The defeat of the Dutch armies by the French and the founding of the Batavian Republic in 1795 created confusion in the colonies and on overseas naval vessels about who was in power. This article adds the mutinies on board the Ceres and Medea to the interplay between the Curacao slave revolt of 1795 and the rise of the Curacaoan Patriot movement in 1796. The mariners independently partook in the battle for the political direction of the island and debated which side they wished to be on in the fight between the French Revolution and the British Empire.
