackenzie decided that Spencer should be detained. When he approached Spencer and asked him about the plan,

Spencer replied that it was just a joke. This joke, Mackenzie told Spencer, may cost you your life. He ordered that Spencer be shackled, and, because the Summers had little free space below deck, be taken to the quarter deck and kept under observation. The next day, the investigation into the mutiny continued. Lieutenant Ganziwort and Midship in Henry Rogers searched Spencer's belongings. Inside his razor case. They found several

pieces of paper. Two of these were written in Greek letters. Rogers, who could read Greek, translated the words. It turned out, were just English words spelled out with Greek characters. On one page, a paragraph read those marked X will probably be induced to join before the project is carried into execution. The remainder of the doubtful will probably join when the thing is done. If not, they must be forced. If any not marked down wish to join after it is done,

we will pick out the best and dispose of the rest. Below, a list of names was sorted into three categories, certain, doubtful, and to be kept Nolan's Volan's willingly or not. It was a damning document, to be sure, but also a confusing one. The list of crew members who were certain was small and included the name E Andrews, which did not match anyone on board. Elisha Small's name was not on the certain list, but per Wales's story, he was

indeed involved. Despite these discrepancies, Mackenzie was now sure that Spencer had been plotting a mutiny, and the captain had concerns about Samuel Cromwell too. Spencer had not mentioned to Cromwell to Wales, and Cromwell's name was not anywhere on Spencer's list, but Cromwell was known to be close to Spencer. That afternoon, Mackenzie's suspicions seemed to be confirmed. One of the ship's top masts suddenly collapsed, causing a number of

sails to fall. In the chaos that followed, Mackenzie noticed that Cromwell and Small were first on the scene. Had they caused the mast collapse? He wondered, It was just the type of distraction that mutineers could use to their advantage. It was true that no uprising had begun. The masts and sales were repaired, but Mackenzie believed that the crisis had only narrowly been averted. He ordered Cromwell and then

Small arrested and stowed on the quarter deck. Cromwell denied any involvement in the plot, and Spencer also said that the man was innocent. Small, on the other hand, said that he had heard of plans. Mackenzie informed the three men that they would be kept under lock and key until the ship arrived back in America, where they would be tried for the crimes. Over the next three days, tensions on the ship reached a fever pitch. Mackenzie ordered

his officers to arm themselves and patrol the ship. He informed the crew about the mutiny plot and warned them to abandon any schemes to free the prisoners. He arrested three more men believed to be connected with Spencer and put them on the quarter deck. These further arrests brought new concerns. The Summers was a small ship, Surely it could not hold many prisoners, and Mackenzie was convinced that the existing prisoners were plotting an escape with their uncaptured

co conspirators. Maybe the leaders of the mutiny needed to be removed permanently. Mackenzie had always seen his ships as quote little worlds, self contained environments in which discipline meant harmony. One bad apple could spoil the whole bunch, But he didn't want to make such a serious decision alone. On Wednesday, November thirtieth, Mackenzie wrote a letter to his officers asking them to investigate the situation on board and come to

a conclusion about the best path forward. The seven officers moved swiftly. They took over the wardroom, the officer's mess hall, and brought in crew members for questioning. Many of the crewmen claimed that Spencer had spoken to them about dreaming of being a pirate and of hoping to have a ship of his own. They all agreed that Spencer, Small and Cromwell were the ringleaders. Many of the sailors spoke especially harshly about Samuel Cromwell. The questioning continued throughout the

day and into the next morning. The officers reached a decision. They wrote to Mackenzie and told him that they believed the prisoners should be executed. Mackenzie wasted no time in carrying out the sentence. Summoning the crew to the deck, McKenzie donned his full dress uniform and told his officers to arm themselves. Then he told the prisoners their fate. Elishah Small took the news calmly. Philip Spencer began to weep. Samuel Cromwell fell to his knees and yelled, God of

the Universe, looked down upon my poor wife. I am innocent. Spencer regained his composure and told Mackenzie quote, as these are the last words I have to say, I trust they will be believed. Cromwell is innocent. Mackenzie was unsettled. Seeking reassurance, he questioned his officers if they were certain of Cromwell's guilt. They said they were, and this was enough for the captain. Returning to Spencer, mackenzie began a

strange conversation with the eighteen year old. When Spencer said that he felt bad for wronging his parents, Mackenzie told Spencer that his father was part of the reason for his death sentence. If mackenzie had taken Spencer back to the United States for court martial, the captain said, John Spencer likely would have interfered in the trial for those who have friends or money in America, Mackenzie said there was no punishment for the worst of crimes. He spoke

to Spencer for nearly an hour. He asked his steward to bring paper and ink so that Spencer could write a letter to his parents. When Spencer said he could not write with his hand shackled, Mackenzie wrote for him, and then finally the terrible moment arrived. The execution itself was gruesome and painful. The prisoners, faces covered, hands and

feet still shackled, had nooses fastened around their necks. The ropes trailing from these nooses hung over the yard arm of the ship, the large beam running perpendicular to the mainmast. Groups of men held the other side of the rope. On a signal the firing of a gun, the men pulled the ropes, dragging the prisoner's twenty feet in the air, where they slowly strangled to death, their bodies spinning in

the wind. Mackenzie, with the bodies still hanging above the deck, gave his crew a speech about the dangers of disobedience. The rest of the journey held a tenor of muted fear. The summers made it back to New York Harbor two weeks after the executions, and a messenger was quickly dispatched to Secretary of the Navy, Able Upsher. Soon news of the shocking events on board the Summers had spread across

the country. Most people praised Captain Mackenzie. The New York Tribune wrote, quote, by the prompt and fearless decision of Captain Mackenzie, one of the most bold and daring conspiracies ever formed. Was frustrated and crushed. But six days later, on December twentieth, John Canfield Spencer published his anonymous rebuttal

of Mackenzie's accounts of the events on board. Spencer questioned the legality of Mackenzie's impromptue on board court martial and questioned whether the threat of a mutiny was even real. The Navy promised a full investigation, but would an investigation be enough for John Spencer? Pending an investigation into the mutiny, no one was allowed to leave the USS Summers once it docked in New York. No one except Mackenzie, that was, who went to visit his brother in law, Matthew Perry Commodore.

Perry was now the commandant of the Brooklyn Navy Yard. Before leaving the Summers, Mackenzie ordered the arrest of eight more men who he believed to be involved in the mutiny. Criticism of Mackenzie was growing louder, both within and outside of the Navy. Captain Francis Gregory, commander of the USS North Carolina, visited the Summers after it docked. He was

horrified by conditions on board. I have never known the crew of an American man of war so dirty and dejected in their personal appearance as hers were at the time of her arrival here, he wrote a colleague. Gregory was also shocked by the number of floggings Mackenzie had ordered, a number Gregory said that was quote beyond all precedent within my knowledge. News of Gregory's discoveries quickly became public. On December twenty eighth, the Navy convened a Court of Inquiry.

This court could only investigate, it could not punish, and unlike in a traditional trial, the person being investigated did not need to appear in person. Mackenzie could instead submit his statement in writing. In writing his narrative of events, Mackenzie brought his authorial experience to bear to ill effect the document was bloated full of tangents and philosophical musings. Mackenzie's own legal counselor despaired of the narrative, calling it

quote a diabolical document. People wondered if, given the document's excessive length, the captain was protesting a little too hard, but the testimony of Mackenzie's officers supported their captain. Their stories were consistent with Mackenzie's narrati of On January twenty eighth, the day that would have been Philip Spencer's nineteenth birthday, the Court of Inquiry announced their findings. They concluded that quote the immediate execution of the prisoners was demanded by

duty and justified by necessity. It was a victory for McKenzie, but this was just the first battle. John Spencer, along with Samuel Cromwell's widow Margaret, were pushing to have Mackenzie tried for murder in a civilian court, but a judge ruled that a civilian court did not have jurisdiction over the case. Only a military court did. That meant a

court martial. Mackenzie himself had requested a court martial, believing that it would clear his name and believing that a civilian jury might not understand what he called his quote conscientious performance of my duty. Secretary Upsher agreed, and on February second, eighteen forty three, Commander Mackenzie's court marcial began. It took place at the Brooklyn Navy Yard, first Aboardisteship, and then when the audience grew too large, in the chapel.

The Navy charged Mackenzie with five crimes murder for the killing of Philip Spencer, oppression for the killing of Samuel Cromwell without sufficient cause, illegal punishment for the killing of Elishah Small, conduct unbecoming an officer for his treatment of Philip Spencer before his execution, and cruelty, and oppression for his excessive punishment of his entire crew throughout the voyage. Eleven high ranking naval officers served as jurors on the case,

serving in the prosecutor's role called in this context. The judge advocate was William M. Norris, a lawyer from Baltimore. Little is known about Dorris or how he was chosen for this role. It was a difficult job. Norris had to go into the trial completely unprepared because none of the Summers's officers would speak to him before the trial, but Norris was tireless and determined. Over the next five weeks, he relentlessly questioned the witnesses. The testimony could be repetitive

and tedious. Norris did not know who had valuable information until he managed to uncover it. But uncover it he did, slowly, steadily, Norris began to poke holes in the rock solid story of impending mutiny. One of Norris's main themes was how little evidence the captain and officers actually had. During his examination of First Lieutenant Gansuwort, Norris asked if ganzi Ort, in all the hours he spent guarding Spencer on deck,

had ever tried to question Spencer about the plan. If you made no inquiries of Spencer, Norris asked, what did you do in pursuance of the Commander's instructions to find out from mister Spencer what you could as to the mutiny? Ganzi Ort could only answer, I inquired among the crew. Ganzi Ort had, also, on Mackenzie's orders, followed Philip Spencer around on November twenty sixth. His observations, he testified, had convinced him that Philip Spencer was up to no good.

But Norris revealed how flimsy these observations really were. He asked gans of Ort, quote, was mister Spencer till the time of his arrest engaged in the usual duties of an officer of his station? Ganzi Ort admitted that Spencer had been, with the exception of getting a tattoo from a crew member. Sailor getting a tattoo was hardly unusual. Ganza Ort also claim that Spencer had given him quote a menacing look and displayed, quote, the most infernal expression

I have ever beheld on a human face. Was this the kind of evidence that justified executing a man? And what about proof of Cromwell's involvement? Norris got Ganziwort to admit that Cromwell's name never appeared on Spencer's alleged list of conspirators. Not only had the investigation been shoddy, Norris implied, but it had also trampled on the prisoner's civil rights. From the time of Spencer's arrest to the time of his execution, did any officer explain to mister Spencer his

situation and what was contemplated in respect to him? Norris asked ganz of Ort. Ganza Ort said no, neither had Cromwell nor Small been warned that they were on trial for their lives until the sentence had already been passed. Norris pushed the officers as to why they had not sought a solution other than execution. Had the officers ever considered just trying to reach a port they were in the West Indies when they first learned of the mutiny

nearby islands abounded. Norris asked Acting Master Matthew Perry, the twenty one year old son of Commodore Perry, why they had not tried to take the ship into harbor and get help in suppressing the alleged mutiny. Was discussed as

to whether she could be taken into Saint Thomas. Matthew replied Saint Thomas at this time was a Danish colony, but the officers did not want to go to Saint Thomas for help or any other foreign island, because, Matthew explained quote, it would be a disgrace to the United States, the Navy, and particularly to the officers if an American man of war could not protect herself. A few men's lives were a small price to pay to save face.

It seemed many in the public believed that fear had been a motivator in the officer's decision, fear for their lives and for the lives of the crew, But Norris pointed out that some of their behavior before the execution did not hint a true fear. All the officers cited the incident of the collapsing mast as proof that danger

was imminent. Norris asked Matthew Perry about the event. Matthew had been below deck when he heard the ruckus above and ran up to see what the matter was, but he didn't arm himself before running up, and Norris reminded Matthew for his testimony at the Court of Inquiry. After seeing the situation, Matthew quote went below because he found nothing to do if he really thought mutiny was imminent, Norris asked Matthew Perry, would it not have been your

duty to remain on deck. There were also troubling inconsistencies in the officer's stories. While investigating the case, Norris had learned that before the execution, Mackenzie had transcribed a letter from Spencer to his family, but in his narrative, Mackenzie claimed that this had never happened, that Spencer had declined to write a letter, and the Spencer family had never

received a letter. Initially, the officers had backed up their captain's claims, but Norris, armed with his discoveries, pushed the officers for the truth. Oliver Perry, the seventeen year old commander's clerk and another son of Matthew Perry, initially testified that he had not seen any writing, but under pressure he admitted that he actually had. In the face of Oliver's testimony, Mackenzie now admitted that he had helped Spencer

write a letter. Two more men, Edbert Thompson and Daniel McKinley, confirmed that they had seen the pair writing something. Where was this letter? The letter would appear under strange circumstances Almost a week later, on March fourteenth, Mackenzie said he was too ill to come to court and the court martial was adjourned. This continued for three days. The court would assemble only to receive a note excusing Mackenzie from appearing. These notes were all signed by the Summers surgeon, Richard

Lee Cock. Eventually, on March seventeenth, Mackenzie showed up, bringing with him a document that he claimed was the one he had written with Spencer on the day of the execution. This document is baffling, to say the least. It reads like a stream of consciousness of the hours leading up to the execution. Occasionally the narrator seems to be Philip Spencer,

but Mackenzie's voice dominates. The writing is nearly illegible, many sentences are fragmented, and there is no reference to Spencer's family. Was this really the letter that Philip Spencer had dictated in his final hour? William Norris did not think so. He thought that Mackenzie, caught in a lie, had called in sick and used the time to write a letter. If Mackenzie was lying about this, Norris wondered what else was he lying about, but time to find out was limited.

The patience of the court, after nearly two months of repetitive testimony, was running out. On March twenty first, Norris told the court that he was resting his case. The next day, Mackenzie's lawyer, George Griffin, presented the case for the defense. He would not be calling more witnesses, viewing the evidence, and arguing his client's position. Griffin was a skilled lawyer and a passionate speaker. He spoke for an hour and a half, enthralling his audience, taking them on

to the Summers. In those trying days before the execution, a nation's honor was at stake. Griffin told the court, a vessel which had been consecrated as a defender of her country's glory and one of the protectors of the great commonwealth of civilized man, was about to be torn from her sphere and let loose a lawless wanderer upon the deep, carrying along in her devious course like a comet loosened from its orbit, devastation and terror and death. In the face of such a grave threat, what could

Mackenzie do but take immediate action? Griffin asked the court not to punish Mackenzie, but to commend him. Mackenzie, in Griffin's words, had quenched the flame of mutiny. He had saved not only the Summers but all future navy's ships from quote the demoralizing, destructive principle of insubordination. It was a powerful emotional message, especially to the career navymen who sat in judgment of Mackenzie. Over the next five days, all of the testimony was read aloud again. Then, on

March twenty seventh, William Norris presented his summation. Norris said Mackenzie was not a defender of American values, he was a destroyer of them. Though the military code was different from the civil law, Norris acknowledged naval men are still quote shielded by guaranteed privileges. The law tells of a legally constituted court of the right of challenging the judges, of examination and confrontment of witnesses. Whether or not Philip Spencer had really planned a mutiny, and Norris did not

believe he had. Spencer was still due these sacred rights. Public ships are creatures of the law, Norris concluded, and meant to sustain it and not to overstretch it. The Navy's officers are sworn to sustain the constitution, but Mackenzie had not upheld the law. Norris argued he had put himself above it. The panel of Navy officers deliberated for five days and then delivered their verdict on April first.

They had made the same finding for each one of the five charges Mackenzie faced on the charges of murder, illegal punishment, oppression, conduct, unbecoming an officer, and cruelty. Commander Alexander Slidell McKenzie was found not guilty. The verdict had not been unanimous. General court martials did not and still do not, require unanimity for a guilty verdict, only a

two thirds majority. The panel of jurors concluded that Norris had not addressed the fourth and fifth charges, those of unbecoming conduct and cruelty for the general treatment of the crew. On the charge of illegal punishment for the hanging of Elishah Small, the jurors unanimously acquitted mackenzie. On the charge of murder for the hanging of Philip Spencer. The jurors split nine to three in favor of acquittal. On the charge of oppression for the hanging of Samuel Cromwell, the

jury voted eight to four to acquit. The military also decided to release the remaining sailors whom mackenzie had ordered arrested. On March twenty nine, ninth, President John Tyler's cabinet met to discuss the verdict. The other members encouraged John Spencer to recuse himself from the meeting. He did not. Secretary of the Navy Abel Upsher recommended that he and Tyler

publicly declare that the verdict was an honorable acquittal. Upsher's support from Mackenzie apparently led to a full blown physical fight between himself and John Spencer, which the President had to break up. President Tyler himself was not happy about the verdict. He had read the court martial transcript and believed that Mackenzie ought to have been found guilty, but his hands were tied under the constitutional prohibition against double jeopardy.

Mackenzie could not be retried for a crime he had been acquitted of, and Tyler did believe that the court proceedings had been fair. Nonetheless, the President made his true feelings clear. As long as my power should last, he said, Mackenzie should never be a trusted with another command. He publicly approved the verdict, but refused to call it an honorable acquittal. Despite the President's criticisms, many people supported Mackenzie. A public fund was taken up to cover his legal fees.

The famous poet Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, author of poems such as Paul Revere's Ride, was just one of Mackenzie's prominent fans. Longfellow, who knew Mackenzie through Washington. Irving wrote to Mackenzie after the court martial, saying, quote, the voice of all upright men, the common consent of all the good is with you. Mackenzie, delighted and apparently remorseless, replied with the suggestion that Longfellow

write an epic poem about the USS Summers. But Mackenzie's reputation was permanently painted by the Events on the Summers. This was in part thanks to another famous literary figure, one who made his disgust with the acquittal public in impressive form. James Fenimore Cooper, best known today as the author of the Last of the Mohicans, had pre existing beef with Mackenzie. The two had disagreed over Cooper's writings

about the Battle of Lake Erie. Cooper had served in the Navy himself and felt uniquely qualified to judge Mackenzie's actions, believing that his insights might be helpful to others. Cooper published two extensive dissections of the events on the Summers and the proceedings of the court martial. In the dramatically titled The Crews of the Summers Illustrative of the Despotism of the Quarterdeck and of the unmanly conduct of Commander Mackenzie.

Cooper methodically exposed the absurdity of the mutiny claims. The truth is, Cooper wrote, the story is an exaggeration. For all the testimony gathered by the officers from the crew, Cooper noted quote, not an individual gives any fact to corroborate his suspicions. He criticized the investigation, noting that it was on shaky grounds from the very beginning. Why had Commander Mackenzie so readily accepted the words of the purser's steward,

James Wales? Besides a personal dislike of Philip Spencer? What made his character so inherently less trustworthy than Wales's? Yes, Spencer had a record, but so it emerged, did Wales. The summer before the Summers's first official mission, Mackenzie had taken the ship for a practice run to Puerto Rico. While there, James Wales had gotten mixed up in some sort of trouble, serious enough that Mackenzie acknowledged it in his narrative of events. Why was Wales's word taken as

gospel while Cromwell, Small and Spencer were disbelieved? Cooper after walking through each piece of supposed evidence, from the flimsy importance of infernal expressions to the likely innocent explanation for the mast's collapse, dove into the captain's psychological motivations. Many people had attributed Mackenzie's harsh decision to fear, but we should remember, Cooper wrote that peril is the very thing

a sailor expects to meet, wishes to meet. Indeed, wherever he goes, he expects to face danger that requires more than a landsman's nerve to meet. Despite the ship's isolation and the tense circumstances, Cooper believed that a true naval officer should be better equipped to deal with such events than anyone else. Cooper also discussed a troubling point that had emerged during the court martial. Horace High School, the purser had been in charge of transcribing the officer's interviews

with crewmen during his testimony. High School acknowledged that some of the transcripts had been edited after the interviews concluded. This loose manner of taking down such important testimony, Cooper wrote, is not only illustrative of the want of a decent regard for the rights of the accused and for public opinion, but very justly lays the published account of it open

to grave suspicions. These suspicions would later be confirmed. A crewman, George Washington Warner, told his nephew, the journalist Frederick F. Van der Water, that the officers had fabricated part of his testimony. Warner, who had been flogged by Cromwell, had told the officers that he would hang Cromwell if he could. When the officers asked why, Warner said he'd just disliked

the man. But this answer didn't satisfy the officers. They pushed Warren to say he believed Cromwell was guilty of mutiny. When he would not, they dismissed him. When Warner next saw his testimony, someone had put in their own answer, attributing it to him. Now. When asked why he believed Cromwell should be hanged, the paper showed Warner saying, quote, because I believe him guilty. This example is a neat

illustration of the whole story of the USS Summers. From the beginning, Commander Mackenzie had believed Philip Spencer guilty, guilty of what exactly he did not know, but when he was given an opportunity to rid himself of a troublesome, disliked officer, Mackenzie did not hesitate. This isn't to discount the very real fear the officers of the Summers may have felt at the idea of a mutiny, but Cooper's point that naval men ought to be more for danger

than other men is a revealing one. Both he and William Norris pointed out that the heightened powers of a military commander should not give him greater leeway to act. Instead, it should subject him to stricter scrutiny. In other words, with great power comes great responsibility. This is particularly true

when those under your command are mainly children. The two experienced officers aboard, Commander Mackenzie and First Lieutenant ganzi Ort, should have remembered that their accused criminal was a fanciful teenager, and they should not have asked the officers, many of whom were teenagers themselves, to pass a death sentence. For Ganziwort's part, he seemed haunted by the whole ordeal. He would later be disciplined for drinking on the job and during the Civil War for running a sloop he could

demanded a ground. He never held command again and died in eighteen sixty eight. Ganzafort was not the only officer to apparently struggle with what happened on the Summers. On March thirty first, eighteen forty three, shortly before the verdict in the court martial was announced, Richard Leacock, the twenty eight year old ships surgeon who had both recommended the executions and written Mackenzie's sick notes during the court martial,

killed himself aboard the Summers. Mackenzie, on the other hand, never stopped defending himself. True to President Tyler's word, Mackenzie did not command another ship during that president's tenure. He spent this time at home working on his books. Then, during the Mexican War, he was given command of a steam freighter. This command seems to have passed without incident. On September thirteenth, eighteen forty eight, Alexander Mackenzie died suddenly

at home of a heart attack, aged forty five. Three years earlier, in eighteen forty five, the Navy had finally established a permanent, comprehensive officer training school. This school now the United States Naval Academy at Annapolis, Maryland, traces its history in part to the Summers. Per the Academy's website quote the incident cast doubt over the wisdom of sending midshipmen directly aboard ship to learn. By doing so, mackenzie had seen his hopes for an educated officer class realized.

But in a strange way, McKenzie had actually come closer to achieving Philip Spencer's dreams than his own. McKenzie had never become a truly famous author, nor risen to the highest ranks of the Navy, but he had, by taking the law into his own hands, become a pirate of sorts. Justice there was none of on board the Summers, James Fenimore Cooper wrote, A pirate's deck would have exhibited more mercy. That's the story of the court martial of Commander Alexander

Slidel mackenzie. Stay with me after the break to learn about how this case touched the life of yet another famous author. Lieutenant Gerrett gans of Ort was part of a prominent Dutch American family from New York. His grandfather, Peter Gansavort, had served as a general in the Continental Army during the Revolutionary War. Peter Gansibort had six children. One of them, a son named Leonard, was Gerret Gansifort's father. Another of Peter's children was a daughter, Maria. Maria married

a man named Allan. The couple would have eight children of their own. The third was a boy who would become perhaps the most well known chronicler of the nautical world, Herman Melville. Melville, who was only seven years younger than his cousin Garrett, was intimately familiar with the USS Summers.

He referenced the case in multiple works. The most direct connection is in his posthumously published novella Billy Budd, which tells the story of a British sailor who accidentally kills a sadistic officer who has wrongfully accused Bud of plotting

a mutiny. Bud, in turn, is himself executed. The men who hanged Bud, Melville writes, were brought to something more or less akin to that harassed frame of mind, which in the year eighteen forty two actuated the command of the US brig of War Summers to resolve upon the execution at sea of three men, Which resolution was carried out, though in a time of peace and within not many days sale of Home. Dryly, Melville says that the story is quote cited without comment, though his sarcasm makes his

real feelings clear. Over the years, many have chosen to comment more explicitly on the Summer's case. Some have supported Mackenzie's choices, others have denounced them, But the story has lingered on finding echoes in cases where questions of safety

are held up against the preservation of rights. Philip Spencer, Samuel Cromwell, and Elijah Small may have been silenced by a lack of due process, but their lives echo, As James Fenimore Cooper so powerfully put it, though the prince of perpetrator has safely passed the ordeal of a courtmercial, the blood of the slain cries from out the deep, and sooner or later will be heard, no matter what attempts may be made to stifle it. Thank you for

listening to History on Trial. My main sources for this episode were Richard Snow's book Sailing the Graveyard Seed, The Deathly Voyage of the Summers, The US Navy's Only Mutiny and the Trial that Gripped the Nation, and James Fenimore Cooper's The Crews of the summers illustrative of the despotism of the Quarterdeck and of the unmanly conduct of Commander Mackenzie. For a full bibliography, as well as a transcript of this episode with Citatis, please visit our website History on

Trial podcast dot com. History on Trial is written and hosted by me Mira Hayward. The show is edited and produced by Jesse Funk, with supervising producer Trevor Young and executive producers Dana Schwartz, Alexander Williams, Matt Frederick, and Mira Hayward. Learn more about the show at History on Trial podcast dot com and follow us on Instagram at History on

Trial and on Twitter at Underscore History on Trial. Find more podcasts from iHeartRadio by visiting the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen to your favorite shows.