Hydra-class sloop

Hecla in 1854
Class overview
Name	Hydra-class steam sloop
Builders	Chatham Dockyard
Operators	Royal Navy
Preceded by	HMS Gorgon
Succeeded by	Merlin-class sloop
Cost	£37,239[Note 1]
Built	1837–1839
In commission	1838–1870
Completed	3
Retired	3
General characteristics [1]
Type	Second-class steam vessel (later second class sloop)
Displacement	1,096 long tons (1,114 t)
Tons burthen	814 91/94 tons bm
Length	165 ft 0 in (50.3 m) (gundeck) 143 ft 7+1⁄4 in (43.8 m) (keel)
Beam	32 ft 10 in (10.0 m)
Draught	12 ft 1 in (3.7 m) (forward) 13 ft 0 in (4.0 m) (aft)
Depth of hold	20 ft 4 in (6.2 m)
Installed power	Hydra: 220 nhp Hecla & Hecate: 240 nhp
Propulsion	Hydra: Boulton and Watt side-lever steam engine Iron tubular boilers Side paddles Hecla & Hecate: Sinclair & Scott side-lever steam engine Iron tubular boilers Side paddles
Sail plan	Brig rig
Speed	9 knots (17 km/h) (under steam)
Complement	135
Armament	2 × 32-pounder (50 cwt) guns 2 × 8-inch (204 mm) 65 cwt pivot guns

The Hydra class were a class of three paddlewheel steam sloops of the British Royal Navy. They saw active service variously in the Baltic during the Crimean War, against Ottoman forces in Syria and against slavers in West Africa. Latterly, Hydra and Hecate were used for surveys in the Mediterranean, the Pacific, Australia and the Atlantic, and thus their names were re-used for the Hecla-class survey vessels in the late 20th century. Two of the classes were broken up after more than twenty-five years of service, and Hecla was sold for commercial use in 1863.

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