HMS Bristol was the name ship of her class of wooden screw frigates built for the Royal Navy during the 1860s.

The engine produced 2,088 indicated horsepower (1,557 kW) which gave the ship a maximum speed of 11.8 knots (21.9 km/h; 13.6 mph) under steam.

[1] Bristol was initially equipped with thirty ML eight-inch (203 mm) smoothbore muzzle-loading guns (SBML) of 65 hundredweight on her gundeck.

These guns were designed specifically to fire the latest exploding shells, unlike the traditional solid cannonballs.

[2] 'An analysis of ship air and its effect' was made and reported during a four months' voyage (July to November 1871) from the Cape of Good Hope to England.