''Walking The Plank''

By Crusader1307

Iconic in Pirate “lore”, this Pirate punishment and execution was used as early as 1769. Candidates for Walking The Plank would earn this Punishment for Mutiny, Theft, violation of their Code, etc. It involved placing a wooden ship plank off the side of a ship. Fastened down, the Violator would be stripped of their weapons. In some cases their hands would be bound. Next, the subject was made to walk the plank until they fell off (or in most cases, pushed!). The Offender would fall into the Sea (to drown or be eaten by sharks). In other known cases, the offender would be blindfolded. Often, Crewmen would bet on how long (or how many steps it took) – for the Subject to fall!