Contemporary model of HMS Prince bow detail. In 1670, The Prince, Chatham's first major warship, was launched. A replacement of the Royal Prince, it was used to re-establish the English superiority over the Dutch. HMS Prince was the finest English first rate ship of the 17th century. The Prince was a large ship: with a burden of 1,463 tons and a keel length of 131 feet, she carried a wartime compliment of 780 men and was armed with 100 guns. The service career of the Prince began in 1672 when she carried the flag of the Duke of York, then Lord High Admiral of England and later King James II at the battle of Solebay, in the third Dutch War. In the mid 17th century it was common practice to build an accurate scale model of the larger ships designed, and to submit these models to the Admiralty and the King for approval. Few of these models survived. *** Local Caption *** 8864