Naval History caught up recently with the captain of the Amistad —a re-creation of the ship made famous by a movie of the same name. The movie is based loosely on what is known in history as "the Amistad Incident" of 1839. A group of Africans had been captured in what is now Sierra Leone and were to be slaves. Refusing to resign themselves to that fate, they staged an uprising and seized the ship, La Amistad . They were recaptured off the U.S. New England coast but eventually won a case that went to the Supreme Court, allowing them to sail back to Africa. While her crew prepared the ship to sail after a port visit to Annapolis, Maryland, the skipper of the Amistad (at right) talked with Naval History Editor Fred L. Schultz about life on board and the message the ship is trying to advance.
