Named in honor of the Sun King, Louis XIV, Le Soleil Royal was one of the most powerful ships of her day. As flagship of the revitalized French Navy brought into being by Minister of Marine Jean-Baptiste Colbert, she was sumptuously decorated with wooden carvings depicting a variety of motifs emblematic of the French monarch.

The taffrail was embellished with a rendering of the sun god drawn across the sky by a team of horses, while the ornate figurehead showed a seahorse flanked by winged maidens.

On May 29, 1692, the Soleil Royal achieved its hour of glory. With a formation of 45 ships, she defeated the English and Dutch fleets, which boasted a combined strength of 97 vessels.