HMY Britannia ( Royal Cutter Yacht ) His Majesty ' s Yacht Britannia was a gaff - rigged cutter built in 1893 for Commodore Albert Edward , Prince of Wales . She served him and his son King George V with a long racing career . Racing career . After the Prince of Wales ' nephew Kaiser Wilhelm II acquired the racing cutter " Thistle " in 1891 , her Scottish designer George Lennox Watson received a commission from Prince Albert Edward for a sailing yacht in 1892 . He designed " His Royal Highness ' Yacht Britannia " to the " Length And Sail Area Rule " as a First Class cutter and had her built alongside his America ' s Cup challenger " Valkyrie II " at the D & W Henderson shipyard on the River Clyde . She was launched on April 20 , 1893 , a week ahead of " Valkyrie II " . By the end of her first year ' s racing , " Britannia " had scored thirty - three wins from forty - three starts . In her second season , she won all seven races for the first class yachts on the French Riviera , and then beat the 1893 America ' s Cup defender " Vigilant " in home waters . Despite a lull in big yacht racing after 1897 , " Britannia " served as a trial horse for Sir Thomas Lipton ' s first America ' s Cup challenger " Shamrock " , and later passed on to several owners in a cruising trim with raised bulwarks . In 1920 , King George V triggered the revival of the " Big Class " by announcing that he would refit " Britannia " for racing . Although " Britannia " was the oldest yacht in the circuit , regular updates to her rig kept her a most successful racer throughout the 1920s . In 1931 , she was converted to the J - Class with a bermuda rig , but despite the improvements , her performance to windward declined dramatically . Her last race was at Cowes in 1935 . During her racing career she had won 231 races and took another 129 flags . King George V ' s dying wish was for his beloved yacht to follow him to the grave . On 10 July 1936 , after " Britannia " had been stripped of her spars and fittings , her hull was towed out to St Catherines Deep near the Isle of Wight , and she was sunk by HMS " Winchester " ( L55 ) , commanded by Captain W . N . T . Beckett RN . This fate marked the end of big yacht racing in Europe , with the smaller and more affordable International Rule 12 - Metre Class gaining popularity . " Britannia ' s " racing flag is preserved at the Royal St . George Yacht Club , which held two regattas in Kingstown for the first season of the RYA linear rating rule in 1896 . " Britannia " s skipper William G . Jameson had lost both races to the new " Meteor II " and the " Ailsa " . Britannia Replica . In 1994 a replica of " Britannia " was approved and laid down in Russia for a Norwegian owner . She is undergoing fitout in Cowes where she is planned to be rigged according to her 1931 J - Class specifications . Predecessors and Opponents . Previously Prince Albert Edward had acquired the 205 - ton schooner " Hildegarde " in 1876 , which he had replaced with the 103 - ton cutter " Formosa " ( Michael E . Ratsey , 1878 ) in 1879 , and the 216 - ton schooner " Aline " ( Benjamin Nicholson , 1860 ) in 1881 . From 1962 to 1969 , the British Royal family also owned the ocean racing yawl " Bloodhound " ( Charles E . Nicholson , 1936 ) . " Britannia " faced many opponents in her 43 - year career . The most notable were :