Roumania as an independent state achieved its nationhood only in 1861 and became a hereditary monarchy several years later. In keeping with the other European monarchies, it was decided that the new king Carol I should have the use of a royal yacht and a suitable vessel was commissioned from the Austrian builder Meyer at Linz. Displacing 420 tons, the yacht named in honour of Stefan the Great, one of the most famous of Moldavian Princes, and measured 58 metres in length with a 9.8 metre beam. Intended primarily for use on the Danube, she was sent down river from Linz when completed but collided with the steamer Szecheny above Galatzi on 18 March 1867 and was sunk. Eventually refloated and repaired, she was in use by 1868, remained in service until 1893, and was finally scrapped in 1908.