It is a project for which the outpouring of support seems to have come from nowhere. In the past week, calls for a new royal yacht to be commissioned in the Queen's diamond jubilee year have been made with enthusiasm by politicians, business leaders and newspapers.

But on closer scrutiny it seems the support is part of a well-choreographed campaign to make the yacht a reality. The project has had the backing of the royal family, a national newspaper, and the tacit support of at least two major organisations, for more than two years, suggesting last week's enthusiastic headlines have been a long time in the planning.

The campaign can be traced back to the mid-1990s when a powerful group of industrialists and monarchists, anticipating the scrapping of the royal yacht, devised a replacement that would not require funding from the taxpayer.

Documents filed at Companies House show the Future Ship Project for the 21st century, known as FSP21, secured Buckingham Palace's support at least two years ago and probably as far back as 2009. According to the organisation's accounts for the 12 months ending 31 January 2010: "Agreement has been achieved with the palace that the FSP21 will provide royal apartments for use by the head of state."

The accounts show the organisation, which will also use the ship to train young sailors, has spent the past three years seeking to raise £80m by exploiting its "contacts with trusts and industry, livery companies, schools and local authorities".

They also note that "a national newspaper will raise public awareness of the project next year [2011]", suggesting that at least one title, thought to be the Daily Mail, had pledged its backing for the plan at least two years ago.

Two dinners held on board HMS Warrior, the Victorian warship berthed in Portsmouth, were used to market the project to potential donors. And the accounts confirm a business committee was established and that "letters have been sent to individuals and organisations seeking support".

The initiatives seem to have been a success. As far back as January 2010, the organisation, which is a charitable trust, revealed it had high hopes of securing funding from two major donors despite the "difficult fundraising climate", a reference to the recession that was then gripping the UK.

The accounts note: "Particular interest in the project has been expressed by British Antarctic Survey and Edexcel, who are the project's science and education partners respectively."

Edexcel is owned by the FTSE 100 company Pearson, and describes itself as "the UK's largest awarding body offering academic and vocational qualifications and testing to schools". It has major contracts with the Department for Education, whose secretary of state, Michael Gove, has been a vocal cheerleader for the project.

An Edexcel spokesman said: "In 2009, we had some initial conversations with the group about the educational aspects of their plans, and said we would be happy to offer our expertise in support, if and when the project came to fruition. We have not been closely involved with the project since then."

Last autumn, Gove wrote to David Cameron, stating that FSP21 "looks to be a highly commendable project, both for its contribution to our scientific knowledge and for the opportunities it offers to young people. I believe that approving this ship to become a royal yacht would be an excellent way to mark the Queen's diamond jubilee."

David Willets, the business minister, also wrote to the prime minister last year urging him to back the plan.

Last week the government said it would "react favourably" to the project, which is believed to be backed by the Prince of Wales and Princess Anne. In addition to royal events, the yacht would be used for trade and business events. It is expected to have room for "300 people – 200 trainees, 65 crew, 35 VIPs and passengers".

It also emerged that Cameron had written to the project's chief architect, Rear Admiral David Bawtree, a deputy lieutenant of Hampshire who represents the Queen in the county, giving his full support for the new 4,000-tonne, four-masted yacht last autumn.

On Friday, one of the Tory party's biggest donors, Lord Ashcroft, announced he was donating £5m to the project. Ashcroft said "the murmurings … of a privately financed replacement for Britannia are hugely heartening, even if there is a very long way to go to make this happen".

The murmurings were being made even before 1997 when the Labour government took the historic decision to decommission the royal yacht Britannia in its first year in office, a move that was greeted with dismay by the royal family.

Interviewed in Our Queen, Robert Hardman's book about the monarch, Tony Blair indicated he regretted the decision. "I think if it had happened five years into my time [as prime minister], I would have just said 'no'," Blair said. Britannia is now a tourist attraction in Leith in Scotland.

Anticipating the Labour government's decision, a group of businessmen formed the Cadland Consortium, which floated the idea of a privately financed yacht that would double as a training vessel. The idea was later supported by the then Labour education secretary, David Blunkett, who enthused about how it could raise "educational aspirations".

Although the project fell out of favour, several of its supporters refused to let it die. Bawtree, who is a director of Visor Consultants, a private security company, continued to make the case to potential donors. He has been supported by his fellow directors, Maldwin Drummond, former commodore of the Royal Yacht Squadron, and Graham Robb, an adviser to the DfE.

John Blashford-Snell, the explorer and founder of the Scientific Exploration Society, has also been an enthusiast for the scheme, explaining on the society's website: "In overcrowded Britain, as our wide open spaces are reduced, the peaks of the popular national parks are being worn down by hordes of hikers. Yet on our doorstep we have the finest adventure training area of all – the sea."

Last week their dream to replace Britannia, the 66th royal yacht in an unbroken line stretching back to 1660, came significantly closer to reality.