850 sailors was what was required to both service the guns and handle the sails to permit maneuvering. When not engaged in combat, there was frequently more crew than there was work to be done, especially when compared to the size of crews on merchant vessels. Royal Navy ships had a strict routine of daily activities and the watch system usually meant no more than 4 hours of sleep at a time, but compared with other occupations, the life of a sailor in the Royal Navy was not the abusive agony that is portrayed in modern lore and movies.
Churchill: “traditions of the Royal Navy, provoking the reply: ‘And what are they? They are rum, sodomy and the lash’.”
RVN we did receive a beer ration.
Methinks ground pounding is better!