Ark RoyalThe HMS prefix was not used until the middle of the eighteenth century, but is sometimes applied retrospectively was an English

Kingdom of England

The Kingdom of England was, from 927 to 1707, a sovereign state to the northwest of continental Europe. At its height, the Kingdom of England spanned the southern two-thirds of the island of Great Britain and several smaller outlying islands; what today comprises the legal jurisdiction of England...

 galleon

Galleon

A galleon was a large, multi-decked sailing ship used primarily by European states from the 16th to 18th centuries. Whether used for war or commerce, they were generally armed with the demi-culverin type of cannon.-Etymology:...

, originally ordered for Sir Walter Raleigh

Walter Raleigh

Sir Walter Raleigh was an English aristocrat, writer, poet, soldier, courtier, spy, and explorer. He is also well known for popularising tobacco in England....

 and later purchased by the crown for service in the Royal Navy

Royal Navy

The Royal Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Founded in the 16th century, it is the oldest service branch and is known as the Senior Service...

. She was used as the English flagship in a number of engagements, including the battles that resulted in the defeat of the Spanish Armada

Spanish Armada

This article refers to the Battle of Gravelines, for the modern navy of Spain, see Spanish NavyThe Spanish Armada was the Spanish fleet that sailed against England under the command of the Duke of Medina Sidonia in 1588, with the intention of overthrowing Elizabeth I of England to stop English...

, and had a long career spanning over 50 years. Her fame led to a number of later warships of the Royal Navy being named Ark Royal in her honour, including a number of flagships of the fleet.

Construction and early years

Ark Royal was originally built to order by the shipbuilder R. Chapman, of Deptford

Deptford

Deptford is a district of south London, England, located on the south bank of the River Thames. It is named after a ford of the River Ravensbourne, and from the mid 16th century to the late 19th was home to Deptford Dockyard, the first of the Royal Navy Dockyards.Deptford and the docks are...

. The ship was to be called Ark, which became Ark Raleigh, following the convention at the time where the ship bore the name of its owner. The crown, in the form of Queen Elizabeth I

Elizabeth I of England

Elizabeth I was queen regnant of England and Ireland from 17 November 1558 until her death. Sometimes called The Virgin Queen, Gloriana, or Good Queen Bess, Elizabeth was the fifth and last monarch of the Tudor dynasty...

, purchased the ship from Raleigh in January 1587, for the sum of £5,000 (although this took the form of a reduction in the sum Sir Walter owed the queen: he received Exchequer tallies, but no money). Her new commander, Lord High Admiral

Admiralty

The Admiralty was formerly the authority in the Kingdom of England, and later in the United Kingdom, responsible for the command of the Royal Navy...

 of England Charles Howard, 1st Earl of Nottingham

Charles Howard, 1st Earl of Nottingham

Charles Howard, 1st Earl of Nottingham , known as Howard of Effingham, was an English statesman and Lord High Admiral under Elizabeth I and James I...

, known as Lord Howard of Effingham, described the sum as money well given. She was henceforth to be known as Ark Royal. As built, she had two gun deck

Gun deck

The term gun deck originally referred to a deck aboard a ship that was primarily used for the mounting of cannon to be fired in broadsides. However, on many smaller vessels such as frigates and unrated vessels the upper deck, forecastle and quarterdeck bore all of the cannons but were not referred...

s, a double forecastle

Forecastle

Forecastle refers to the upper deck of a sailing ship forward of the foremast, or the forward part of a ship with the sailors' living quarters...

, a quarter deck and a poop deck

Poop deck

In naval architecture, a poop deck is a deck that forms the roof of a cabin built in the rear, or "aft", part of the superstructure of a ship.The name originates from the French word for stern, la poupe, from Latin puppis...

 right aft. She was an effective warship, but tended to roll heavily, to the discomfort of the embarked soldiers unused to the motion.

Career

Her first action came in 1588 during the attack of the Spanish Armada

Spanish Armada

This article refers to the Battle of Gravelines, for the modern navy of Spain, see Spanish NavyThe Spanish Armada was the Spanish fleet that sailed against England under the command of the Duke of Medina Sidonia in 1588, with the intention of overthrowing Elizabeth I of England to stop English...

, when Ark Royal, as one of the largest vessels in the English fleet, was the flagship of Lord High Admiral Howard. After the initial defeat of the Armada, Ark Royal led the chase of the fleeing ships into the North Sea

North Sea

In the southwest, beyond the Straits of Dover, the North Sea becomes the English Channel connecting to the Atlantic Ocean. In the east, it connects to the Baltic Sea via the Skagerrak and Kattegat, narrow straits that separate Denmark from Norway and Sweden respectively...

 and beyond the Firth of Forth

Firth of Forth

The Firth of Forth is the estuary or firth of Scotland's River Forth, where it flows into the North Sea, between Fife to the north, and West Lothian, the City of Edinburgh and East Lothian to the south...

. She was also used as Howard's flagship during the 1596 raid on Cádiz

Cádiz

Cadiz is a city and port in southwestern Spain. It is the capital of the homonymous province, one of eight which make up the autonomous community of Andalusia....

, which resulted in the destruction of much of the Spanish

Spanish Empire

The Spanish Empire comprised territories and colonies administered directly by Spain in Europe, in America, Africa, Asia and Oceania. It originated during the Age of Exploration and was therefore one of the first global empires. At the time of Habsburgs, Spain reached the peak of its world power....

 fleet at harbour. Ark Royal was again the flagship during 1599 when a Spanish invasion again threatened.

On the accession of James VI and I

James I of England

James VI and I was King of Scots as James VI from 24 July 1567 and King of England and Ireland as James I from the union of the English and Scottish crowns on 24 March 1603...

 to the English throne, Ark Royal was renamed Anne Royal, after his consort, Anne of Denmark

Anne of Denmark

Anne of Denmark was queen consort of Scotland, England, and Ireland as the wife of King James VI and I.The second daughter of King Frederick II of Denmark, Anne married James in 1589 at the age of fourteen and bore him three children who survived infancy, including the future Charles I...

. She was then rebuilt at Woolwich Dockyard

Woolwich Dockyard

Woolwich Dockyard was an English naval dockyard founded by King Henry VIII in 1512 to build his flagship Henri Grâce à Dieu , the largest ship of its day....

 in 1608 by Phineas Pett I as a 42-gun Royal Ship. Under her new name, she was the flagship of Lord Wimbledon

Edward Cecil, 1st Viscount Wimbledon

Edward Cecil, 1st Viscount Wimbledon was an English military and naval commander.-Life:The third son of Thomas Cecil, 1st Earl of Exeter and grandson of Queen Elizabeth's great minister Lord Burghley, Cecil served with the English forces in the Netherlands between 1596 and 1610, becoming a captain...

 in the 1625 raid on Cádiz

Cádiz Expedition (1625)

The Cádiz Expedition of 1625 was a naval expedition against Spain by English and Dutch forces.The plan was put forward because after the Dissolution of the Parliament of 1625, the Duke of Buckingham, Lord High Admiral wanted to undertake an expedition that would match the exploits of the heroes of...

 which ended in disaster due to inadequate preparation.

Loss

She remained in service until April 1636, when she was being moved from the River Medway

River Medway

The River Medway, which is almost entirely in Kent, England, flows for from just inside the West Sussex border to the point where it enters the Thames Estuary....

to serve as the flagship of Sir John Pennington. She struck her own anchor whilst under way and stove in her timbers, sinking in the river. She was raised at a cost greater than her original purchase price, but was found to be damaged beyond repair, and subsequently broken up in 1638.