''La Réale'' ("the royal") was a

galley A galley is a type of ship optimised for propulsion by oars. Galleys were historically used for naval warfare, warfare, Maritime transport, trade, and piracy mostly in the seas surrounding Europe. It developed in the Mediterranean world during ...

of the

French galley corps French may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France ** French people, a nation and ethnic group ** French cuisine, cooking traditions and practices Arts and media * The French (band), a ...

, and the

flagship A flagship is a vessel used by the commanding officer of a group of navy, naval ships, characteristically a flag officer entitled by custom to fly a distinguishing flag. Used more loosely, it is the lead ship in a fleet of vessels, typically ...

of the French galley fleet under

Louis XIV LouisXIV (Louis-Dieudonné; 5 September 16381 September 1715), also known as Louis the Great () or the Sun King (), was King of France from 1643 until his death in 1715. His verified reign of 72 years and 110 days is the List of longest-reign ...

. She was designed by

Jean-Baptiste Chabert Jean-Baptiste () is a male French name, originating with Saint John the Baptist, and sometimes shortened to Baptiste. The name may refer to any of the following: Persons * Charles XIV John of Sweden, born Jean-Baptiste Jules Bernadotte, was Ki ...

, and built in Marseille between 1692 and 1694.

Status

''La Réale'' was termed a ''galère extraordinaire'' ("extraordinary galley") since she had a larger crew than normal fleet galleys.In the French nomenclature for galleys, "ordinary galleys" had 26 pairs of oars with 6 oarsmen per bank; "extraordinary" ones had 29, 30 or 32 banks with 6 or 7 oarsmen. The status of ''Réale'' was thus defined:

Legacy

The decorations of the

stern The stern is the back or aft-most part of a ship or boat, technically defined as the area built up over the sternpost, extending upwards from the counter rail to the taffrail. The stern lies opposite the bow, the foremost part of a ship. O ...

are on display at the Musée de la Marine in

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

. The museum also features a contemporary model of an ordinary galley modified to look like the ''Réale''.

Notes

External links

*
Les galères du Roi-Soleil
*
Ornements de poupe de la galère ''Réale''
{{DEFAULTSORT:La Reale (1694) Ships built in France 1690s ships Galleys of the French Navy