HISTORY OF MARINE ARCHITECTURE.
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After this time, the king appears to have uniformly countenanced and agreedto a regular arrangement, which provided for the constant repair of such shipsas were in a state to be rendered, or kept serviceable, and the construction ofsuch new ships as were necessary, to supply the place of those,' which fallinginto a state of decay, became what is called not sea worthy. It is evident, inconsequence of this very wise and prudent regulation, that at the time of thereport made in the year 1618, there were then in the royal navy seventeenvessels, of different descriptions *, that had been built since the accession ofking James himself.
The first of these was the Prince Royal, a ship of twelve, or as some authorshave it, fourteen hundred tons, built in the year 1610. This ship was at thattime considered as one of the most wonderful efforts of human genius, and the fol-lowing account of it, given in Stow’s Annals, notwithstanding it has been alreadyfrequently quoted, and transcribed by different authors, will connect that chainof improvements in Marine Architecture, which being progressively describedat the time, or soon after they severally took place, form of themselves noslender history of the subject.
“ This year the king builded a most goodly ship for warre, the keel whereofwas 114 feet in length, and the cross beam was 44 feet in length: she willcarry 64 pieces of ordnance ■j-, and is of the burthen of 1400 tons. This royalship is double built, and is most sumptuously adorned, within and without, withall manner of curious carving, painting, and rich gilding, being in all respectsthe greatest and goodliest ship that ever was builded in England : and this glo-rious ship the king gave to his son Henry, prince of Wales ; and the 24th ofSeptember, the king, the queen, the prince of Wales, the duke of York, andthe lady Elizabeth, with many great lords, went unto Woolwich to see itlaunched ; but because of the narrowness of the dock it could not then belaunched : whereupon the prince came the next morning by three o’clock, and
* Out of the forty-two which composed it.
t But had no more than 55 mounted, the vacant ports being supplied, in time of action, as is evennow customary, from the opposite side. This practice has been introduced for the purpose of takingoff’a part of that dead weight, which, in some situations, would strain ships so violently, as to renderthem extremely liable to injury, and perhaps destruction, in a heavy gale of wind. The aftermost guns, inparticular, are very apt to bring this inconvenience with them, if the ship has a very clear run abaft;or, to speak in terms more generally intelligible, if that part of her bottom, near the stern, is finelytapered down to the keel, as is generally the case in ships of war, it being most indispensably necessaryfor the purpose of rendering them swift sailers.
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