The class comprised Vesuvius, Cornelis Dirks, Reinier Claessen, Het Loo, Reteh and Prinses Maria.

However, the plan also recognized that in the East Indies, there were 'too many points to occupy, too many seas to patrol, and too many corners to penetrate' to use only these still costly ships.

[6] In Dutch the lead ship Vesuvius (as well as the Bali, Soembing and Montrado) were first called schooners,[7] or even schroefstoomschooner.

She did very well, but authorities in the Indies wanted to have more cargo space in the ships, and more power, so they could use them for transport duties.

The Vesuvius was designed to have more steam power, more cargo space, and to be able to mount a heavy battery.

Therefore, the appearance of the French ironclad Gloire in August 1860 did not mean that the Vesuvius class became obsolete.

There might be some doubt about the lead ship of the class Vesuvius because of an error that Tideman made in his famous Memoriaal (1880).

[6][11] In his Verhandeling over de scheepsbouwkunde als wetenschap (1859) written at the time the Vesuvius was built, Tideman does give the correct dimensions: Length 43,0 m, beam 9.16 m, draught 3.46 m, 120 hp, displacement 651 cubic meters.

Her captain Arntzenius noted that the ship had to pay the pilot in Jamaica according to the tonnage (Dutch tonnemaat, not displacement) range of 400-700 tons.

[13] Furthermore, the Explanatory Memorandum (Dutch: Memorie van toelichting) for the 1860 naval budget clearly states that the 5 other ships were built to the model of the Vesuvius.