Sovereign 40 Ketch
Description
The Sovereign 40 Ketch is a British sailboat designed as a robust long-distance cruiser, suitable for coastal cruising, family voyages, and occasional offshore passages. It features a fiberglass monohull with a fin keel and skeg-hung rudder for balanced handling and protection, a wide beam for stability, and a ketch rig for versatile sail management and strong downwind performance in moderate winds. The design emphasizes seaworthiness with a moderate displacement/length ratio for stable motion and a high ballast ratio for stiffness in gusts, with a comfort ratio classifying it as a bluewater-capable yacht. Introduced in 1990 by Sovereign Yachts in Dartmouth, United Kingdom, the Sovereign 40 was designed by Ian Anderson as a larger development of the successful Sovereign 32, targeting serious cruisers during the late 1980s/early 1990s fiberglass market. Production ran until around 1995, with approximately 50–100 units built, focusing on custom-quality GRP construction for offshore reliability. The ketch rig variant was popular for its balanced sail plan, allowing easier handling in heavy weather.
Construction Details
| Designer | Ian Anderson |
|---|---|
| Builder | Sovereign Yachts in Dartmouth, United Kingdom |
| Length | 40.000 ft |
| LOA | 40.000 ft |
| LWL | 32.000 ft |
| Beam | 12.920 ft |
| Displacement | 20944 lb |
| Ballast | 8818 lb |
| Max Draft | 5.510 ft |
| Year Built | 1990 |
The standard boat dimensions
| i | 48.66 ft |
|---|---|
| j | 16.01 ft |
| p | 45.08 ft |
| e | 13.75 ft |
| p2 | 32.68 ft |
| e2 | 8.76 ft |
| i2 | - |
| j2 | - |
| I | J | P | E | P2 | E2 | I2 | J2 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 48.66 ft | 16.01 ft | 45.08 ft | 13.75 ft | 32.68 ft | 8.76 ft | - | - |
Sails
Sovereign 40 Ketch - MAINSAIL
| Luff | * 45.08 ft - (13740 mm) |
|---|---|
| Foot | * 13.75 ft - (4191 mm) |
| Leech | * 46.52 ft - (14179 mm) |
| Tack Angle | * 87.96 ° |
| Diagonal | * 46.66 ft - (14222 mm) |
| Head (inches) | * 6 in - (152 mm) |
| Area | 309.6 ft² |
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Sovereign 40 Ketch - JIBSAIL
| Luff | * 40.98 ft - (12491 mm) |
|---|---|
| Foot | * 21.31 ft - (6495 mm) |
| Leech | * 35.42 ft - (10796 mm) |
| Percentage LP | * 115 % |
| Length Perpendicular | * 18.41 ft - (5611 mm) |
| Deck Angle | * 12 ° |
| Area | 377.33 ft² |
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Sovereign 40 Ketch - GENOA
| Luff | * 48.66 ft - (14832 mm) |
|---|---|
| Foot | * 25.94 ft - (7907 mm) |
| Leech | * 45.68 ft - (13923 mm) |
| Percentage LP | * 150 % |
| Length Perpendicular | * 24.02 ft - (7321 mm) |
| Deck Angle | * 4 ° |
| Area | 584.32 ft² |
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Sovereign 40 Ketch - MIZZEN
| Luff | * 32.68 ft - (9961 mm) |
|---|---|
| Foot | * 8.76 ft - (2670 mm) |
| Leech-AftHdBd | * 33.45 ft - (10196 mm) |
| Tack Ang | * 88.02 ° |
| Diag (clew/head) | * 33.54 ft - (10223 mm) |
| Head (inches) | * 4 in - (102 mm) |
| Area (no Roach) | 142.99 ft² |
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Disclaimer. Boats are not all the same -- even when produced in the same factory of the same model. Sailrite does its best to publish accurate dimensions, but we often find it worthwhile to have our customers measure their boats carefully before we produce kits for them. You should take the same precautions, especially when the data is not from Sailrite. The information on this site is not guaranteed to be accurate. Sailrite offers this content as a service to our community, but takes no responsibility for the reliability of the data provided.