John of England
John now needed to fight to get back 'his' land in France. In 1203 John ordered all shipyards in England to provide at least one ship, with the newly built Portsmouth Naval Base to provide several. He made Portsmouth the new home of the navy. By the end of 1204, John had 45 large ships available to him, and from then on an average of four new ones every year. He also created an Admiralty of four admirals, responsible for various parts of the new navy. During John's reign, major improvements were made in ship design. He also created the first big transport ships. John is sometimes credited with the founding of the modern Royal Navy.