Sovereign of the Seas

[shipstamps]

Sovereign of the Seas was the largest, most expensive, most heavily armed, most richly decorated and most feared vessel of her day. Ordered by Charles I, she was built to the designs of Phineas Pett, the great English shipwright of the period. Costing £65,586 16s. 9d., the ship was launched by the King himself at Woolwich in 1637, and of the total cost, £6,700 went on gilding and decoration. This work was performed by the Royal master-carver, Gerard Christmas, his sons and assistants, after drawings by Van Dyck.
The vessel's figurehead represented Edward the Peaceful riding down seven enemy kings. The remainder of the beak was covered with carvings of Henry VIPs greyhounds and heraldic arms, while figures, beasts, angels, cherubs, musical instruments, Roman emperors, goddesses, a variety of weapons, flowers, helmets, cuirasses and signs of the Zodiac were lavishly carved wherever space could be found and heavily gilded. It is hardly surprising that the unwilling public, faced with the heartily-detested "Ship-Money Tax" imposed by Charles I, thought that the carving and gilding of the Sovereign of the Seas was too expensive.
Measuring 128 ft. on the keel, 167 ft. overall and having a maximum width of 48 ft., she was only the second three-decker to be built for the Royal Navy and carried 102 brass guns. Her rigging was a departure from the older four-masted type, but her mizzen mast was much larger to compensate. On this mizzen she carried a square topsail and topgallant sail.
In 1652 Cromwell had the vessel cut down to a two-decker, as she lay so deep that it was nearly impossible to use the lowest batteries when the vessel heeled over. The ship proved to be a much better fighting unit after this improvement to her draft, which had been 28'/2 ft. She was renamed Sovereign and although Cromwell had ordered that all ships of the Navy had to be painted a "sad" colour and the gilding covered, an exception was made in the case of the Sovereign, which was allowed to retain her sparkle.
At the restoration in 1660 she was renamed Royal Sovereign, the second of the name, a previous namesake having been built in the reign of Henry VII and serving in the French Wars of 1512. The Royal Sovereign took part in the various wars against the Dutch from 1666 to1673 and fought with distinction in the battles of St. James' Day, the Texel and Schoonveldt. The Dutch named her the "Golden Devil ", a tribute to her fighting merit as well as to her appearance. At one period she was the flagship of the famous Prince Rupert. In 1692 she was the flagship of Vice-Admiral Sir Ralph Delavel of the Red, when she took part in an action against the French Fleet under Admiral Tourville, off Barfleur. The French were forced to abandon the action and retreat to their home base.
The Royal Sovereign was sent to the Medway for rebuilding in 1696 and through the carelessness of "ship keepers" (watchmen) a lighted candle overturned, setting fire to the vessel, which quickly became a burned out wreck.
ANTIGUA BARBUDA SG2290 Bulgaria SG3287, San Marino SG 697, Hungary SG3847, Guinea-Bissau SG954 (SG names her as Royal Sovereign, but it is the same vessel)
Sea Breezes 4/63

[john sefton]

During Cromwell's Protectorate many ships of the former British Royal Navy have been renamed, at first it was decided to rename the ship in the " Commonwealth " , but in 1650, the ship «Sovereign of the Seas» became known simply «Sovereign». In 1651 the ship was again i made more maneuverable, with fewer guns and served during the wars of the Commonwealth, as the flagship of General Robert Blake. In 1660 Mr. armament of the ship was increased to 100 guns. After the Restoration, the ship was rebuilt at Chatham in 1660 as a 100 g-gun ship of the line 1 rank with a flatter Gondek and renamed the «Royal Sovereign». The ship was in regular service during the three Anglo-Dutch Wars. Secondarily reconstructed at the shipyard at Chatham in 1685

"Sovereign" old and dilapidated, and during the reign of William III was not used in active service, and was in reserve at Chatham. Career ship ended January 27, 1696 as a result of accident occurred on board the fire.

In honor of the ship Royal Sovereign was called a couple of other, more recent ships.

He participated in the battles of Kentish Knock, Beachy Head, Barfleur and La Hogue.

Information from Anatol

[Arturo]

Sovereign of the Seas

Paraguay, 1979, S.G.?, Scott; 1905b.

[Arturo]

Sovereign of the Seas

Equatorial Guinea 1975, S.G.?, Scott: 75166.

Djibouti 2000, S.G.?, Scott: 819f.

[Anatol]

Sovereign of the Seas
Sharjah1969;5dh;SG? Madagascar 1993;1000f;SG1008. DPR Korea1983;SG? Eynhallow(Holy Island Scotland) 2p Paraguay1974;0.10Gs.SG? Тоgоlaise1999;500f;SG?

[aukepalmhof]

Congo Republic 2015 500F sg?, scott?

SOVEREIGN OF THE SEAS
£1.55
The SOVEREIGN OF THE SEAS was built at Woolwich Dockyard as a personal project of Charles I. At this time, fighting ships were also statements of royal and national power, designed to boost the monarch’s prestige. They were richly decorated, carrying royal symbols, such as coats of arms and ciphers, and allegorical motifs. The Sovereign of the Seas marked the height of this trend with her extraordinary decoration, designed by the dramatist Thomas Heywood. The prohibitive cost of such ornamentation led to its reduction and eventual constraint to the ship’s figurehead. In common with other great wooden warships, the SOVEREIGN OF THE SEAS had a long career, being rebuilt twice to ensure her seaworthiness. Variously renamed Sovereign and Royal Sovereign, the ship saw action during the Anglo-Dutch Wars. However, increasingly leaky, the old ship was laid up at Chatham, where she was destroyed by fire in 1697.

Great Britain 2019 £1.55 sg?, scott?