It contained the sub-division known as the “premier rang extraordinaire” , which included such vessels as the Royal Louis and the Soleil Royale.

Three masted, with two decks, seventy-six guns, and extreme manoeuvrability won the Superbe a lot of admirers, including the English. On the Superbe, Pepys commented, with some exaggeration, “She was forty feet broad, carried seventy-four guns and six months provision”. Her architect was the famous Jacques Noel Sane, requiring seven hundred men for the smooth running of the vessel.

The influence of the French Court on the arts during the reign of Louis XIV in the seventeenth century was considerable, but there was little similarity between the decorations of the French and British ships; of all the national styles, they were the least alike. One noteworthy exception was the practice of fitting open galleries or balconies, where the English followed the French.

In 1672, the eminent shipwright Anthony Deane was directed by Charles II to build his new ships along the lines of the Superbe, which had open galleries. They first appeared in 1673, and became increasingly common in English ships, and indeed in other nations ships.

Le Superbe joined Admiral Villaret de Joyeuse’s fleet. It was a period of great fights against the British fleet.

Le Superbe came to a tragic end being sunk in a storm in 1795. It was a masterful piece of art and beautiful sculpture that sank to the bottom of the ocean.