Historical reference: Do not rely on this information. It is very old. About this collection
Pressgang. Impressment was a recognised means of recruiting the British navy from the reign of John to that of William IV., and, though it has now fallen into disuse, the laws regulating and thus sanctioning it have not been repealed. Sailors, fishermen, bargemen, and, on urgent occasions, landsmen were (with certain stated exceptions) liable to service between their nineteenth and their fifty-sixth years.