During the early 1880s, the Royal Navy worked to develop a new type of warship, known as the torpedo cruiser.

Later designated as third-class cruisers, these vessels had the speed, size, and maneuverability to serve as a vanguard for ocean-going fleets of ironclads.

[1] Named the Curlew class, the ships' primarily armament consisted of a 6 in (15 cm) breach loading rifle (BLR) and a single torpedo tube mounted at the bow, with two torpedo carriages mounted on the fore and aft to engage targets on either side of the ship.

While the design resembled that of older gunvessels, these ships notably were made of steel and lacked sailing rigs.

In practice, they were too small and slow to function effectively with a fleet, while their complexity and cost made them unsuitable as standalone gunboats.