ROYAL DUC 1668-1671 by Heinrich der Seefahrer - based on Heller Soleil Royal - 1:92

[Heinrich der Seefahrer]

Hello friends in the as unsolvable closed thread about TERRIBLE - here the link to all that are interested:

 

we figured out very important content about the close relative of SOLEIL ROYAL 1668 - the ROYALBDUC later rebaptisted to REYNE/REINE. The renaming may also been gone aside withba more sorber decoration. This realtionship was announced by Marc with the followingbsimple few and important words:

"As a side note: La Reyne is the closest known corollary to Soleil Royal.  Same yard, same designer, built a year apart, and only slightly shorter in length and breadth.

 

The sheer presence of SR would have been very similar to this vessel.  Perhaps, she was a little bit taller at the stern in 1670, if she carried a poop royal deck."

 

In stead of a repetition of the development of the knowledge let us jump into the important points we do have as evidence and knowledge:

 

 

Sometimes you can trust in Wikipedia more

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/French_ship_Royal_Duc_(1668)

 

 

than in a 26 year old book of Jean Boudriot who's discriptions show a 76 gun ship. On page 319 we do finde some information we do not got presented unter the First Sunking's Navy at the very beginning. 

 

 

So the key documents of ROYAL DUC are the following  tetralogy:

 

and as scaled(!!!) drawing of the transom. 

 

 

The pure amount of details in these 380 year old drawings is incredible :

The galliin is very Dutch innstyle with its V-shaped structure and the figure head shows a horse riding man with a (kind of duke's crown or) contemporary stylish turban. There are a four circle round gunports for the VIII pounder guns of the backdeck. 

When we do walk along the hull aft we pass the cathead 

 

coming to the fenders and stairs 

 

 

This pictures of four tiers of gunnery's muzzels gives an impressive picture of the pure force brought to the battle line by ROYAL DUC in her two beattes she fought. 

 

She took part in the two beattes of Schoonveld on the 7. and 13. VI. 1671 (N.S.) and as LE REYNE thevship took part in the a beatte of Texel on 21. VIII. 1673. Under both names she acted as flagship of Vice-Admiral Jean d'Estrées. 

 

Turning to the quater gallery there arebstraight structured of an (fake?) window enclosed single tier with lozenge lead structure. The very first window is/can be used as a gunport. (In the middle of the Anglo-Dutch-War this may have been a secret information... were the vdVs spys in their second profession?)

The deck above the nicely shaped and figured roof isn't integrated in a kind of bigger artwork and so the officer's accomodation only got a pair of luxuriously framed windows. 

 

 

The coat is usualy ermine (stoat/short tailed weasel) in heraldic symbolism looking like this:

 

Allways black on a white background

 

- not to be confused with a fleur-de-lis! 

 

When we look at this vdV ink paintung we do recognize easily that foreward looking gunport in front of every battery deck below&beside the gallion. 

 

The wide gap between the piercings through the hull is very interesting. 

 

 

These for now I do hope on a cooperation with Cederic due to support e

ach other. 

 

ROYAL DUC had hat the following armament :

 

LD

16 × XXXVI ryl. frc. pound

14 × XXVIII rfp 

MD

30 × XVIII rfp

UD

26 × VIII rfp

F'c'st'l&QD:

18×VI rfp

 

,Here both views added to each other. 

 

 

ROYAL DUC's scilpturing program was more elaborated than the one after her rebaptism. So I have to look for differences like a hawk to figure out what ship is infont of me on the paper. 

[Heinrich der Seefahrer]

Marc pointed ozt that we do not now what the REYNE was looking like when she had had been ROYAL DUC so my concerns are are these pictures showing the sorbered ROYAL DUC of 1672 with all it's changes and after the rebaptistung towards REYNE? Do I have any chance to get her "back dated" to the 1668 state of decoration? 

 

What drawing is a proofed ROYAL DUC wand what picture is for shure showing a REYNE one? That sonds like a rivet counter - but I do not unwillingly build an other ship.

 

It is like planing to build the VICTORY of Trafalgar and ending with this

version that may be for the best reason being called the "real VICTOTY" as the famius ship served over 100 years in this shades of black and white... 

 

[Heinrich der Seefahrer]

This drawing is renamed from ROYAL DUC towards REYNE so

 

And due to this we have got the possibility to look at an original drawing of ROYAL DUC in its nativ decor made 1668. 

 

The window's lozenge lead framing is as shown on the vdV drawings in the lower tier and it looks like this is the same ship's drawing as the

curtains inna better solution here were clearly laural garlands

 

no curtains of reefed fabric as it looked like on my enlarged  photo copy it may also be the angel you do view onto the transom. 

 

So I think we do look onto the very same transom in the vdV drawing and the scaled plan of the transom - and there weren't any big alterations without changing the name at the 24. VI. 1671 in a ceremony. Alterations so it looks like were made onto the windows tier. These were altered from 7 windows in a row towards 5 twin windows in a row with wedge stanchions between every 2nd window.

The Quater Gallery shoes a number of six instead of four windows. 

 

But there is no obvieous interventions in the sulptural appearance as far as I do see now. Only the shield holdingbangels seam to be changed to bounded pirats/barbarians - showing the ships job much netter to fight privateers and pirats. 

All in all the earlier version looks a bit more glamour than the later. 

 

The upper tier didn't chance but the "round gun ports" in the transom of the UD did move from below the first and third window (from the CL) to the Position below the first and second stanchion - so much more to the CL to minimize listing. These may be errors of the artist or absolutely real alterations on the preparation of the rebaptisting. I did ask Cederic for support due to those complicated questions. 

 

What do you say? May this be right due to my evidence? Or am I moving along the very wrong track of a self fulfilling prophecy? 

Edited February 27, 2021 by Heinrich der Seefahrer

[Heinrich der Seefahrer]

From time to time an acquisition of books is helpfull in 

 

DU BOIS FONT ON FAIT LES VAISSEAUX... 

 

I found on page 76

 

the following not to the picture:

 

So we have to deal with the ROYAL DUC and the van de Velde pictures are absolutely showing REYNE. 

 

 

Sobthe detailling could be taken from this picture. 

 

Showing finest details and the correct number of windows. 

 

But most importantly we do have got a complete couronnament the rest is mirrowable.