BB-044 / Punishment
Keelhauling
The Act
A condemned sailor was tied to a rope and dragged under the ship from one side to the other, often repeatedly. Barnacles on the hull tore the body; drowning was common. The punishment was used by several European navies for serious offenses.
The Response
Keelhauling declined in the 18th and 19th centuries as naval discipline reformed and more standardized punishments replaced spectacular cruelty. It survives in historical accounts and naval lore.