HMS Hardy was a Albacore-class gunboat of the Royal Navy, notable for her action during the British involvement in the Taiping Rebellion.

[4] She had a two-cylinder horizontal single-expansion direct-acting steam engine, built by Maudslay, Sons and Field, with three boilers, providing 60 nominal horsepower through a single screw, sufficient for 7.5 knots (13.9 km/h; 8.6 mph).

[6] She eventually took part in the recapturing of Ningbo on 10 May 1862, capturing a Chinese flag thought to have belonged to Taiping general Chen Yucheng.

[7] On 31 July 1862, Hardy and Confucius assisted the French-led Ever-Triumphant Army in the capture of Yuyao.

[9] Frederick Townsend Ward, commander of the Ever Victorious Army, was fatally wounded by a shot in the early morning of 21 September.