HMS Rover was an 18-gun iron screw corvette built for the Royal Navy in the 1870s, the sole ship of her class.

Rover was designed in 1872 by Edward Reed, the Chief Constructor of the Navy,[1] as an improved version of the Volage-class corvettes.

[1] The ship had one three-cylinder horizontal compound-expansion steam engine made by Ravenhill, Eastons & Co., driving a single 21-foot (6.4 m) propeller.

The engine produced a total of 4,964 indicated horsepower (3,702 kW) which gave Rover a maximum speed of 14.5 knots (26.9 km/h; 16.7 mph).

The ship carried 420 long tons (430 t) of coal, enough to steam 1,840 nautical miles (3,410 km; 2,120 mi) at 10 knots (19 km/h; 12 mph).

[1] The ship was initially assigned to the North America and West Indies Station, and was slightly damaged by grounding on one occasion.