The multi-deck first rate evolves through repeated rebuilding

Seventeenth-century ships changed in dimensions, gun-deck layouts, armament, and names. Rebuilds appearing at roughly generational intervals allowed the Navy to incorporate stronger structures and heavier batteries while retaining continuity with an earlier ship. These examples establish the design lineage that eventually produced the familiar hundred-gun first rate. HMS Victory emerged from that sequence of development. Higher freeboard and raised gunports also suited wider deployments into the Bay of Biscay, the Mediterranean, and the American colonies.