HMS Pelorus (1896)

History
United Kingdom
Name	HMS Pelorus
Namesake	Pelorus
Builder	Sheerness Dockyard, Kent
Laid down	May 1895
Launched	15 December 1896
Commissioned	1897
Fate	Sold for scrap, 1920[1]
General characteristics
Class and type	Pelorus-class cruiser
Displacement	2,135 long tons (2,169 t)
Length	313 ft 6 in (95.55 m) o/a 300 ft (91 m) p/p
Beam	36 ft 6 in (11.13 m)
Draught	16 ft (4.9 m)
Propulsion	Triple expansion engine, 2 shafts, 5,000 ihp (3,728 kW)
Speed	20 knots (37 km/h; 23 mph)
Complement	224
Armament	8 × QF 4 in (100 mm) guns 8 × QF 3-pounder guns 3 × machine guns 2 × 18-inch (450 mm) torpedo tubes
Armour	0.25in (gun shields) 2-1.5in (decks)

HMS Pelorus was the first of the Pelorus-class cruisers, and was laid down at Sheerness dockyard in 1895. Completed and commissioned into the Royal Navy in 1897, she was designed by Sir William White. Construction cost £154,315. The ship was well armed for her size, but was primarily a workhorse for the overseas fleet.^[2]

HMS Pelorus displaced 2,135 tons and had a top speed of 20 knots (37 km/h). She had reciprocating triple expansion engines and Normand water-tube boilers which could give 7,000 horsepower (5,200 kW) for limited periods of time with forced draught, and 5,000 horsepower (3,700 kW) under natural draught. It carried a crew complement of 224 men and it was armed with eight QF 4 inch (102 mm) (25 pounder) guns, eight QF 3 pounder (47-mm) guns, three machine guns, and two 18-inch (450-mm) torpedo tubes.