| Class overview | |
|---|---|
| Name | Adonis class |
| Operators |  Royal Navy |
| Preceded by | Ballahoo (or Fish) class |
| Succeeded by | Cuckoo (or Bird) class |
| Planned | 12 |
| Completed | 12 |
| Lost | 7 |
| General characteristics [1] | |
| Tons burthen | 110 93⁄94 (bm) |
| Length |
|
| Beam | 20 ft 4 in (6.2 m) |
| Depth of hold | 10 ft 3 in (3.1 m) |
| Sail plan | Schooner |
| Complement | 35 |
| Armament | 10 × 12-pounder carronades |
The Adonis class was a Royal Navy class of twelve 10-gun schooners built under contract in Bermuda during the Napoleonic War. The class was an attempt by the Admiralty to harness the expertise of Bermudian shipbuilders who were renowned for their fast-sailing craft.[1] The Admiralty ordered twelve vessels on 2 April 1804.
Winfield reports, based on Admiralty records, that although all twelve were ordered as cutters, all were completed as (or converted to) schooners. An article in the Bermuda Historical Quarterly reports that eight were built as cutters (Alban, Bacchus, Barbara, Casandra, Claudia, Laura, Olympia, and Sylvia), and three as schooners (Adonis, Alphea, and Vesta). The account does not mention Zenobia, but does mention that Laura and Barbara (at least) were re-rigged as schooners.[2] The discrepancy lies in the poor communications between the Navy Board in Britain and the builders in Bermuda, as well as in deficiencies of record-keeping. Alterations in the masting and rigging of small (unrated) combatants were not infrequent at this time.