HMS Mermaid was a Hawthorn Leslie three-funnel, 30 knot destroyer ordered by the Royal Navy under the 1896 – 1897 Naval Estimates.

After 30 September 1913 she was known as a C-class destroyer and had the letter ‘C’ painted on the hull below the bridge area and on either the fore or aft funnel.

[7] In July 1914 she was in active commission in the 6th Destroyer Flotilla tendered to HMS Attentive based at Dover.

On 28 October 1914 under the command of Lieutenant P Percival she was part of the anti-submarine screen for operations off the Belgian Coast.

From 22 August to 19 November 1915, along with Greyhound and Racehorse, she provided anti-submarine screen for several operations off the Belgian Coast.