Sovereign of the Seas was a 17th-century warship of the English Navy. She was ordered as a 90-gun first-rate ship of the line, but at launch was armed with 102 bronze guns at the insistence of Charles I. Designed and built by Phineas Pett and his son, Peter at Woolwich Dockyard. Extravagantly decorated with gilded carvings against a black background, designed by Anthony van Dyck.
The text on the window gives the ship's burden as 1637 tons, and points out that is is also the year of her launching. Wikipedia gives her burden as 1605 tons.
The text on the window suggests that the people objected to paying for this ship. Wikipedia does not mention that but does say that Trinity House initially claimed that there was no port which could harbour the ship (possibly because she was too large?) but this problem was overcome.
The ship was later renamed Sovereign under the republican Commonwealth, and then HMS Royal Sovereign at the Restoration of Charles II.
In late 1695 she was sent to Chatham Dockyards for repairs and in mid January 1696 a fire burnt the ship to the waterline.
