The Wager Mutiny was the mutiny of the crew of the British war ship HMS Wager after she was wrecked on a desolate island off the south coast of Chile in 1741. The ship was part of a squadron commanded by George Anson bound to attack Spanish interests in the Pacific. Wager lost contact with the squadron while rounding Cape Horn, ran aground during a storm, and wrecked on what would become known as Wager Island in May 1741. The main body of the crew mutinied against their Captain, David Cheap, abandoned him and a group of loyal crew members, and set off in a modified open boat (named Speedwell) via the Strait of Magellan to Portuguese administered Rio de Janeiro. On the Speedwell voyage most of the crew died from starvation, some were abandoned on shore, and a smaller boat with two men aboar