1
general::
Be exposed to danger, criticism, or other adversity, as in After he was misquoted in the interview, he knew he would have to run the gauntlet of his colleagues' anger. This term, dating from the first half of the 1600s, comes from the word gantlope, which itself comes from the Swedish word gatlopp, for "lanecourse." It referred to a form of military punishment where a man ran between two rows of soldiers who struck him with sticks or knotted ropes. Almost as soon as gantlope appeared, it was replaced by gauntlet. The word was being used figuratively for other kinds of punishment by 1661, when Joseph Glanvill wrote, "To print, is to run the gantlet, and to expose oneself to the tongues strapado" (The Vanity of Dogmatizing, or Confidence in Opinion).
American Heritage Idioms
2
general::
Phrase(s): run the gauntlet
1. Lit. to race, as a punishment, between parallel lines of men who thrash one as one runs. • The knight was forced to doff his clothes and run the gauntlet. 2. and run the gauntlet of something Fig. to endure a series of problems, threats, or criticism. • After the play, the director found himself running the gauntlet of questions and doubts about his ability.
McGrawhill's American Idioms And Phrasal Verbs