Claims have been made for the establishment of an English royal navy in the twelfth century. This article offers a reappraisal of the documentary evidence to assess whether Richard the Lionheart or his younger brother John can be credited with creating this instrument of royal power. Their use of ships in warfare and the possession of vessels by the Crown was very similar. A small group of ships owned by the king was quite common, but the casual use of the term ‘our galleys’ by clerks makes it difficult to distinguish these from the more numerous vessels on paid service to the crown. The major purpose of ships in warfare was to provide logistical support. More warlike actions were rare. Neither monarch had the resources or the need for more than a small squadron of ships owned by the crown. The evidence for the establishment of a naval base at Portsmouth is investigated and it is concluded that rather than a permanent dockyard it was simply a secure winter boat yard where the king’s vessels could be drawn up out of the water with their rigging safely stored. Technical developments in ship design and weaponry in the course of the sixteenth century and changes in the nature of warfare led to the emergence of what is rightly called the Royal Navy. However if the term is more loosely used for a squadron of vessels in royal ownership, which provided the core of conscripted fleets in actions at sea, it may, perhaps, be justifiably applied as early as the late twelfth century.

中文翻译：

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对理查一世和约翰统治时期国王船舰的重新评估，1189–1216 年

有人声称要在 12 世纪建立一支英国皇家海军。本文重新评估了文献证据，以评估狮心王理查或他的弟弟约翰是否可以归功于创造这种王权工具。他们在战争中使用船只和皇家拥有船只非常相似。国王拥有的一小部分船只很常见，但文员随意使用“我们的厨房”一词，很难将这些船只与为王室付费服务的更多船只区分开来。舰船在战争中的主要目的是提供后勤支持。更多好战的行动是罕见的。两位君主都没有资源，也不需要超过皇家拥有的一个小型舰艇中队。对在朴茨茅斯建立海军基地的证据进行了调查，得出的结论是，它不是一个永久性的造船厂，而是一个安全的冬季船坞，国王的船只可以在那里被拖出水面，并安全地存放他们的索具。十六世纪船舶设计和武器的技术发展以及战争性质的变化导致了所谓的皇家海军的出现。但是，如果该术语更宽松地用于表示皇家拥有的船只中队，它是海上行动中征募舰队的核心，也许早在 12 世纪后期就可以合理应用。