Ferret and Lynx were built by Laird, displaced 280 tons and were 199 feet (61 m) in overall length.

Torpedo boats proved devastatingly effective in the 1891 Chilean Civil War.

In 1892, the Third Sea Lord, Rear Admiral Jackie Fisher ordered the development of a new type of ships equipped with the then novel water-tube boilers and quick-firing small calibre guns.

Six ships to the specifications circulated by the Admiralty were ordered initially, comprising three different designs each produced by a different shipbuilder: These boats all featured a turtleback (i.e. rounded) forecastle that was characteristic of early British TBDs.

The Ferret-class destroyers were followed by the larger Banshee class which were built by Lairds less than a year later.