Nathaniel's Nutmeg

The 25th anniversary edition of the much-beloved true adventure tale of Nathaniel Courthope; "A magnificent piece of popular history" (The Independent on Sunday).

The tiny island of Run is an insignificant speck in the Indonesian archipelago. Just two miles long and half a mile wide, it is remote, tranquil, and largely ignored.

Yet four hundred years ago, Run's bountiful harvest of a then-priceless spice, nutmeg, turned it into the most lucrative of the Spice Islands, precipitating a battle between the all-powerful Dutch East India Company and the British Crown. Out of the fighting came one of the most spectacular deals in history: Britain ceded Run to Holland, and in return was given Manhattan. This led not only to the birth of New York but also to the beginning of the British Empire.

The man who made it all possible? Nathaniel Courthope and his small band of adventurers, who were sent to Run in 1616, and for four years held off the massive Dutch navy.

Nathaniel's Nutmeg centers on the remarkable showdown between Courthope and the Dutch Governor General Jan Coen, and the brutal fate of the mariners racing to Run to reap the limitless profits of the spice trade. Written with the flair of a historical sea novel but based on rigorous research, Giles Milton's Nathaniel's Nutmeg is a brilliant, true tale of high adventure in the South Seas.

Acknowledgements v

List of Illustrations and Maps X-Xl

Prologue 1

1 Arctic Whirlwinds 9

2 Wonderfully Unwholesome Climes 41

3 Music and Dancing Damsels 66

4 In the Paws of the Lion 97

5 'Admiral,We Are Betrayed!' 134

6 A Rebel at Sea 162

7 The Cannibals' Country 190

8 The Banner of Saint George 219

9 Conflict between Gendemen 245

10 Raising the Blood-Flag 271

11 Trial by Fire and Water 309

12 Striking a Deal 343

13 Epilogue 366

Bibliography 375

Index 379