Foul (nautical) Foul (nautical) Foul is a nautical term meaning to entangle or entwine, and more generally that something is wrong or difficult. The term dates back to usage with wind-driven sailing ships. It is usually applied to the state of an anchor, which has become hooked on some impediment on the seafloor, or has its cable wound round the stock or flukes. The term is generally utilized when speaking of items of historical value such as the US Navy chief petty officer emblem. The foul anchor is also the official seal of the Lord High Admiral of the United Kingdom, presently
Nautical fiction importance of naval power in maintaining Britains' vast worldwide empire led to numerous novels with nautical themes. Some of these just touch on the sea, as with "Sylvia's Lovers" (1863) by Elizabeth Gaskell, where the nautical world is a foil to the social life ashore. However, British novelists increasingly focused on the sea in the 19th century, particular when they focus on the upper classes. In such works sea voyages became a place for strong social commentary, as, for example Trollope's "John Caldigate" (1877), in which Trollope depicts a character travelling to Australia to make his fortune, and Wilkie Collins's