The main vestige of the naval power that Valencia was back in the 14^th and 15^th century is the Grao shipyards. They were where ships destined for either trade or war were built and fitted, even before the harbour existed, as Valencia was a key player in the Mediterranean expansion of the Crown of Aragon. In 1284, the king that made the earliest forays into the Mediterranean, Peter III the Great, authorised the consuls of the sea in Valencia to build a stall on the beach near the Vilanova del Grau neighbourhood to store the rigging of the boats and repair them when needed.¹ Back in 1321, there is evidence of the existence of a daraçana del rei (king’s shipyards) near the Vilanova slaughterhouses and on the road linking Grao with the city.² This shipyard was still in use in 1346 as an arsenal, but it should be distinguished from the town shipyards, which were built later.