Construction of the original was personally directed by Peter the Great following his visits to study shipbuilding at British Royal dockyards in the 1690s. The original ship was launched in 1703.
Soon after her launch, and as Peter’s flagship, the Shtandart took part in the Northern Wars but in 1719 Peter ordered she was to be “preserved forever as a monument to the art of shipbuilding”.
However, following the death of Peter the ship deteriorated and by 1728 had become derelict and was broken up. At the time, Peter’s widow Catherine ordered that a replica be built, but this didn’t happen until nearly 300 years later.