What battleships, and for that matter what yardarm?
Maybe a Destroyer or a Frigate, and you'd have to run them up the signal mast.
But otherwise, sounds like a fine idea.
See "Clear and Present Danger", the book not the pitiful excuse for a movie. "Pirates", in that case one of the pirates, got run up on the signal lanyards, but not killed. Still it concentrated the mind of his partner rather well.
> See “Clear and Present Danger”, the book not the pitiful excuse for a movie.
I am going down to the library later today. Sounds like a rollicking good read!